Weight loss tips: Follow a diet and exercise regime that you can continue in the long run. Here’s what a nutritionist says what works and doesn’t work for weight loss.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Avoid constantly snacking on a weight loss diet
• Eat small and frequent meals
• Avoid eating meals that contain only refined carbs

There may never be just one single way which is right for losing weight. There are a few basics like not starving yourself, getting optimum nutrition, consuming all food groups and exercising regularly need to be followed on a daily basis. However, there are other basics like eating your meals at the same time every day and making realistic choices are weight loss tips that actually work. Nutritionist Rachel Paul, who goes by the name of the name of collegenutritionist on Instagram, talks about what actually works and what doesn’t work, for weight loss.

Weight loss: What doesn’t work?

If you are following fad diets or calorie restrictive diets that involve eating low-carbs or low fats may provide quick weight loss benefits. But they are not sustainable in nature and may result in side effects like cravings, headaches, irritability, fatigue, constipation, mood swings and overeating after a point of time.

Also read: Weight Loss: 12 Good Carbs That You Can Eat Guilt-Free, Every Day

Here are the things that you need to avoid if you want to lose weight sustainable and effectively:

• Constantly snacking
• Eating meals that contain only refined carbs
• Having a “perfectionist” or “all-or-nothing” mentality
• Following “cleanses” or “resets”

Weight loss tips: What actually works?

According to Paul, the concept of eating small and frequent meals can actually work for people if they want to lose weight.

1. Set of schedule of eating every three to four hours. This way, there will be no long gaps between meals, you won’t end up starving yourself and then overeating, and your digestion is also likely to be optimum.

2. Eat protein in most of your meals. Protein is the macronutrient that can help in building muscles and also reducing appetite. Protein-rich foods like eggs, chicken, lentils, legumes, etc are all filling in nature and can reduce your overall calorie intake.

Also read: Quick Breakfast Ideas: Prepare This Avocado Toast To Get A Dash Of Protein, Fibre And Good Fats

3. Focus making realistic choices, suggests Paul. If you are someone who cannot do without staple foods like rice and roti, then do not force yourself to not eat them just for the sake of weight loss. These are carbs which are rich in fibre and will provide you with sufficient energy to follow your day-to-day functions.

4. Follow a diet and exercise regime that you can follow for life, says the nutritionist. Your diet should be one which is easy and sustainable to follow. It should include seasonal and cultural foods that have been eaten in your family for generations. Practice portion control in whatever you eat and avoid processed, packaged and junk food as much as you can.

Also read: Weight Loss: Burn Some Calories With This Advanced Cardio Workout That Can Pump You Up Instantly!

Speaking of your exercise regime, it must definitely be one which you can continue in the long run. Never pick up workouts that can’t be done on packed day, or when you are travelling, etc. Make your workouts flexible. Save workouts that are of short duration and those that can be done without any equipment.

Disclaimer: This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.

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You may have heard the saying, ‘If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail’.  As a nutritionist I will admit that I am a bit of a hammer. If someone asks, ‘How do I get more energy?’ I will likely respond, ‘Eat clean and stay hydrated’. ‘What about having better brain function?’someone asks. ‘Watch those blood sugar highs and low’ might likely be my response.

But what about this COVID -19 epidemic, could nutrition play a role in its outcome? Would it make a difference if we were equally focussed on our diet and immune system as much as preventing contracting the virus with social distancing, hygiene, and masks?

Statistics

Thailand’s mortality rate from COVID-19 stands at one of the lowest in the world at 1.7% (global average was estimated at around 6%). However, among the deceased 41% had diabetes, 36% had high blood pressure, 18% had hyperlipidemia, and 14% had heart diseases.

When divided by age group, those who are over 70 had the highest mortality rate at 12.1%, followed by those aged 50-59 (4%) and 60-69 (3.7%), while the group with the lowest risk is 20-29 years old at 0.2%.

Among the deceased, 41% had diabetes, 36% had high blood pressure, 18% had hyperlipidemia, 14% had heart diseases. 

The CDC also recently released statistics that 94% of those who died had more than one underlying medical condition. When this figure is connected with the statistic that those people over 70 have the highest rates of mortality it stands out that health is a key player in COVID Mortality for those under 70 years of age.  

COVID-19 and metabolic syndrome

So I was thrilled to read a recent editorial from Dr Maryanne Demasi in the British Medical Journal titled; ‘COVID-19 and metabolic syndrome: could diet be the key?’

Dr Demasi starts by sharing the now-familiar statistics of the vast majority of people hospitalised and dying from COVID-19 as having pre-existing conditions including:

• Two-thirds of the people in the UK have fallen seriously are with COVID, who are overweight or obese. 
• 99% of deaths in Italy have been in patients with pre-existing conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease.

These conditions make up what is known as metabolic syndrome, and include high blood pressure, low good cholesterol, high blood sugar, high waist circumference.

Perhaps this may help to explain Thailand’s lower rate of mortality as Thailand has about half the Metabolic Syndrome cases of the US and UK – about 16% compared to the US and UK with over 32%.

What causes Metabolic Syndrome

Dr Demasi goes on to say metabolic syndrome is related to insulin resistance. The most significant factor that determines blood glucose levels is the consumption of carbohydrates, refined carbs, starches and simple sugars. 

She believes one of the problems facing people now is that people who are confined to nursing homes, hospitals and self-isolating are stockpiling non-perishable staple foods which are generally high carbohydrate like pasta, bread, rice and cereals and increasing their mortality risk.

Are you at risk of Metabolic Syndrome?

I highly recommend every year people doing an annual health check-up and getting your labs done. We are blessed when it comes to medical tourism in Phuket. With International Hospitals offering health checks along with many walk-in clinics. Here are some of the tests related to metabolic syndrome:

Fasting Blood Sugar, HBA1c (long term blood sugar), Full lipid (Cholesterol markers), Fasting Insulin along with getting your waist circumference measured (men should be under 90cm, women under 85cm) and blood pressure taken.

What do you do if these markers are high?

Naturally, talk to your doctor about solutions but here are 3 strategies to help using diet (regular exercise and good sleep naturally also help):

1. Reduce as much sugar as possible – so cut down or ideally eliminate the soft drinks, reduce adding sugar to meals or drinks and consuming confectionary.
2. Go lower Carb – especially lowering the refined grains like white bread, pasta, potatoes and rice. Try to replace these with more vegetables. As Doctor Demasi rightly says, even most diabetic associations now agree that restriction of dietary carbohydrates is a safe and effective way to achieve good balance between blood sugar and weight loss.
3. Try Intermittent Fasting (I.F.). I.F. is not for everyone (especially not for kids, pregnant women, and those with low blood sugar issues). But for those with metabolic syndrome not eating frequently and having longer gaps between meals has considerable research supporting its efficacy in blood sugar balance. The 5:2 diet is one style that recommends twice a week eating just 1 meal. Another strategy recommends eating only during an eight-hour window eg. 10am to 6pm and fasting the remainder. 

The key to long-term health success comes from firstly ownership of your health, so I highly recommend to get your labs done. If the results are not in your favour then make it very clear why health is important. Then comes the plan. Find the strategies that will work long term and become healthy habits. Finally, you need to make yourself accountable to follow through – maybe also share your goals with a friend, partner or coach and make those strategies become life-long habits. Good health to you!

Craig Burton (BSc, NASM, CISSN) is a practicing Clinical and Sports Nutritionist with over 20 years’ experience as a health practitioner. He holds an array of qualifications in nutrition, as well as in health, fitness, mental and lifestyle coaching. To find out more about Craig or contact him go to www.craigburtoncoaching.com

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Differences in diet may be part of the reason that stomach and gut problems are more common among women with endometriosis, a recent study suggests.

A planned diet by a nutritionist may help relieve disease burden in women with this often painful disorder, in which the tissue that makes up the lining of the womb is present on other organs in the body.

Titled “Different nutrient intake and prevalence of gastrointestinal comorbidities in women with endometriosis,” the study was published in the Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology.

Management of endometriosis symptoms, as for any health condition, doesn’t just involve pharmacological intervention. Lifestyle factors, like diet, can play a major role as well. Indeed, some studies have linked a diet with more trans fats with endometriosis, and others have suggested that supplementation with vitamin C might reduce endometriosis-related pelvic pain.

Most of these findings are preliminary and more research is needed. But these findings raise the possibility that changes in diet could help manage and even prevent the symptoms of endometriosis. However, in order to design diet interventions, it first is necessary to understand what people with endometriosis tend to eat and, consequently, gauge their nutrient intake.

To find out more, researchers at the Friedrich Alexander University in Erlangen-Nuernberg in Germany surveyed 156 people with endometriosis. The women (average age 35.5 years) were questioned about their dietary habits, as well as relevant clinical information. For comparison, a group of 52 women without endometriosis were recruited. The two groups were similar in age and body mass index (BMI). There were, however, significant differences in cycle regularity, bleeding duration, amenorrhea (absence of menstruation) over 6 months, pregnancy, and infertility.

Compared with the healthy participants (controls), a significantly higher percentage of women with endometriosis reported having gastrointestinal symptoms (76.9% vs. 28.8%). These symptoms included heartburn (26.9% vs. 1.9%, pyrosis), diarrhea (18.6% vs. 5.8%), and constipation (42.3% vs. 5.8%). The findings are in line with previous studies that have suggested that gastrointestinal symptoms are common among people with endometriosis.

“Overall study results indicate a possible association of endometriosis and gastrointestinal disorders,” the researchers said.

In terms of diet, the two groups were similar in their total energy intake, as well as in their overall intake of macronutrients like carbohydrates, fats, and proteins.

However, the results showed that participants with endometriosis consumed significantly less vitamin C (137.93 vs 152.92 mg/day), vitamin B12 (4.58 vs. 5.35 µg/day), and magnesium (424.76 vs. 457.81 mg/day) than the controls.

These results are still very much preliminary, but they provide a basis for possibly testing supplementation with these nutrients as a strategy for improving endometriosis symptoms.

Moreover, women with endometriosis also consumed significantly less animal protein than controls, which might explain the vitamin B12 lower values.

The researchers noted that studies related to food intolerances — which occurs when a person has difficulty digesting a particular food — in endometriosis are scarce, and needed.

“In our study the chance for intolerances was about four-times higher in endometriosis patients compared to controls and they were also more prone for multiple intolerances,” the investigators said.

The team also added that they observed a significantly higher proportion of women with endometriosis with a sensitivity to gluten.

This “may explain the positive effects of a gluten-free diet in the management of pelvic pain in these patients,” they said.

Diet alterations may be of help to women with endometriosis who have food intolerances, the study results suggest.

“The altered intake of certain nutrients may also suggest the dietary supplementation of e.g. vitamin C or magnesium to reduce disease burden and oxidative stress in the affected women,” the investigators concluded, while calling for further research.

“In future, controlled and randomized intervention studies are necessary to investigate the effect of certain nutrients on endometriosis with regard of coexisting gastrointestinal disorders and therapy side effects,” they said.

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