Abstract
Concern has been raised that negative physiological and psychological effects of dieting may outweigh aesthetic and health benefits. This review of the literature concludes the following: (a) The measurement of dieting is an important unresolved issue; (b) current dieting, chronic dieting, desire to lose weight, specific weight control behaviors, and weight changes may have different effects on health and need to be distinguished; (c) dieting is usually not associated with nutritional deficiencies, adverse physiologic adaptations, severe psychological reactions, or the development of eating disorders; and (d) recommendations against weight loss efforts involving moderate changes in eating and exercise habits are not warranted.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 195-212 |
| Number of pages | 18 |
| Journal | Health Psychology |
| Volume | 13 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 1994 |
Keywords
- dieting
- eating disorders
- weight cycling
- weight loss