Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Cognitive behavioural therapy, or CBT, is a structured form of talking therapy that helps people change the unhelpful thoughts and habits around food, eating and weight.
Plain English
Patient-Friendly Explanation
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is a practical, structured form of counselling that helps you notice and change the thoughts and habits that drive overeating. Instead of focusing only on what you eat, CBT looks at the triggers — stress, boredom, cravings, all-or-nothing thinking — and builds concrete skills to respond differently. It is one of the most evidence-backed psychological treatments for weight management, especially when combined with diet and exercise changes.
Medical
Clinical Definition
CBT for obesity is a time-limited, skills-based psychotherapy targeting the cognitive and behavioural drivers of energy intake through stimulus control, problem-solving, cognitive restructuring of unhelpful food-related beliefs, and relapse prevention. In weight-management trials, CBT-based interventions produce clinically meaningful weight loss, typically 5–10% of initial body weight, and improve adherence to dietary and physical-activity programmes, with benefits better sustained when booster sessions are used. CBT is also first-line psychological treatment for binge-eating disorder, a common comorbidity in patients seeking weight loss.
Key Insight
Why It Matters
Sustainable weight loss is as much about behaviour as biology. Our programme at Accord Medical can combine medical weight management with psychological support such as CBT, giving you strategies that last beyond the initial weight-loss phase.
Sources
Reviewed against standard medical references.
Medically reviewed by
Family Physician & Registered Acupuncturist, Accord Medical Clinic. MBBS (NUS), Graduate Diploma in Family Medicine (NUS), Graduate Diploma in Acupuncture (Singapore College of TCM).
Last reviewed: August 2026
This page is general health education, not medical advice. Whether any treatment is appropriate for you is a decision made in consultation after assessment.
