Childhood Obesity Functional Medicine
In this article Dr. Michael Lyon, medical director of the Canadian Centre for Functional Medicine, discusses treating childhood obesity with a functional medicine approach. The article continues discuss the founding of new weightloss camp in Squamish this spring. The camp is the first of it’s kind located in Canada and will be open to youth between 11 and 18 who are at least 20 pounds overweight. Below is an excerpt from the article entitled: Helping obese youth shed pounds
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Similar to a traditional ‘Fat Camp’ The Wellspring Camp also limits calories, but clinical director Kirschenbaum claims it offers a more scientific approach that uses psychology, activity and a low-fat diet.
“By emphasizing fat reduction over calories, Kirschenbaum says the campers don’t leave the table hungry.”
“We try to prevent a feeling of deprivation,” he says. “If they feel hungry and deprived, it’s not going to last. Our approach is designed to increase satiety, increase satisfaction with kid-friendly foods.”
Each morning, they walk five kilometres before breakfast. In Squamish, they will also kayak, hike and river raft, and play team sports such as basketball, soccer and field hockey.
“If you just diet and don’t increase activity, your body actually becomes metabolically more efficient,” he says.
The third tier of Wellspring’s approach is to use cognitive behaviour therapy to help youngsters change behaviours and develop what Kirschenbaum calls a healthy obsession.
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Originally Published: Vancouver Sun
Article Title: Helping obese youth shed pounds
Author: Karen Gram
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