Dr. Oz: Dangers of Waist Training
Dr. Oz talked about the disturbing new trend of waist training, where women squeeze into a corset for 12 or more hours per day in order to have the perfect hourglass figure.
Dr. Oz urged women not to do waist training because it can restrict blood flow, compress organs, and cause damage internally. Will these women stop? (Svetlana Prikhnenko / Shutterstock.com)
Kim Kardashian posted a picture of herself on Instagram in a corset recently, making her the latest in a series of celebs jumping on the waist training trend. Other shape-conscious celebs like Brooke Burke, Jessica Alba, and Snooki are also devotees.
The high profile of the trend has led many women to consider it, but is it safe? Corsets, of course, were originally made popular during the Victorian era. Now, women are pulling, squeezing, and tightening their way into corsets once again.
Waist trainers promise this will shrink the waistline and reshape the hips and bottoms. It also promises to reduce appetite. Hundreds of thousands of women have posted pictures of themselves in the corsets.
Dr. Oz: Is Waist Training Safe?
Dr. Oz talked to a woman who has done waist training for a year and a half. She’s lost 15 pounds and gone from a size 30 to a 24. Dr. Oz showed a picture of her before and she didn’t look overweight. She said she tried it because she kept hearing about it and it gave her substantial results. She wears it 18 hours a day. She even wears it when she works out.
Dr. Oz explained that while waist trainers claim they reshape your curves, it’s important to know what is happening inside of you when you do this. The corset squeezes on the lungs, which restricts your ability to breathe. It also squeezes the stomach, leading to acid reflux and decreasing your appetite. It can shift the ribs and compress the organs.
Dr. Oz: Waist Training Compresses the Organs
Dr. Oz sent the woman to get an MRI done without her corset and then an MRI with the corset. Without the corset, her organs looked fine. But with the corset, her waist size shrunk by two inches. The diaphram was pushed up two inches. The kidneys, the liver, and the gallbladder was also pushed up. There were indentations in the liver, which were caused by her rib cage being shoved into her liver.
Then Dr. Oz talked to Dr. Nicole Florence, who has researched this trend thoroughly. She said we know waist training compresses the organs, decreases the appetite, and may even help you lose weight. But this is not safe weight loss. It’s dangerous.
If organs are compressed and restricted long enough, they will conform. Experts aren’t sure if these compressions are permanent, but they’re definitely not healthy.
Constricted lungs puts these women at risk for pneumonia. A restricted colon may lead to constipation. Restricted blood flow to the heart can affect blood pressure, cause dizziness, and even lead to fainting. That last health issue is the reason why they used to have fainting couches in the Victorian era for women.
Dr. Oz: Stop Waist Training
Jasmine has been waist training for three months. She said this conversation has influenced her, but she wants to continue because she likes the results. She said it helps her sweat more during workouts. Another woman said it helps her with her posture and has had good results losing weight.
Dr. Oz was shocked that none of the women (not even the original woman who got the two MRIs) planned to stop doing waist training. They did say they might cut back, but all of them agreed they liked the weight loss results they’d had.
Dr. Oz urged viewers at home who may be doing this to at the very least scale back what they’re doing and ideally quit entirely.
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