Obesity

Diet and Nutrition: (references)

Eliminate foods that cause an allergic response or to which there is a sensitivity (fast, use an elimination diet, or allergy test to isolate such foods)
Avoid sugar, refined carbohydrates, caffeine and alcohol
Avoid aspartame (NutraSweet) - people who consume this eat more food
Eat high fiber diet

Vitamins and Minerals: (references)

Vitamin C: 1 gm. TID
Calcium (Citrate form): 600 -1200 mg.

Supplements: (references)

L-Methionine: 1 gm.
L-Carnitine: 500 mg. TID between meals
L-Tyrosine: 500 mcg. TID
L-Glutamine: 1.5 - 3 gm.
Coenzyme Q10: 100 mg. in divided doses
Digestive Enzymes: 2 tablets with each meal
Fiber: 10 gm. taken with 16 ounces of water before lunch and dinner
Omega 6 Fatty Acids: 2 - 4 gm.
5-Hydroxytryptophan: begin with 50 mg. TID 20 minutes before each meal, increase to 200 mg. TID if necessary (Note: approximately 1-3% of oral tryptophan enters the brain compared to 70% of oral 5-HTP)

Botanicals: (references)

Liquid Extract - Taraxacum, Zea, Petroselinum, Stellaria: take 1/2 tsp. at noon and at 6 PM

Individual botanicals to be considered for this condtion:

Homeopathic Remedies: (references)

General obesity:
Calc., Caps., Ferr., Graph., Phyt.
Body fat, but thin legs:
Am-M., Ant-C., Lyc.
Obesity in children:
Ant-C., Bad., Bar-C., Bell., Calc., Caps., Ferr., Kali-Bi., Sac-L., Seneg.
Obesity in elderly people:
Am-C., Sur., Bar-C., Calc., Fl-Ac., Kali-C., Op., sec.
Obesity after pregnancy:
Kali-C., Sep.
Obesity in young people:
Ant-C., Calc., Calc-Ac., Lach.

(For an overview of Homeopathy, click here.)

Other Therapies: (references)

Exercise is a must. Start with 15 minutes a day for 4 days a week and gradually increase until doing 30 minutes a day for 4 days a week
For children, reduce time spent watching television
Dry friction bath every day

Recommended Labs:

Rule out Cushing's Disease: Dexamethasone Suppression
Rule out diabetes: Fasting Glucose, Fructosamine, Hemoglobin A1c
Rule out drug toxicity: History, Drug Screen, Drug Reference Information Analysis
Rule out hypothyroidism: Thyroid Panel with TSH

* The recommended use of this supplement or therapy is based on a physiological mechanism or empirical data and is not necessarily supported by peer-reviewed research studies.