Everyone knows that weight loss improves overall health for anyone carrying around extra pounds.
Eat less and exercise more. That's all you have to do, right? Hmmm, no, it's not quite that simple.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) sets aside massive funding for obesity research. Their research helps to explain
Extra body fat boosts significant health problems, like high blood pressure, heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, depression, respiratory problems, cancers, and even fertility problems. And sadly that's the short list.
A 2017 study found that obesity leads the list of early preventable deaths in the U.S., even more than smoking. The majority of American adults are overweight, with nearly 40% clinically obese. The World Health Organization has also declared that obesity is now a global epidemic.
What are the causes of weight gain and how do you avoid gaining weight?
Recent analysis reveals that the old belief of "calories in, calories out" is overly simplistic.
The type of food eaten is also important. Your brain and emotional health affect weight loss and gain. Stress is a huge factor in weight gain. Also, exercise, while important in achieving and maintaining good health, isn't all that dependable for keeping off excess weight over the long haul.
The newest information shows that a successful plan for weight loss may be different for each individual. Trial and error is pretty standard for those few who have lost weight and managed to keep it off over the long haul.
A "low-fat emphasis" that started in the 1970s didn't prevent weight gain. There are more obese adults (and kids) now than when those guidelines were given.
Currently it's more common for sugar and simple carbs to be blamed for weight gain. Nearly all processed foods contain sugars of some type, causing not just weight gain but also inflammation problems that lead to diseases.
Perhaps the best advice is accepting the cold, hard fact that you have to go through a significant lifestyle change.
For example, the Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy teaches that you must first make changes in your thinking and behavior in order to make permanent changes in your eating.
When researchers interview those who've had successful longterm weight loss, one common factor shows up: "Some people emphasize exercise more than others, some follow low-carb diets, and some follow low-fat diets. The one commonality is that they had to make changes in their everyday behaviors."
Check with your doctor before starting any weight-loss diet, especially if you have health conditions. Do some research to find a plan that emphasizes healthy food choices you can live with.
You may read information that surprises you - one example is an NIH study that honey and weight loss are compatible. It says "Honey intake reduces blood sugar levels and prevents excessive weight gain."
You'll need an exercise style that appeals to you so you're motivated to maintain it. Using exercise alone to lose weight is unreliable, but activity is indispensable to good health.
Many find that simply walking is best, especially at the beginning. Weights, yoga or other activities can be added later.
Almost any balanced diet plan - not fad diets that crop up regularly - can get you started toward losing weight. Food that's closest to its natural state is more nutrient-dense and eliminates the added sugars and other risks that come with overly-processed food.
There's not really any such thing as a fat-burning food. Healthline.com points out that different foods go through different metabolic pathways in your body, and have vastly different effects on your hunger, hormones, and the number of calories you burn.
Here are just five of the top 20 foods they recommend. Be sure to check out the other 15.
The Mayo Clinic describes low-carb this way:
A low-carb diet limits carbohydrates such as those found in grains, starchy vegetables and fruit, and emphasizes foods high in protein and fat.
The purpose is generally for losing weight. Some low-carb diets may have health benefits beyond weight loss, such as reducing risk factors associated with type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome.
You might choose to follow a low-carb diet because you:
There are negatives to eating low-carb. A drastic cut in carbs could cause headaches, bad breath, weakness, muscle cramps, fatigue, skin rash and either diarrhea or constipation.
Some diets restrict carbohydrate intake enough in the long term that they can result in vitamin or mineral deficiencies, bone loss and gastrointestinal disturbances, and may increase risks of various chronic diseases.
It's not clear what kind of possible long-term health risks a low-carb diet may pose because most research studies have lasted less than a year.
Approach this popular diet with caution. The Mayo Clinic has a lot to say about this one too.
This high-fat, very low carbohydrate diet typically means eating fewer than 50 grams of carbs a day.
This diet says that getting most of your calories from fat forces your body to use different energy pathways. Instead of carbs for energy, the body burns fat, entering a state called ketosis.
The positives: While the precise mechanisms are unclear, ketosis is thought to have brain-protecting benefits: As many as half of young people with epilepsy had fewer seizures after following the diet. Early research suggests it may have benefits for blood sugar control among people with diabetes.
The negatives: There's very little evidence to show that this type of eating is effective or safe over the long term for anything other than epilepsy. Plus, very low carbohydrate diets tend to have higher rates of side effects, including constipation, headaches, bad breath and more.
Meeting this diet's requirements means cutting out many healthy foods, making it difficult to meet your micronutrient needs. Mayo's verdict is that while the ketogenic diet may be recommended for some people with uncontrolled epilepsy, the high-fat content and limits on nutrient-rich fruits, veggies, and grains are a concern for long-term heart health.
Doing yoga helps you feel better about your body. You'll become stronger and more flexible, reduce stress, strengthen muscles, and improve mental well-being. Are yoga and weight loss connected?
You'll still need some cardio form of exercise, but practicing yoga encourages a healthier lifestyle - part of the mental/emotional change that research indicates is just as important as diet and exercise.
Prevention.com reports this encouraging news:
Weight loss that happens with gentle yoga isn't due to the typical causal pathways, in which you burn more calories than you take in, says Alan Kristal, lead researcher in an ongoing study. In his study of 15,000 adults in their 50s, overweight people who did yoga at least once a week for 4 or more years lost an average of 5 pounds, while those who didn't packed on an average of 13.5, a difference of nearly 20 pounds.
No, it doesn't appear to be. Advertisements for weight loss supplements containing garcinia cambogia used to be commonplace, but those have plummeted.
When your health is involved, always check with sources that conduct reliable scientific studies, not anecdotal stories or hearsay. One dependable source is research from the National Institutes of Health.
NIH has investigated claims associated with garcinia and weight loss. What they have learned about the supplement along with the cautions given should be taken seriously.
Here's a synopsis:
Garcinia cambogia is native to India and Southeast Asia. The rind of its fruit is used to flavor fish curries and preserve food.
The rind contains hydroxycitric acid (HCA), which has been studied for its effect on appetite. Supplements with HCA are marketed for weight loss. Garcinia cambogia has also been used as a dietary supplement for rheumatism, intestinal problems, and other conditions. It's made into tea, capsules, extracts, tablets, and lotion.
There aren't recent, reliable studies on its effectiveness. There's no convincing evidence that garcinia cambogia will help you lose fat or control cholesterol.
While NIH states that taking garcinia cambogia for short periods (12 weeks or less) appears safe for most people, a second article from NIH indicates garcinia cambogia may not be safe at all.
It's among several products that have been shown to have serious health risks. This article presents one case of acute liver failure associated with garcinia weight loss. The patient had to undergo a liver transplant.
Instead of risky diets, you'd be much wiser to focus on lifestyle changes, a wholesome diet, and the addition of exercise.