Discuss Explanations for the Success and Failure of Dieting

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“Dieting often fails because people are trying to go against their biological drive to eat.” Discuss explanations for the success and failure of dieting. Dieting is extremely common and research has shown that up to 70% of women diet at some stage in their lives. Some diets are successful, whereas some are not and there are many explanations for this. One explanation for why dieting is successful is that those with low self-esteem and are dissatisfied with their body are more likely to stick to their diet and lose weight. Ogdens’ 2000 study supports this view; he investigated differences in psychological factors between weight loss regainers and weight loss maintainers. The results showed that the weight loss maintainers were more likely to endorse a psychological model of obesity in terms of its consequences, such as depression and low-self esteem. Another explanation for the success of dieting would be the good effects of having restrained eating aims to reduce food intake. Kirkley et al 1988 assessed the eating style of 50 women, using dietary self-monitoring forms for four days, and reported that the restrained eaters consumed fewer calories than the unrestrained eaters. Also Ogden and Hills 2008 interview of people who had successfully lost weight and maintained weight loss suggested that it is not only what people do but also what they believe. They concluded that for dieting to be successful a person needs to hold a model of obesity that focuses on behaviour as central to their weight problem, avoid a state of denial whereby they want to eat but do not, create a situation where food is no longer regarded as rewarding and finally establish a new identity as a thinner person. These three studies suggest that having a restrained eating aim, aims to gain self-esteem and body satisfaction and believing certain things all contribute to the success of dieting.
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