Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Obesity: A Powerful Approach

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is considered a powerful psychological tool when combating obesity, especially if the obesity is caused by a binge eating disorder. There are several key facts about CBT reported in "The Binge Eating and Compulsive Overeating Workbook" authored by Carolyn Coker Ross, MD, MPH.

Basics

• CBT, unlike some other forms of psychotherapy, is based on the idea that negative thought patterns are a key cause of unwanted conditions such as obesity.

Time Frame

• The therapy is considered a short-term solution to help empower patients and thus usually does not last more than six months.

Focus

• CBT allows the patient and therapist to focus on changing thoughts -- and thus behaviors -- that can contribute to eating disorders creating obesity.

Benefits

• Patients studied within a year of receiving CBT for binge eating usually reduced their days of binging by 55 percent.

Dieting and CBT

• A moderation approach, rather than extremes of starvation dieting or bingeing, are recommended and implemented when an obese patient undergoes CBT.