subject: Questions Regarding Nutrition And Weight Loss [print this page] The subject of nutrition and weight loss has been discussed at great length over many years; this has often thrown up inevitable untruths and inaccuracies. Knowing the truth about nutrition and weight loss is a very important matter with many questions that need to be answered.
What are the facts about weight loss?
Being obese can have serious health consequences. These include an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, gallstones, and some forms of cancer. Losing weight can help reduce these risks. Here are some general points to keep in mind:
Any claims that you can lose weight effortlessly are false. The only proven way to lose weight is either to reduce the number of calories you eat or to increase the number of calories you burn off through exercise. Most experts recommend a combination of both. Supplementation can assist the weight loss process.
Very low-calorie diets are not without risk and should be pursued only under medical supervision. Unsupervised very low-calorie diets can deprive you of important nutrients and are potentially dangerous.
Fad diets rarelyhave any permanent effect. Sudden and radical changes in your eating patterns are difficult to sustain over time. In addition, so-called "crash" diets often send dieters into a cycle of quick weight loss, followed by a "rebound" weight gain once normal eating resumes, andeven more difficulty reducing when the next diet is attempted.
To lose weight safely and keep it off requires long-term changes in daily eating and exercise habits.
Do diet programs work?
Approximately 8 million Americans a year enroll in some kind of structured weight-loss program involving liquid diets, special diet regimens, or medical or other supervision. In 1991, about 8,500 commercial diet centers were in operation across the country, many of them owned by a half-dozen or so well-known national companies.
Before youjoin such a program, you should know that according to published studies relatively few participants succeed in keeping off weight long-term. Recently, the FTC brought action against several companies challenging weight-loss and weight-maintenance claims. Unfortunately, some other companies continue to make overblown claims.
What are sensible weight maintenance tips?
Losing weight may not be effortless, but it doesn't have to be complicated. Toachieve long-term results, it's best to avoid quick-fix schemes and complex regimens. Focus instead on making modest changes to your life's daily routine. A balanced, healthy diet and sensible, regular exercise are the keys to maintaining your ideal weight. Although nutrition science is constantly evolving, here are some generally-accepted guidelines for losing weight:
*Consult with your doctor, a dietician, or other qualified health professional to determine your ideal healthy body weight.
*Eat smaller portions more frequently and choose from a variety of foods.
*Load up on foods naturally high in fiber: Fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains.
*Limit potions of foods high in fat: dairy products like cheese, butter, and whole milk; red meat; cakes and pastries.
*Exercise at least three times a week.
Why should older people be concerned about nutrition?
Nutrition remains important throughout life. Many chronic diseases that develop late in life, such as osteoporosis, can be influenced by earlier poor eating habits. Insufficient exercise and calcium intake, especially during adolescence and early adulthood, can significantly increase the risk of osteoporosis, a disease that causes bones to become brittle and crack or break.
But good nutrition in the later years still can help lessen the effects of diseases prevalent among older Americans or improve the quality of life in people who have such diseases. The yinclude osteoporosis, obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease,certain cancers, gastrointestinal problems, and chronic undernutrition.
Studies show that a good diet in later years helps both in reducing the risk of these diseases and in managing the diseases' signs and symptoms. This contributes to a higher quality of life, enabling older people to maintain their independence by continuing to perform basic daily activities, such as bathing, dressing and eating.
Poor nutrition, on the other hand, can prolong recovery from illnesses, increase the costs and incidence of institutionalization, and lead to a poorer quality of life.
What are some tips to reduce fat and cholesterol in my diet?
*Steam, boil, bake, or microwave vegetables rather than frying.
*Season vegetables with herbs and spices instead of fatty sauces, butter or margarine.
*Try flavored vinegars or lemon juice on salads or use smaller servings of oil-based or low-fat salad dressings.
*Try whole-grain flours to enhance flavors of baked goods made with less fat and fewer or no cholesterol-containing ingredients.
*Replace whole milk with low-fat or skim milk in puddings, soups and baked products.
*Substitute plain low-fat yogurt or blender-whipped low-fat cottage cheese for sour cream or mayonnaise.
*Choose lean cuts of meat, and trim fat from meat and poultry before and after cooking. Remove skin from poultry before or after cooking.
*Roast, bake, broil, or simmer meat, poultry and fish rather than frying.
*Cook meat or poultry on a rack so the fat will drain off. Use a non-stick pan for cooking so added fat is unnecessary.
*Chill meat and poultry broth until the fat becomes solid. Remove the fat before using the broth.
*Limit egg yolks to one per serving when making scrambled eggs. Use additional egg whites for larger servings.
*Try substituting egg whites in recipes calling for whole eggs. Use two egg whites in place of one whole egg in muffins, cookies and puddings.
These are some of the descriptors to look for on the front of the package:
*fat-free: less than 0.5 grams (g) of fat per serving
*low-fat: 3 g or less per serving (if the serving size is 30 g or less or 2 tablespoons or less, no more than 3 g of fat per 50 g of the food)
*light: one-third fewer calories or half the fat of the "regular" version
*low-sodium: 140 milligrams (mg) or less per serving (if the serving size is 30 g or less or 2 tablespoons or less, no more than 140 mg of sodium per 50 g of the food)
*lightly salted: at least 50 percent less sodium per serving than the "regular" version
*reduced: when describing fat, sodium or calorie content, the food must have at least 25 percent less of these nutrients than the "regular" version.
Are there nutritional differences between fresh foods and canned foods?
The heating process during canning destroys from one-third to one-half of vitamins A and C, riboflavin, and thiamin. For every year the food is stored, canned food loses an additional 5 to 20% of these vitamins. However, the amounts of other vitamins are only slightly lower in canned food than in fresh food.
Most produce will begin to lose some of its nutrients when harvested. When produce is handled properly and canned quickly after harvest, it can be more nutritious than fresh produce sold in stores.
