What Do I Do If A Friend Or Family Member Refuses To Lose Weight?

February 1, 2009 -- Question: What do I do if a friend or family member refuses to lose weight?

Answer: It's very important to understand when dealing with people's weight that there is an element where the person has to recognize it as an issue for themselves and to understand some of the reasons they may want to lose weight.

A popular concept in some of the other health issues that we see is the idea of an intervention, where everybody sits around and explains to the person how they're harming themselves and how much we care about them.

People often want to do that with weight and what we instruct them to do is really to take a more personal approach. And pull somebody aside and just express concern and be very honest.

And tell them, if it's a loved one, you're concerned about their health -- that you'd love for them to be around for a long time to able to enjoy playing with their children or grandchildren -- and approaching it as a partnering in,"How might I help you, because we just want you to be around and to be happy?" -- is a way that most people can hear that message without taking offense or feeling put on the spot or singled out.