Obesity: Metabolism and Ethics in Weight Loss 

 

Overview

 

• Review clinical trials and comprehensive meta-analyses in the field of weight loss.

• See what happens to The Biggest Losers when they are followed for five years.

• Survey the attitudes of weight stigmatization common among the general public, medical professionals, nutritionists, and herbalists.

• Learn the scientific and logical fallacies in the idea that one can simply eat less and exercise more to lose weight.

• Review the science on the correlation of BMI with health and mortality.

• Review the pathophysiology of obesity as a metabolic disorder.

• Learn the endocrine roles and interaction of white and brown adipose tissue with the endocrine system.

• Learn some of the root causes of obesity.

• Learn the role of insulin resistance in some obese patients and learn which patients can benefit from methods to normalize insulin function.

• Review the physiology of ketosis and ketogenic diets, and how to determine which patients might benefit from them and which will not.

• Learn the role of food intolerance in abnormal weight gain, and the value of screening with elimination and rechallenge before attempting to lose weight.

• Learn a nutritional protocol that can correct deficiencies that tend to cause obesity.

 

“When you enter into the science of obesity, it resembles more the realm of religious belief rather than science,” writes science writer Gary Taubes. In this course we review accurately the actual science on weight loss attempts, beginning with the three meta-analyses which summarize the effects of all previously published clinical trials. All three reached the same conclusion: It is medically unethical to advise a patient to restrict calories in order to lose weight. Unethical because it is well established in repeated trials that such attempts provide no benefit to health, that those who diet, when followed long term, gain more weight than those who do nothing. On the other hand dieting readily causes metabolic and psychological injury.

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Materials

 

   With this course you receive Audio files for the 6 lessons, more than 140 slides to accompany the lectures, supplementary notes, readings, and 13 full-text research articles.  The course comes with a study guide and Continuing Education questions. Students enrolled in our courses are also eligible for a 10% discount on purchases at Mountain Rose Herbs.

 

Lessons 

 

Lesson 1. Ethics an Weight Loss

Lesson 2. Body Mass Index 

Lesson 3. Metabolism and Obesity

Lesson 4. Causes of Obesity

Lesson 5. Science review 

Lesson 6. Ketosis, Diets, and Nutrition

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Further down on this page you can find Faculty Biographies.

 

Enrollment for Credit 

 

To enroll in the course, receive a faculty mentor, and to earn the Continuing Education certificate, follow these steps:

1. Purchase the course materials in our online store. The materials may be purchased for self-study without further enrollment in the course or tuition. 

2. When you receive materials, print out the application form or scan it to email. Send it in with the $90 tuition, or make the payment at the school store. 

3. This entitles you to assignment of a faculty mentor for 4 weeks after we notify you that your enrollment is accepted. You may also request and extension. 

4. Read the instructions for obtaining CE credit in the read-me-first file with the notes.

5. Look over the CE questions and review them before listening to the audio. 

6. Complete any assignments or readings and answer the CE questions for each lesson.

7. You will receive a certificate reflecting 18 hours of CE credit.

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Faculty

The recorded lectures were delivered by NAIMH Director Paul Bergner in a classroom setting, edited and supplemented with studio portions. If you enroll, you will also be assigned a faculty mentor. All our faculty are fully qualified clinical nutritionists as well as medical herbalists. Click here to see Faculty biographies.