The obesity epidemic of the last 30 years is not due to a single cause and there is no magic solution: it is misleading to say otherwise. People who are overweight and have struggled to reach and maintain a healthy weight understand that very well. The obesity epidemic in developed and developing countries is because we are consuming too much of everything; too much fat, protein and carbohydrate, calorie dense snacks, sugary drinks and alcohol. Reduced activity levels also plays a part, but the overconsumption of everything is the real world culprit.

Food has an energy content measured in calories and in our experience many overweight adults are consuming in excess of 3,000 calories per day when necessary levels for weight maintenance are in the order of 1,700 to 2,200 calories depending on age, gender and activity level. The overconsumption of food including calorie dense snacks and sugary drinks leads to increased weight, obesity and many adverse health outcome including diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Any food - either natural or processed - when over consumed will have adverse outcomes and these are documented daily by health professionals and researchers worldwide.

Wesley Weight Management Clinic (www.wesweight.com.au) is not a conspiracy or a product, it is well balanced clinical program designed to help people achieve and maintain a healthy weight. The criticism expressed in the David Gillespie’s article is based on a misunderstanding of how our clinical weight loss program works. We are staffed by Doctors, Dietitians, Exercise Physiologists and Psychologists who work as a clinical team to help people lose weight and learn the skills to maintain a healthy weight. Our ownership group, of which I am a member, and our staff are committed to providing evidence based, ethical and high quality preventative health services and we continuously track and share our results with our clients, their Doctors and the community at large to demonstrate the benefits of investing in health. I believe we conduct the best weight loss service in Australia demonstrated by our outstanding client results.

Meal Replacements - Optifast 800

Meal replacements, when used properly under supervision are very beneficial at the commencement of weight loss. Moving clients safely from 3,000 calories per day to 800 - 1000 calories per day places them in a negative energy state and so their bodies commence to process their fat stores for energy and they lose weight. In combination with moderate exercise, women can lose up to a 1kg per week and men up to 2 kg per week. There are up to 15 meal replacements available on the market and some are nutritionally balanced and others aren’t. We have used Optifast 800, manufactured by Nestlé Healthcare Nutrition, safely for 10 years. Meal replacements are made from processed milk, not dissimilar to baby formula. They contain milk protein (14gm), fat (4gm), milk sugars (lactose 10gm), added fructose (8-10 gm), vitamins and minerals. The percentage of each component is similar to a healthy balanced diet but the total portion size of the shake is 160 calories when made up with water. The energy content of 1 sachet is similar to 2 slices of bread but importantly with all the essential daily nutrients. In our Clinic clients safely consume 5 sachets per day or 800 calories and that provides them with all their essential daily vitamins and minerals and keeps their hunger controlled. Importantly they are losing weight.

Fructose

Fructose is a natural sugar found in 50 different fruits and vegetables - all of us have been consuming fructose our whole life. Fructose is present in Optifast 800, but there is no more fructose than in 1 apple. In 5 sachets per day of Optifast 800 total fructose does not exceed 50gms, a quarter of the levels of people consuming 3,000 calories per day including 2 cans of soft drink. It is wrong to say there is danger to health at the low levels present in Optifast 800. In fact 50gms of fructose a day is beneficial particularly to diabetics. It is only a danger to your health at artificially high levels of consumption, as seen in some published trials. These trials are conducted in a similar way to toxicological studies as opposed to food safety studies and no food would be considered safe under these conditions. Even pure water triggers adverse health at high repeat dose levels.

It is very difficult to consume high levels of fructose on its own because as a food additive it is combined with glucose in the form of sucrose (sugar) or as high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), a roughly equal mixture of glucose and fructose. The point is that in consuming sugary drinks or snacks on a daily basis, the total calorie content from their total sugar content is doing harm, not just the fructose content.

Our results from using Optifast 800 in weight loss

Over 10 years we have recorded the weekly visits of more than 6,000 clients and their weight loss results. We believe we have the largest database on weight loss in Australia and we publish our results on our website and in credible health journals and forums. The main reason for recording weekly progress is to make sure that weight loss is done in a safe and sustainable way. All clients who use Optifast 800 are medically counselled by a Doctor and their blood is tested prior to commencing Optifast 800. Those who are not suited to meal replacements are prescribed a meal plan with a set calorie level. We know that Optifast 800 used in our clinic is safe, effective and well tolerated by clients. All clients transition off Optifast 800 during their weight loss program back to normal healthy meal plans. They are taught and counselled on healthy food choices, correct portion size and good exercise - habits that will last them a lifetime. Their challenge will be to continue those good habits when they leave our environment.

Our results show that our clients lose weight, lose fat, reduce their waist lines, maintain lean tissue (muscle), lower their blood pressure, lower their total cholesterol, lower their LDL (bad cholesterol) lower their blood triglycerides, lower their blood glucose and lower their cardiovascular risk (risk of heart attack) by up to 47%. In addition they achieve the added benefit of reducing or ceasing medications they consumed daily prior to commencing our clinical program. We have presented these results to the International Congress of Obesity, the National Heart Foundation and the Federal Parliamentary Enquiry into Obesity and we are rightly proud of them.

In conclusion, we unashamedly stand by our clinic, our staff, our clients and our results. The obesity epidemic, its causes and solutions, are complex and multifaceted but we know what we do is safe, effective and sustainable. While the article by David Gillespie is right to highlight the dangers of overconsumption of sugars, his assertions in relation to our clinic, our stakeholders, our staff and our clients are factually incorrect and misleading.

Like good health, it’s all about balance.

Neil Holt
Managing Director
Wesley Weight Management Clinic

David - I think it’s a tenuous link that liquid diets equal bad cholesterol. You cant compare a study where subjects are supplementing their regular diet with a sugared drink, with a complete meal replacement.

Nice theory anyway. Whatever helps sell your book I guess…

My mate had a heart attack in 1986, and 4 yrs ago he had a triple heart bypass operation. Both times he could have died. (It was my insistence both times that probably saved his life.) He was a smoker and a drinker and like a lot of older men who live alone, didn’t eat properly. More women die from a heart attack than breast cancer. I think there should be more stringent rules re food packaging and labelling, and no ads on TV for rubbish during kids viewing times, plus positive ads emphasising good eating habits, exercise etc. Good eating habits start at birth! It’s cheaper for a family to have a nourishing meal of fish or chicken and salad than buying fast food.

Having said that, I’ve had false teeth since my early 20’s. Had 9 teeth out when I was pregnant with my first child. Not sure why? Gum problems perhaps? Very sad! No flouride in the water when I was young, and going to the dentist wasn’t a big priority - I don’t know whether teeth cleaning was either - 9 kids may have had something to do with it too! I was certainly different with my kids ?
(see, they’ll try and take you out one way or another!!!little possums!)

Hi Kate, as I read Liz’s comment, that was a couple of dessertspoons of yoghurt, not of sugar.

Liz, you need a serious reality check.

Sugars are not just injurious to our hearts etc but apparently the dental health of the country is beyond bad? I heard a dentist state during a documentary a few years ago, that pregnant women should have their dental health attended to as a priority. He said that having bad teeth could be a component in premature labour/s? Have you heard of this? That the ‘solutions’ present in the mouth are the same as those that precipitate labour. Prostaglandins? I haven’t heard a word about it since, but it could be a reason behind those ‘unexplained’ premature births?

I think that govts should force manufacturers to reduce the sugar content in foods - all types of sugars. It’s not clear enough on the labels either. As an older woman, I find that I must wear my glasses to read the contents label. It’s ridiculous! Why does non-fat yoghurt contain more sugar than full cream yoghurt for example? Just substituting one problem for another. What do you think is the worst? Fat in full cream yoghurt, or the extra sugar in low fat yoghurt? I only eat a couple of desert spoons on my weetbix, muesli and fresh fruit salad each morning.