An individual’s decision to make changes in behaviors that affect his or her health does not just happen suddenly, but rather it is a process that occurs in stages. These stages are demonstrated by the Transtheoretical model of health behavior change as pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance (Prochaska, 2013). This paper will explain this model in general and in its corresponding relation to the assertion that eating smaller and more frequent meals is comparable to intermittent fasting for weight loss in adults with unspecified obesity.
During the pre-contemplation stage, a person exhibits small interest in implementing health behavior changes over a period of the next six months that follow. This minified interest results from insufficient knowledge on why the changes might be necessary of demoralization that comes from consecutive unsuccessful attempts to make the said changes. At the contemplation stage, a person gives considerable thought to the prospect of making the necessary health behavior changes within a period of six months (Prochaska, 2013). However, mixed feelings or emotions towards this effort may hinder the individual from taking the initiative during this time.
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At the preparation stage, the person has already made up his or her mind on the issue and decided to make the necessary changes. At this point, the individual takes the necessary steps required in the implementation of the health behavior changes and purposes to make these changes within the next thirty days that follow (Prochaska, 2013). According to the Transtheoretical model of health behavior change, a person is said to be at the action stage when he or she has made a significant and evident change within a period of six months after deciding to implement the said change. When this individual maintains the adopted health behavior changes for more than six months, then h or she can be considered to have arrived at the maintenance stage.
For adults grappling with unspecified obesity, there is need to adopt sustainable changes in eating and exercising behaviors. These changes may include eating smaller and more frequent meals, and intermittent or sporadic fasting. Both strategies require the commitment and discipline of the affected individual for them to be successful. An individual seeking to attain the correct body weight through fasting and a change in his or her food consumption behaviors and frequencies, will almost always go through the stages of change delineated in the Transtheoretical model. These decisions are not easy to make, and just as the model explains in the pre-contemplation stage, a person will initially avoid or express very minimal interest in making them.
Research studies have been conducted on the effects of intermittent fasting on the body weights of people suffering from obesity (Johnstone, 2015). Using fasting as a diet control approach has become highly popular in many parts of the world today. In his article, fasting for weight loss: an effective strategy or latest dieting trend? , Johnstone (2015) asserts that even though the fasting approach can facilitate weight loss in obese individuals, it leads to hunger which makes it difficult for the individuals to control the amount of food they take when they decide to eat. This aspect is counterproductive. Unchecked fasting can also bear adverse health effects on a person. Fasting, therefore, needs to be approached from an informed point of view and most preferably, under the supervision and guidance of a health expert. In their article, Effects of intermittent fasting on body composition and clinical health markers in humans , Tinsley& La Bounty (2015) place intermittent fasting under three categories; alternate day fasting, whole-day fasting and time-restricted feeding. Regardless of the category that he or she opts for, an obese person goes through the five stages of change articulated in the Transtheoretical model when arriving at and implementing the decision to fast to prevent weight gain, facilitate weight loss or prevent weight regain.
Fasting goes hand in hand with meal frequencies and taking note of the amount and types of food an obese person consumes before the beginning and at the end of each fasting period. Consumption of foods with high amounts of calories when someone is fasting is counterproductive. In their article, Metabolic impacts of altering meal frequency and timing–Does when we eat matter? Hutchison & Heilbronn (2016) acknowledge the existence of data which intimates that increased fasting periods have a positive impact on body weight and metabolic health. They also denote that eating small regular meals reduces the chances of undesired weight gain. The adoption of this nutritional strategy that involves the consumption of small amounts of healthy food at timed intervals to achieve and maintain a safe and healthy body weight is usually a process. The process comprises of all the stages in the Transtheoretical model of health behavior change.
The following are some of the strengths of the Transtheoretical model of health behavior change, especially about the issue of obesity. The model helps to increase awareness and arouse emotions about the health behavior (Wilson & Schlam, 2004). It assists obese people to assess and appraise themselves to determine the most appropriate health behavior changes to help them achieve their desired outcomes.
The theory also exhibits weaknesses in some aspects. For instance, it does not pay the required attention to the social contexts in which the changes occur. These contexts may include a person’s income and financial status. The model assumes that people come up with tenacious and logical plans when making decisions; this is not always the case. The timelines given for each stage in the model are too general. The model does not provide an elaborate criterion of how to ascertain an individual’s stage of change.
By identifying these stages of change, the Transtheoretical model helps in the planning of health education programs that assist people in their efforts to make and maintain health behavior changes (Wilson & Schlam, 2004). This model helps people suffering from conditions such as obesity in the setting of realistic goals that facilitate the change process. Health education programs that are informed by this model help individuals as they make progress over time.
References
Hutchison, A. T., & Heilbronn, L. K. (2016). Metabolic impacts of altering meal frequency and timing–Does when we eat matter? Biochimie, 124, 187-197.
Johnstone, A. (2015). Fasting for weight loss: an effective strategy or latest dieting trend? International Journal of Obesity , 39(5), 727-733.
Prochaska, J. O. (2013). Transtheoretical model of behavior change. In Encyclopedia of behavioral medicine (pp. 1997-2000). Springer New York.
Tinsley, G. M., & La Bounty, P. M. (2015). Effects of intermittent fasting on body composition and clinical health markers in humans. Nutrition reviews, nuv041.
Wilson, G. T., & Schlam, T. R. (2004). The Transtheoretical model and motivational interviewing in the treatment of eating and weight disorders. Clinical psychology review, 24 (3), 361-378.
