When we read the paper or a magazine we might be challenged to ask the question "What is the best diet to help me lose weight?" Never a week goes by without a new diet launched on television or in the newspaper. They seem to proliferate in women's magazines which compete to find the most weird or "celebrity-driven". But do they work? For most of us that is all that matters. Let's look at the different diets and see if we can work out a diet that will work for most of us.
Most diets can be categorized into several categories. The past fifteen to twenty years have seen the rise and fall of low fat diets. This diet was popularized by Nathan Pritikin who used it to overcome his heart disease issues. It was successful because it reduced the intake of all fats to an extreme level and this forced the body to cannibalize the existing fat in the body for energy. Eventually this extended to the arteries and cardiovascular system and the arthrosclerosis in the arteries disappeared as the body ate up all the cholesterol. It was hugely popular and let to the argument that reducing the fat in our diets must the key to weight loss. They forgot that weight loss was a side effect of Pritikins diet, not the reason for it.
Now a gram of fat contains 10 calories of energy, a gram of protein contains 4 calories and a gram of carbohydrate also contains 4 calories. Therefore if we reduce our fat intake we are sure to lose weight because we can see that fat is energy dense. When we study philosophy we find something called a a syllogism. So, the argrument goes, a cat has four legs and a dog has four legs. Therefore a cat is a dog! Dieticians used the same logic with fats, proteins and carbohydrates and it was equally false. Unfortunately it became so entrenched that no one dared to challenge the presupposition and educated dieticians and nutritionists have been plugging this line for many years. For dieting the whole concept is fatally flawed.
Another category of diet is the famous food-combining diets so often favored by Hollywood stars (who can afford the luxury of finding the right foods and combining them to lose weight). The argument is that the different foods act in concert to produce unusual weight loss because they enhance each others effects. It is really questionable and no true dietician advocates them. They fall into the fad diet category. Remember many of the Hollywood stars are stars because they are tough determined people who worked hard to get where they are today. Their determination makes us for the inefficiency of these diets and their success shouldn't automatically be taken as a guide.
Food-combining diets that have been made popular by Hollywood stars is another category of diet. Hollywood stars can afford the luxury of finding the right foods and combining them to lose weight. The rest of us eat normal foods and have household budgets. The diet is based on the argument that different foods work in concert to produce unusual weight loss as they enhance each others effects. It is really questionable and no true dietician advocates them. I think they fall into the fad diet category but some swear by them.
Fad diets come in all shapes and sizes and we all recognize them when we see them. If it feels weird, it probably is. Let your common sense be your guide.
Finally we come to the popular low carbohydrate diets popularized by the Atkins Diet. Dr Robert Atkins worked on existing research of doctors who had studied the insulin response of the body to carbohydrate intake. Through the research he discovered that when we digest carbohydrates our blood sugar levels rise. The more quickly we digest carbohydrates, the quicker the rise in blood sugar. The body reacts to this rise in blood sugar by releasing insulin which binds with the blood sugar and converts it into glycogen to be stored in the liver. If the liver's glycogen store is full the body stores it as adipose tissue, more commonly known as fat. High blood sugar is bad for the body so maintaining a steady blood sugar is vital for good health. Unfortunately when we eat highly processed carbohydrates such as sugar, our blood sugar levels spike and we overproduce insulin to correct the problem. Our blood sugar levels plummet and we are immediately hungry again. So we eat again and so the cycle perpetuates itself.
Atkins realized from the research that severely restricting carbohydrate intake would lead to the body going to its own store of energy, its stored fat reserves. So the Atkins Diet was born. Atkins also realized from research that high sugar levels in the bloodstream contributed to heart disease far more than fats in the diet. This was demonstrated in research many years before the fad that led to the low fat diet which was based on a flawed premise. For many people the Atkins Diet was a savior and they have taken on the diet as a long term lifestyle.
The Atkins diet is very effective from personal experience, but many dieters found the first month just too hard. The Atkins Diet is quite strict to begin with and for these people an alternative was needed to help them lose the weight without the strict self discipline the Atkins Diet required. They needed a diet that worked in the real world without the time and effort the Atkins Diet needed. The best diet should include food, exercise and a meal planner to help make life easier. It should not need us to carefully count every gram of carbohydrate and protein and fat that passes our lips. You see food, selected correctly can be our greatest ally in losing weight. Some foods rich is proteins take more energy to burn than they yield. Also proteins help build muscle which is essential for weight loss. A good weight loss program will educate as to which foods to avoid and which to include, correct portion size and eating habits.
In addition to this we need an exercise program that gets us moving and the fat burning off. Exercise is the cornerstone of any effective and successful diet. When combined with sensible eating and good advice it can put us on the road to success. The best diet programs also include a meal planner which gives you meal suggestions and prepares a shopping list for the week's food. That way you don't spend the day worrying about what you are going to eat that day. Obsessing about food is the poor preparation for losing weight!
So if you are looking for the best diet look at the programs that include a good balance of foods, from the different food groups and not unbalanced on their avoidance of any one group. Also look for a good exercise program included that will work for you and a meal planner is a must. Good luck is just a matter of research, commitment and dedication. The more committed you are, I bet the luckier you become.
