The Gravity of Weight

The Gravity of Weight: A Clinical Guide to Weight Loss and Maintenance is perhaps the first comprehensive integration of the psychological and physiological aspects of the mind, brain, and body to explain why weight control seems so daunting for so many people.

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The Gravity of Weight: A Clinical Guide to Weight Loss and Maintenance, by Sylvia R. Karasu, M.D., and T. Byram Karasu, M.D., is a scholarly and critical inquiry into the field of overweight and obesity. Reviewing more than 900 publications, from some of the early classical papers to the most recent research, the authors have integrated the complex psychological and physiological aspects of the mind, brain, and body to explain why the control of body weight is so daunting for so many people.


Written primarily for clinicians in all health-related fields, including physicians, psychologists, nurses, social workers, and nutritionists, as well as for their intellectually curious patients, The Gravity of Weight explores the controversy regarding obesity as a disease with morbidity and mortality, as well as the complex methodological issues involved in obesity research. The authors delineate the extraordinary metabolic complexities implicated in weight control as well as the importance of circadian rhythms and sleep as they relate to weight and even disorders such as the night eating syndrome. They also investigate the psychological aspects of overweight and obesity, including discrimination against the obese and the fat acceptance movement, and they discuss some of the most common diets as well as the psychotherapeutic, pharmacological, and surgical treatment options currently available for these patients.

The Gravity of Weight: A Clinical Guide to Weight Loss and Maintenance is a comprehensive, multidisciplinary text that synthesizes some of the most essential information for successful weight control:


• The role of the environment, including diet, disordered eating, and portion control, in weight management
• The National Weight Control Registry and the study of those successful at weight control
• The importance of differentiating weight loss from weight loss maintenance
• The qualitative and quantitative measurements of physical activity, including the role of exercise for maintenance of weight loss
• The contribution of genetics to "the obesities"
• Depression and obesity: cause or consequence?
• Psychotherapeutic strategies, including cognitive behavioral therapy
• Medical and surgical treatment approaches and their effectiveness


Drs. Karasu have drawn from both professional and personal experience to write The Gravity of Weight: A Clinical Guide To Weight Loss and Maintenance. Both had fathers who suffered from morbid obesity. One died at the age of 56, while the other lived to be 91. The authors' professional curiosity led them to question how differences in environment, genetics, and overall physical and psychological health can affect one person's longevity and another's early passing.


In searching for the answers to some of the most perplexing questions regarding weight, the authors have created what is perhaps the most comprehensive exploration of the relationship of the mind, brain, body and our environment to overweight and obesity. The resulting text deserves a prominent place in the library of those who work in this field.