By Kara Pifer
Weight loss seems to be the topic of the week, and possibly even the year. With the rate of obesity in the United States, it seems that the numbers of those seeking ways to lighten meals up and make healthier choices is on the rise. Study after study has been published concerning ways to help aid in weight loss attempts without making drastic lifestyle changes. Eating more whole grains, sneaking in extra vegetables, moving a bit more, so many choices! What do you tell your clients when asked for weight loss advice? Many studies show that there are numerous tips and tricks that will help your waistline shrink without changing too much all at one time.
According to many experts, part of the problem behind weight gain is eating until beyond satiety. Has Alan Hirsch, MD found a solution to this? Personally, I do not believe that this method works, but has anyone noticed any positive results with their clients? His method involves using his product, Sensa, on your foods and smelling the food prior to ingestion. Sensa is essentially sprinkles or “food flakes made from maltodextrin, tricalcium phosphate, carmine, soy, and milk” (Zelman). According to Web MD these flakes are tasteless and odorless but by smelling, your brain can find traces of them. This small notice is actually enough to trick your brain into making you think you are already getting full. Therefore, those who use this product apparently end up eating less because your body is already sensing a ‘full’ sensation. The site also states that the flakes are gluten free, sugar free, calorie free and sodium free.
My first major issue with this product is the obvious: You are sprinkling something on your food that is tasteless and odorless and then you are ingesting it. If the product is activated by smelling the un-smellable, why do those who wish to use it need to ingest it? What does putting the product onto the food make it different than just smelling the product directly from the container? My second issue comes with the ‘research’ on this product. It seems that the one study conducted with this product was absolutely phenomenal. It looks like every single person in the study lost a significant amount of weight. Seems to be too good to be true right? Most likely, it is. The study is labeled as a ‘clinical study’ rather than a ‘clinical trial’ which would be the more structured, more highly monitored research. I do not think that many outside of the research lab know that there is a large difference between these two labels, which means that most consumers probably believe that the study was structured and well monitored. This trial has not been published or cited in any other research, in fact, it has never even been validated.
Although Sensa is only one product among hundreds or even thousands of weight loss aids, it seems to be gaining popularity with it’s claims of being healthful. The lack of appropriate and legitimate research on this particular product makes me begin to think about other weight loss aids. How many other items on the market have this almost false advertising? With the lack of appropriate research being conducted on these types of products, who is to say that any of them are safe for consumption? The FDA does not approve supplements and weight loss aids such as these. Although many individuals looking to lose weight come to Dietitians for advice, many come to us for the wrong reasons. Many assume that we can give them the magic pill that will magically help them lose the weight the desire and they won’t have to change in the long run. Unfortunately with so many products on the market that promise just that, what can we do to help the public understand that weight just does not work that way? Although I am a Dietetics student and do not have a lot of experience in the field yet, I feel that continuing to remind clients that they will have to make lifestyle changes in order to achieve a healthy weight. These lifestyle changes may be difficult for them, including lessening the frequency of eating certain items or possibly cutting them out completely if they can. Of course, keeping up to date on new weight loss aids and the ingredients they contain is important so you can hopefully advise for or against them to your clients.
Zelman, K.M. Can ‘the sprinkle diet’ really help you lose weight?. Retrieved on 3/17, 2011 from http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/truth-about-sensa
The product website is: http://start.trysensa.com/dms2237/
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