Dr. Vincent Pera, a bariatric medicine specialist, is the medical and program director of Lifespan Corp.’s Center for Weight and Wellness in Providence. He was instrumental in establishing the center, first known as The Miriam Hospital Weight Management Program, more than 30 years ago.
Throughout his career, Pera has worked with more than 12,000 patients seeking help for obesity and related medical conditions. He discusses yo-yo dieting, what’s new at the center and gives advice on when to seek medical help for weight loss.
PBN: It seems like most of us have at some point made a New Year’s resolution to lose weight and eat healthy, only to revert to old habits in weeks. Is there any harm in that?
PERA: Losing and regaining weight is very common, not just for individuals with a significant weight problem but even more so in those who are slightly to moderately overweight.
One study among women found that those with a history of yo-yo dieting scored lower on heart health measures of the American Heart Association. Other studies have shown the cycle can lead to decreased levels of the hormone leptin, which helps you feel full.
Yo-yo dieting also causes a great degree of frustration, discontent and loss of self-esteem. To break that cycle, the Center for Weight and Wellness offers not only weight management intervention but a multidisciplinary team approach, including psychologists, behaviorists, health educators, dieticians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and medical doctors. We also have a maintenance program to help end the yo-yo cycle for good.
PBN: Have any new programs seen particular success at the Center for Weight Loss and Wellness?
PERA: Our new “Your Choice, Your Weigh” program is a unique weight loss and wellness program designed for individuals looking to lose 10 to 20 pounds or just wishing to improve their health. This 10-week program consists of group sessions lead by our multidisciplinary team. Our dietician creates a customized nutritional plan based on your choice of a Mediterranean diet, Dash diet, plant-based vegetarian diet or other approach. Our exercise physiologist can set up an appropriate exercise routine. We offer fitness activities and yoga.
Another new program—which can be used to prepare for Your Choice, Your Weigh – is Fast Track. It’s four weeks long and offers nutritional supplements – liquid and bars – combined with one meal of solid food. It’s meant to safely jump-start weight loss.
PBN: As news reports continue to announce rising levels of childhood obesity, is there a shift in the age range of patients that you’re seeing?
PERA: Great question. The prevalence of childhood obesity is now reaching alarming numbers. For the past year, 13.9% of those ages 2 to 5 have obesity, 18.4% of those 6 to 11, and 20.6% of those 12 to 19. The numbers are worse for Hispanic adolescents.
This trend led us to recently create a program for teens ages 14 to 17. It’s called “Lighten-Up” and it addresses the special set of challenges and needs that teens have. It’s a comprehensive 16-week program that includes an initial medical and psychological evaluation followed by an ongoing program of group sessions and individual meetings with our team of physicians, psychologists, nutritionists, exercise physiologists and health educators.
There is a group session for parents to help their teen through the process. Most insurers cover this program. Most of the teens who have participated in the program find it to be enjoyable and fun and have been happy with their experience. The program was offered at our East Greenwich location last year and now, in 2020, we are offering the program in our Providence location, as well as East Greenwich.
PBN: Have there been any interesting technological advances in the medical weight loss field?
PERA: It seems over the past few years there has been a myriad of apps coming onto the market that provide all kinds of information and recommendations to help improve health. We find that the use of apps can be helpful in some cases. Apps that provide nutritional information and track physical activity can be valuable. Our team can incorporate these into your program.
However, our clients feel that these apps cannot take the place of the personalized and professional support we offer for psychological and behavioral issues, for nutritional guidance and education, for exercise guidance and support, and for overall medical management. People respond best to motivation, structure, accountability and coordinated treatment, and the addition of apps can help result in positive outcomes.
PBN: When is medical help for weight loss more appropriate than doing it on your own?
PERA: Rather than waiting until a large amount of weight needs to be lost and negative behavior patterns are ingrained, we recommend seeking professional help for weight loss and lifestyle change earlier in life and when you have a smaller amount of weight to lose. It’s difficult to lose weight and keeping it off is even harder.
“Your Choice, Your Weigh” is designed as an early intervention for people who are developing unhealthy behaviors and want to change before their health deteriorates and their weight rises dramatically. But we also have programs for losing larger amounts of weight – 40 to 100 or more pounds – that offer such medical supports relating to behavioral, psychological and physical issues.
The most important thing when it comes to addressing weight and health issues is to act, sooner than later, and to strongly consider seeking medical support.
Elizabeth Graham is a PBN staff writer. You can reach her at Graham@PBN.com.
