To think that most health care professionals are hopeless at advising on weight

I am sorry but this was not patronising...

The basic advice you get is the right one: eat a healthier diet and do more exercise/be more active.

What else would you expect?

This person is not a dietitian and there is no magic way to lose weight.

Unless of course the weight is linked to taking a specific kind of medication and is one of the side effects, I think you need accept that this is something where personal responsibility comes in.

If there is a psychological aspect to your struggle then again you can seek support from a counsellor or a support group to try to address that.

Sometimes GPs have agreements to refer to local gyms to help people with certain health conditions. I had a referral like this a few years back to help me recover from a major operation. The gym gave me a low cost subscription, a personal trainer who created an exercise plan for me and then saw me every month to check progress for the first 3 months. Maybe see with your GP if there is a scheme like this where you live.

'What I was thinking was more along the lines of 'FFS do you honestly think I don't know that!'

Well tbf on the very recent 'How dare a hcp give me weight advice' thread someone did say that fruit juice and nuts were just the same health wise as Coke and a Mars bar so we cannot presume everyone is as informed as you.

It's very boring but obese people do need constant reminders that their health will suffer at some point very soon and all the defensiveness and enabling their overeating won't change that.

It sounds like he was polite and kind though so that's good.

*because of the veg apparently.

Yes. I overheard an obese colleague say they were having a Chinese takeaway for tea as it's healthy.

I'm not sure what other advice he could have given you? He's told you the things that need to happen for you to be a healthy weight physically, presumably he was not a psychiatrist so isn't qualified to unpick your complex issues surrounding food. The advice he gave was correct, if you chose to follow it you would lose weight so he has done his job.

Actually he could have used motivational interviewing and empathy. It wouldn’t have been a quick fix but much better than trotting out advice unnecessarily so you can tick the box. I don’t blame the doctor but these are skills they should be taught. The reasons for living with overweight are very complex.

If you have the time watch Nina Teichholz on YouTube, she is an American investigative journalist who took a look at the healthy eating guidelines, the eat more plants less fat guidelines, and revealed the absolute lack of evidence for them,
It is very interesting, basically suggesting that our current health eating guidelines coincide suspiciously with the obesity epidemic. Correlation is not causation, but if the eat less/ move more is clearly not the answer.

Sorry, but you are completely unreasonable.
You wouldn't be unreasonable to say that as a society we should look at the root causes and determine if we wish to do something about the obesity problem on a holistic front, however you can't expect a doctor to go into that much depth. The effects are damaging to your health, but the cause isn't generally a health issue, rather a "coping with modern life"issue.

Statistically it wouldn't be worth it because the time spent would be considerable, would take away from treating people he/she could actually help, and the chances that you would succeed are minimal.

Well have you quit upfs? It's not a 'diet' to abandon, it's just eating normal natural foods. It doesn't take long before you lose interest in upfs completely.

What did you want him to say?
People need to start taking personal responsibility for their own health.
Losing weight isn’t complicated, if your energy expenditure if greater then your intake, you will lose weight.

I was super lucky that I went in for a blood pressure check one day and the nurse I was supposed to see was off, so my check was taken by the locum dietician instead.

She asked why I was having checks and I explained that it was for anxiety and burnout from stress. I'd simultaneously piled on the pounds as well as having no appetite somehow.

She referred me to an app based live support program where I was coached through the nutrition I needed in serious detail, and taught about Leaky Gut syndrome, and the role of leptin and ghrelin in weight management.

(Turns out that when you're stressed and having a high intake of toxins, your body can lay down fat in order to store them safely - lose the weight and the fuckers are let free again!)

It was complete coincidence that I got proper holistic support and could work back towards health again.

The statin may have been offered as your Q risk was high. Even if your lipids were normal.

At a bmi of 39 you must be consuming a serious amounting calories to sustain that weight.

The doctor's just doing their job in the tiny time frame that the appointment allows. You say you're healthy so why are you bothered by the generic advice?

Have you been to a toilet without the patronising sign of how to wash your hands!

Well, no-one has to eat nuts. They are just good sources of protein, healthy fats, minerals, vitamins, and plant fibre.

@queenparrot I guess it's so individual though

Like you mentioned nuts, I don't even buy them because I would just eat too many of them. Plus you've got costs involved. Yes I can eat bananas and apples but I absolutely love mango, pineapple, melon and fancy vegetables but I can't afford them
Time wise preparing food especially with other health conditions where you just want to eat a bowl of cereal and go to bed

Not excuses just saying that everyone is so different with food and weight

Your weight isn't impacting your health, currently. Give it a few years and it will impact, at the very least, your knees, and maybe also your hips and feet.

I agree, it is insulting hearing this basic stuff - as if one has never heard of it - when you have a long history of dieting and also ED history. But there really isn't anything else he could say, because it's the truth. At least he didn't throw in a side portion of shaming.

Also, 5 portions a day is really the minimum. If you up (as he suggested!) your vegetable and decent whole grains, nuts and fruit (fibre, basically) there is less room for discretionary foods, and over time you do lose weight.

It is frustrating. I told a doctor the exercise I do and he said "have you tried some gentle walking, that can be good to start with if you're overweight and struggle with mobility"

My sentence before that was I do regular spin classes, lift weights, occasional aerial fitness and taken up netball
What part of that sounds like I struggle with mobility or need to start with walking?!

Every year when I have my medication review & annual health check I end up getting the same doctor who is obsessed with getting patients to lose weight. He never realises that I'm housebound, virtually unable to walk, am on several medications that a major side effect is weight gain. I once went to see him with ds who at the time was maybe 12 or 13, we had gone because both of us had chest infections, his opening words were "I'm going to refer you both to the weight loss service, you are both fat" No good morning or what can I do for you. I told him straight off that we went to slimming world every week, I had lost 2 stone & ds 1.5 stone in 3 months, his next words were "It obviously isn't working for you, are you even following the eating plan?" If we didn't already feel crap, we definitely did then. I had already been to the weight loss service, it consisted of being weighed & then lectured by 2 women who made a pencil look fat who spent the entire meeting telling us we were abusing our bodies & would probably drop dead if we didn't lose weight then told us everything we couldn't eat but not actually what we could. After the first month I never went back because they made me feel like crap.

I think the problem is docs don't have enough time to really have a proper chat with patients so end up giving rushed advice as even though being overweight is serious often HCPs are focused on solving more immediate and pressing problems

you would be surprised at how many people have absolutely NO clue about nutrition

I think you missed an opportunity to actually respond to the Dr's comment with some information about your history. That could have prompted the Dr to offer support tailored to you.

I think you are being unreasonable. Losing weight is a matter of numbers, calories in vs. calories out. unless there are other issues at stake (hormones, medication etc.). If you're having issues because of disordered eating then it's more likely that you need therapy not dietary advice.

I do understand OP. My BMI is around 30. I also have a disability that means I'm in constant pain. I've been on countless diets and schemes. However, I now go to the gym multiple times a week. I do a mixture of weights and cardio and I'm seeing a massive difference already. As a result, my eating has improved. I have a long way to go and I'm sure there will be hiccups along the way but it is about taking personal responsibility. I also refuse to weigh myself and I don't calorie count. My aim is to be stronger and fitter, it's not about my weight. Maybe shifting your focus might help?

Don't get me wrong, it's hard. My illness is flaring up and I've been left so tired but it is worth it.

What do you want them to say? Take responsibility for your own choices.