Getting Enough Fibre
Fibre is an essential component of a healthy diet, and it plays a significant role in weight loss. Here’s the rationale behind how increasing your fibre intake can help you shed those extra pounds.
- Delayed nutrient absorption: Soluble fibres form a viscous, gel-like substance when mixed with water, which influences various functions in the digestive system, including prolonged gastric emptying and slowers the absorption of nutrients, particularly carbohydrate and fats.
- Chewing slows down intake: Taking more time to chew and swallow can lead to a decrease in overall food intake. Moreover, chewing limits food intake by increasing the secretion of saliva and gastric juices, which expands the stomach and enhances feelings of fullness.
Eating various proteins
Higher-protein diets have been shown to aid in weight loss and maintenance through several mechanisms.
- Increased Satiety: Protein consumption leads to greater feelings of fullness compared to carbohydrates and fats. This increased satiety helps reduce overall calorie intake.
- Thermic Effect of Food: Protein has a higher thermic effect, meaning that more energy is used to digest and metabolise protein compared to fats and carbohydrates. This can slightly boost overall energy expenditure.
- Preservation of Lean Mass: Higher-protein diets help maintain lean muscle mass during weight loss, which is crucial because muscle tissue burns more calories at rest than fat tissue.
Going for low-fat diets
Low-fat diets consistently demonstrate effective weight loss results across various studies, with a clear dose-response relationship between fat reduction and weight loss.
- Caloric reduction: Lowering fat intake, which is calorie-dense, helps create a caloric deficit essential for weight loss.
- Sustainability: Moderate reductions in fat intake, such as reducing fat from 39% to 22% of total calories have been shown to lead to significant weight loss while being easier to maintain than extreme low-fat diets.
- Dietary Adjustments: Weight loss can be achieved by limiting high-fat foods and substituting them with lower-fat options, aided by the increasing availability of low-fat products. For instance, choosing skim milk over whole milk.
While healthy eating plays a crucial role in weight loss, it is equally important to incorporate regular exercise into your routine. A balanced diet provides the necessary nutrients and helps create a caloric deficit, but exercise enhances calorie burning, boosts metabolism, and supports overall physical and mental well-being. Together, these two elements form a powerful strategy for effective weight management and improved health. Therefore, don’t neglect the importance of exercises to achieve sustainable weight loss!
References:
Burton-Freeman, Britt. “Dietary Fiber and Energy Regulation.” The Journal of Nutrition, vol. 130, no. 2, 1 Feb. 2000, pp. 272S275S, academic.oup.com/jn/article/130/2/272S/4686350, https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/130.2.272S. Accessed 3 Apr. 2020.
Heaton, K.W. “FOOD FIBRE as an OBSTACLE to ENERGY INTAKE.” The Lancet, vol. 302, no. 7843, Dec. 1973, pp. 1418–1421, https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(73)92806-7.
Institute of Medicine (US) Subcommittee on Military Weight Management. “Weight-Loss and Maintenance Strategies.” Nih.gov, National Academies Press (US), 2004, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK221839/.
Leicht, L. (2023, May 23). How to burn fat without going to the gym. Health. https://www.health.com/weight-loss/best-way-burn-fat#citation-13Leidy, Heather J, et al. “The Role of Protein in Weight Loss and Maintenance.” The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 101, no. 6, 29 Apr. 2015, pp. 1320S1329S, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25926512/, https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.114.084038.
