500 Calories a day??

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245

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  • Kaylee_law_123
    Kaylee_law_123 Posts: 450 Member
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    Need more context.

    How much weight do you need to lose?

    Was there a plan on meeting nutrient requirements, etc?

    I need to lose about 10kg, well at least that is what I want to do, as it would get me to wear I have felt comfortable before.

    There was no nutrient requirements, just a blanket "500 calories a day" statement.
  • Kaylee_law_123
    Kaylee_law_123 Posts: 450 Member
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    Thanks for everyone's support, nice to know I wasn't the only one that felt she was a bit crazy for this advice. Guess I needed to hear it from other people though!!
  • cheripugh1
    cheripugh1 Posts: 357 Member
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    Well I went to her for a second opinion, particularly as my thyroid is "sluggish". I gave her my long history of trying to lose weight, blood tests other doctors had taken, hormone tests my naturopath had done, a diet plan a dietician had done for me.

    I was in shock when she said it, and I got out and "lost it", more so as I'm getting married in 3 weeks and I felt as though she was saying I was so ridiculously fat that I should need something so drastic to lose weight.

    Now I'm currently a US Size 10/ Aus Size 12 (Although my wedding dress is a US Size 8, so I'm pretty happy with that lol). I don't think I qualify as morbidly obese, but she certainly made me feel that way.

    She followed this advice by saying if 500 calories a day doesn't work for me I should consider lap band surgery or the like. Again, made me feel as though I was as big as some of those people I see in documentary's that need to break down walls of their house to get them out of there!!!

    at either of these sizes (10/12) you are not obese at any view. you might be slightly over idea weight but that's it... I am wondering if the most you'd need to lose to fit that size 8 is to lose 10 lbs. or less which would be a short term drastic reduction in calories since it is so near date.

    I believe that the comment about lap-band was meant as a joke... even the worse Dr. knows that you would need to gain 100 lbs. to qualify for that!
  • Swiftdogs
    Swiftdogs Posts: 328 Member
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    Thanks for everyone's support, nice to know I wasn't the only one that felt she was a bit crazy for this advice. Guess I needed to hear it from other people though!!

    I'd say more than "a bit" crazy. I'll echo those that think she's trying to sell lap band surgery. At your size, your deficit should be about 500 calories.
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
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    I'm glad you have no intention of following this advice. I have heard of people with extremely slow metabolisms who function on that sort of caloric intake, but that is extremely rare!

    What worries me is that a doctor makes such a bold statement as 'eat 500 cals per day' but offers no further guidance about macro composition of the diet or how to ensure adequate nutrition in such a small amount of food.

    Time for another opinion I think.
  • Hitesc
    Hitesc Posts: 86 Member
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    Uh are you sure that "doctor" you went to has a valid licence? Stuff I'm learning in university says should be minimum 1200.... >.> Are you sure that doctor didn't print their licence LOL
  • CodeMonkey78
    CodeMonkey78 Posts: 320 Member
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    According to the Doctor I saw yesterday this is what I should be eating ...

    And that the 500 calories shouldn't include any fruit as it is "too calorie rich".

    Apparently I should lose about 1kg per week this way.

    Let's be clear - I don't intend on following this advice. I eat about 1200 a day and that sometimes leaves me feeling like I need more.

    Just curious as to whether anyone has ever tried something so drastic and where it got them (hospital?!?!?!?!?).

    Find a new doctor..
  • Lesa_Sass
    Lesa_Sass Posts: 2,213 Member
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    You need to find your countries version of the state medical board and turn her in.

    That person should NOT be practicing medicine....period.
  • SPNLuver83
    SPNLuver83 Posts: 2,050 Member
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    wtf. NEVER EVER EVER go that doctor again!!!! Even 1200 is considered extremely low. If you are at 1200 you should be eating back any calories burned!!!
  • uconnwinsnc
    uconnwinsnc Posts: 1,054 Member
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    I have this suspicious that you misunderstood the doctor. You sure he didn't suggest a 500 calorie deficit?
  • mmm_drop
    mmm_drop Posts: 1,126 Member
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    I usually have 500 calories a day, for lunch.
  • Kaylee_law_123
    Kaylee_law_123 Posts: 450 Member
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    I have this suspicious that you misunderstood the doctor. You sure he didn't suggest a 500 calorie deficit?

    No misunderstanding, she even wrote it down on a piece of paper for me.
  • Leoness726
    Leoness726 Posts: 14 Member
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    There are some appearance obsessed doctors out there who make their living off of unhealthy advice to people trying to lose weight, because 500 calories a day means rapid weight loss and then people think they have some kind of miracle doctor.

    There is some "weight loss program" a lot of my dad's rich, idiot friends do. They pay a bunch of money for Vitamin B-12 shots, that have a claim for aiding weight loss, and then the doctor tells them to eat 500 calories a day for 6 weeks or something like that and then they will lose tons of weight. Well, duh.

    Not all doctors remember or care about their Hippocratic Oath. All they care about is money and doing and saying whatever they have to in order to get yours (or your insurances).
  • MarliQQ
    MarliQQ Posts: 112 Member
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    I have this suspicious that you misunderstood the doctor. You sure he didn't suggest a 500 calorie deficit?

    Even if that was the case, the doctor should have followed up for clarity. You just don't tell people 500 cals and not check for understanding. That is like throwing someone a bottle pills and saying take two a day, no discussion about side effects, how many hours between each pill, whether it should be take with food, upside down on your head, just like no regard for the medical profession that has guidelines for patient consultation.
  • GertrudeHorse
    GertrudeHorse Posts: 646 Member
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    Even if you were under five feet tall I don't think you could possibly be obese in an Australian size 12. I would seriously consider reporting your doctor for medical negligence. Someone with only 10kg to lose shouldn't even have lap band surgery mentioned to them! Seriously, the advice you received is so irresponsible and downright dangerous. I'm glad alarm bells went off for you. My advice is get a third and fourth opinion!
  • tchell99
    tchell99 Posts: 434 Member
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    I once had a nutritionist tell me that if I wanted to lose any weight at all I would have to stick to a 800 cal/day diet.

    If it doesn't sound right, chances are it isn't. For some reason we like to think that doctors are somehow exempt from the general rule that every profession has fools who slip through the cracks. So glad you immediately sensed the crazy.
  • RllyGudTweetr
    RllyGudTweetr Posts: 2,019 Member
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    Just making sure, here, but your doctor doesn't look like this, does she?

    4021010372_a4bf268988_o_zpsb8309e92.jpg
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,134 Member
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    She followed this advice by saying if 500 calories a day doesn't work for me I should consider lap band surgery or the like. Again, made me feel as though I was as big as some of those people I see in documentary's that need to break down walls of their house to get them out of there!!!


    Does SHE do this kind of surgery? Seems like a business savvy doctor ("hmmmm... if I can convince people of "normal" weight that they are obese and when I recommend eating 500 calories so their bodies go into starvation mode and they will necessarily FAIL, they will come back to me and I'll be able to make a bunch of MONEY by giving them a risky surgery they don't actually need!")

    That's what I was thinking. At least in the U.S., GPs get a pay boost when they perform surgeries.
  • fificrazy
    fificrazy Posts: 234
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    Well I went to her for a second opinion, particularly as my thyroid is "sluggish". I gave her my long history of trying to lose weight, blood tests other doctors had taken, hormone tests my naturopath had done, a diet plan a dietician had done for me.

    You need the opposite of more extreme restriction- you should check out Diet Recovery!
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    Well I went to her for a second opinion, particularly as my thyroid is "sluggish".
    MFP has a Hypothyroidism and Hyperthyroidism group: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/770-hypothyroidism-and-hyperthyroidism

    This post is full of good advice: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

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