We all know that we when we have gained weight
we have eaten too much food, most of us are aware that we have eaten
more calories, than our bodies have used as energy. A calorie is a unit
of heat more precisely the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature
of one gram of water from 14.5C to 15.5C. One calorie is equal to 4.184
joules. It is the unit of heat, which we use to measure how much our
individual body needs.
Calories can be a complicated matrix, what our body needs is not
constant during our lives, women who are breast feeding need more
than sedentary men, for instance. It is not always easy to work out
how much our body needs, but it is not rocket science if we consume
more calories than the body needs it stores the excess as fat.
That is the simple bit but reading food labels can be a nightmare
some manufacturers deliberately mislead, they know we are too busy
to stand in the supermarket and work things out. Some have the substance
as solid and give the measured weight in grammes but give the number
of calories per litre a liquid measurement.
However, I am ahead of myself here before you go shopping you have
to decide which foods you can and cannot eat. A low carb diet says
virtually no carb, but it offers an almost unlimited amount of fat
and no restrictions on protein. It claims huge success, but the medical
profession says it is damaging to the kidneys long term. Those that
live on it say they are healthy and slim. No one is arguing with the
fact that it works, it does work. The science behind it states that
although the diet allows unlimited amounts of fat, there is only so
much cream anyone can eat, therefore you eat less and ergo eventually
you lose weight and keep it off.
Unfortunately, the downside is that when the body has to digest large
amounts of protein it puts a strain on the kidneys, they have to work
that much harder to process it. That is one of the reasons why you
are recommended to drink at least twelve glasses of water a day when
following a low carb diet, it helps to flush out the kidneys.
However in the long term it does not fulfil the required amounts
of fruit and vegetables needed to have a healthy diet and the amount
of fat is simply frightening. What it does to your cholesterol levels
does not bear thinking about. A low fat diet on the other hand is
supposed to be better for you. However, the about turn of the medical
experts has not helped. Thirty years ago butter was bad for you its
saturated fat was bad for the heart. Now after having a generation
born and bred on Margarine, it transpires, that the transfats present
in margarine are even worse for you!
So how do you make the food choice for a healthy lifestyle and a
healthy diet? The media coverage of certain health stories would lead
us to believe that scientists are backtracking. However, they often
report single case studies simply because they do contradict what
has been established research. All of these factors make a choice
of diet difficult.
However to cut through to the chase you did not gain your weight
in a day the problem developed over a period, maybe years. A quick
solution would be wonderful, but we are a little old to believe in
fairies. Statistically the slower you lose the weight the better chance
that you have of keeping it off. Eat a rich range of foods as the
bodies dietary needs are complex, but eat a diet that makes you feel
comfortable. For instance if you like fruit and eat five or six pieces
of fruit a day do not try a low carbohydrate diet. Even if you do
bear in mind, the Glycemic load and eat potato as a treat but eat
high fibre rice and high fibre foods. If you feel ill or deprived
on your diet ask your doctor to refer you to a nutritionist.
There is help available to make dieting easy, it is not a battle
and there is more to dieting than losing a few pounds. Health has
to be a priority; if you do not feel good then there is no point in
being slim. At the end of the day eat a wide range of foods; eat wholegrain,
vegetables, and fish to your diet. Think health not dress size when
choosing a diet!
