- With Mayo Clinic nutritionist
Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
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Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
As a specialty editor for the Food & Nutrition Center, Katherine Zeratsky helps you sort through the facts and figures, the fads and the hype to learn more about nutrition and diet.
A Marinette, Wis., native, she is certified in dietetics by the state of Minnesota and the American Dietetic Association. She has been with Mayo Clinic since 1999.
She is active in nutrition-related curriculum and course development in pediatrics at Mayo Clinic Rochester and nutrition education related to the physiology and recommended intakes for premature infants.
Other areas of interest include breast milk and formula safety, neonatal feeding, and nutrition for breast-feeding mothers.
She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, served a dietetic internship at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, and worked as a registered dietitian and health risk counselor at ThedaCare of Appleton, Wis., before joining the Mayo Clinic staff.
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Question
Weight-loss hypnosis: Does it work?
Is hypnosis effective for weight loss?
Answer
from Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
Hypnosis may help you shed a few extra pounds when it's used along with other weight-loss methods, such as diet and exercise. But there isn't enough solid scientific evidence about weight-loss hypnosis to recommend for or against it.
Hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness, usually achieved with the help of a hypnotherapist using verbal repetition and mental images. When you're under hypnosis, your attention is highly focused and you're more responsive to suggestions, including behavior changes that can help you lose weight. After proper instruction, you can also try self-hypnosis for weight loss. Weight-loss hypnosis is often combined with cognitive behavioral therapy.
Through the years, numerous studies have evaluated the use of weight-loss hypnosis. Most found positive but modest weight-loss results, with an average weight loss of about 6 pounds (2.72 kilograms). But the quality of some of these studies has been questioned, making it hard to determine the effectiveness of weight-loss hypnosis.
If you've tried diet and exercise but are still struggling to meet your weight-loss goal, you may want to try weight-loss hypnosis. Just remember that there are no guaranteed results.
Next questionBody fat: Where does it go when you lose weight?
- Cherniak EP. Potential applications for alternative medicine to treat obesity in an aging population. Alternative Medicine Review. 2008;13:34.
- Definition of hypnosis. American Society of Clinical Hypnosis. http://www.asch.net/genpubinfo.htm. Accessed March 19, 2009.
- Shaw KA, et al. Psychological interventions for overweight or obesity (Review). Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2005;(2):CD003818.
- Pittle MH, et al. Complementary therapies for reducing body weight: A systematic review. International Journal of Obesity. 2005;29:1030.
