Weight Loss Season is upon us!
The advisory committee report for the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans has been published and makes a major departure from previous editions in that it does not include a message specifically directed toward sugars. Specifically for fruits and vegetables, the report recommends that the suggested range of intake is 2.5 to 6.5 cups of fruits and vegetables daily, depending on calorie needs. For persons needing 2,000 calories per day to maintain their weight, the goal is 4.5 cups (or the equivalent) of fruits and vegetables per day. The report also noted that adults who increase their fruit and vegetable consumption to meet recommended nutrient intakes will also be consuming amounts of fruits and vegetables that are associated with a decreased risk of such chronic diseases as stroke, perhaps other cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, and cancer in certain sites. In addition, it stated that increased consumption of fruits and vegetables may be a useful component of programs designed to achieve and sustain weight loss.
What should you do to affect a weight loss program?
By Staff
By reading the summaries in the articles below, it is clear that common sense needs to prevail in the over marketed weight loss and supplement industry.
Permanent weight loss differs from “rapid” weight loss in that the former is based on a total transformation in all lifestyle components where weight loss becomes a secondary benefit of the process. The latter is a mismanaged symptom of an out of control approach predicated on the desire to have instant gratification.
Weight loss and overall health are not synonymous. Eating fewer calories and supplementing will lose weight, but is not providing a proper balanced intake of nutrients. See Government RDI’s Explained to calculate what Dietary Intake you really need to be healthy.
Some commercial diet programs rely on schemes to allow you to enjoy their processed and nutritionally weak foods in order to affect weight loss. Overall health can be compromised and fees, food items and books etc. tend to derail long term results by adding unnecessary complexity to the day to day dynamics of living.
Foodie Smart was created to allow people of all ages, body types and lifestyles to develop healthy eating solutions based on natural, whole foods from all food groups. In order to make transitional habit forming easier, we provide tools and over 100,000 recipes that can be searched and selected based on the foods you should be eating and by allowing you to manage your specific requirements and taste preferences.
Foodie Smart reviews what’s wrong with Diets and Supplements.
Atkins Diet
“If your definition of what "works" is quick weight loss, then the Atkins Diet DOES work. Recent studies showed that the Atkins Diet causes greater weight loss than the American Heart Association-recommended high carb, low fat diet. In fact, for obese people with disorders of carbohydrate metabolism (hyperinsulinemia, hypoglycemia, and insulin resistance), Atkins-style diets have been shown to work especially well.
However, if your definition of what "works" is permanent fat loss, then the Atkins diet doesn’t fare so well... but neither do any other diets. It seems that despite some encouraging initial successes, Atkins dieters still face the same difficulties keeping off the weight as everyone else. Some of the same studies showing rapid weight loss on Atkins in the beginning also showed substantial weight gain as soon as the diets ended.
Truth is, a growing body of evidence is mounting that carbohydrate restriction can accelerate weight loss in the short term, but it has yet to be proven that it keeps the fat off in the long run.”
Look for the entire report at: www.tomvenuto.com
Study Nixes Glycemic Index for Weight Loss
”The scientific tide continues to turn against South Beach and other low-carb regimens that promise weight loss by steering dieters toward low-glycemic-index (low-GI) foods.
A new study published in the August American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found low-GI diets no better than high-GI ones in producing weight loss results. The glycemic index is the measure of how quickly sugars in foods enter the blood, and while the GI may be relevant for diabetics, some fad diets have misappropriated the GI as a gimmick to lend a pseudo-scientific patina to their weight loss claims.
With the new findings by Danish researchers, reality reclaims territory from fantasy-land, as we learn that low GI diets do NOT deliver on key claims of weight loss, appetite control or fat reduction. In a 10-week randomized trial, two groups of overweight women were put on low-fat diets -- one whose carbs came from the high end of the GI scale, the other drawing on low-GI carbs.
While both groups lost weight, the low-GI dieters had no discernable edge over their high-GI peers with regard to changes in body weight and composition. Nor did the low-GI Janes end up consuming fewer calories, suggesting no significant differences in satiety between the groups.
While the GI may be an important tool for those trying to lower their LDL ("bad") cholesterol, for the vast majority of folks worried about their weight, decreasing calories consumed and increasing calories burned continues to be the best bet for dropping pounds. ” Read the full article here
Fancy labeling tactics no more!
“The Canadian government has given food manufacturers three to five years to comply with strict new guidelines for nutrition labels -- or nutrition facts tables -- on foods sold in Canada. The new regulations kicked into gear on January 1, 2003, giving Canadians a healthy start to the New Year.
In the past, packaged foods sold in Canada contained incomplete nutritional labels or none at all, leaving Canadian consumers with little information about the foods they were eating. For many, this often meant a diet lacking essential nutrients, and instead, consisting of many foods full of empty calories.
"Providing Canadians with additional information about the nutritional value of the food they are consuming can assist people in making healthier choices," says Farah Mohamed, spokesperson for The Honourable Anne McLellan, Minister of Health. "The Minister of Health is committed to any measure that will give Canadians the tools they need to lead healthier lives."
Check Foodie Smart's recipes’ Nutritional Values using our unique search tools including Nutrition Facts Searches and Total Calorie Counters for meal, day, week.
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