Journal of Obesity & Weight Loss Therapy
Open Access

Abstract

The U.S. has the distinction of being the unhealthiest wealthy country in the world, with the most obese population. In a recent report commissioned by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study the relentless decline in the health of Americans, the U.S. was compared to 16 other wealthy nations. The U.S came in dead last having the highest overall mortality rate. The epidemic of obesity and its complications plays a significant role in driving higher mortality rates. The common denominator in the relentless decline in the health of Americans is the U.S diet. The root cause of these problems is the pollution of the American food supply by the agribusiness, biotech and food industries. Additives that have been shown to be carcinogenic, neurotoxic, obesogenic, and addictive, commandeer parts of the brain that serve the functions of survival, making them resistant to treatment. Thus, obesity is best treated taking into consideration the role that addiction plays. Treatment outcomes for obesity improve dramatically when patients are taught the difference between clean versus polluted eating. Given the current obesity epidemic, a model is needed that will also lead to prevention. The food pollution/addiction model does just that. Empirical data will be presented in conjunction with case studies to bring these concepts home for the practicing or teaching professional.

Biography

J. Renae Norton is trained as a Family Systems Psychologist with a focus on eating disorders and neuropsychological assessment. She is also a published author. She has released two lifestyle books for children, How Maji Gets Mongo off the Couch and Maji Helps Maji Learn How to Eat Clean . She has been working on a new book, Cycles of Shame , to be released this year on Food Pollution/Addiction as it relates to the obesity epidemic and the escalation of ED?s in the US.