People gain weight by consuming more energy than they burn, so consuming fewer calories, or energy, can help. However, other factors play a role, such as genetic factors, metabolism, hormones, the type of food you eat, your body type, and lifestyle.
This article will look at the reasons to lose weight, the most effective methods and medical interventions.
Obesity
Health experts around the world now see obesity as an an epidemic.
Every year, at least 2.8 million people die due complications related to excess weight.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) obesity currently affects more than 1 in 3 people in the United States, or 36.5 percent of adults in the U.S.
The health risks of excess weight include:
- a higher risk of diabetes
- stroke
- certain types of cancer
Why lose weight?
There are many reasons for losing weight:
- Appearance: People may feel that if they lose weight, they will look more attractive, fitter, or healthier.
- Confidence and body image: People with excess weight or obesity may feel uncomfortable about their appearance.
- Overall health: Maintaining an appropriate weight can help to boost overall health and prevent diseases such as type 2 diabetes.
- Specific conditions: Symptoms of sleep apnea or type 2 diabetes, for example, may improve or go away when a person loses excess weight.
- Fitness: A weight-loss program that involves exercise can leave a person feeling fitter, with more energy and stamina
- Sports competitions: In some sports, such as boxing, an individual may seek to control their weight so that they can stay in their existing weight category.
- Fertility: Fertility treatment appears to be more effective in women with obesity and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) if they lose some weight before treatment.
Diets
Many diet plans make amazing weight loss claims, and it can be hard to know to do.
Some are evidence-based, safe and effective, but others are not. Most health professionals, dietitians, and nutritionists agree that the best results tend to come from combining a healthful, weight-reduction diet with physical activity, especially in the long term.
Proponents of many diets say they are extremely effective and require no effort at all. Unless they have been proven to be so in scientific studies, it is not possible to know how effective they really are.powered by Rubicon Project
Calories
The number of calories per day you should consume to lose weight depends on several factors, including your sex, how much you want to lose, how quickly you want to lose it, and your age.
Below are the daily calorie requirements for men and women, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Daily recommended calorie consumption for males:
Age 19-20
- Sedentary: 2,600
- Moderately active: 2,800
- Active: 3,000
Age 21-30
- Sedentary: 2,400
- Moderately active: 2,600-2,800
- Active: 3,000
Age 31-50
- Sedentary: 2,200-2,400
- Moderately active: 2,400-2,600
- Active: 2,800-3,000
Age 51+
- Sedentary: 2,000-2200
- Moderately active: 2,200-2,400
- Active: 2,400-2,800
Daily recommended calorie consumption for females:
Age 19 to 30 years
- Sedentary: 1,800 to 2,000
- Moderately active: 2,000 to 2,200
- Active: 2,400
Age 31-50 years
- Sedentary: 1,800
- moderately active: 2,400-2,600
- Active: 2,200
Age 51+ years
- Sedentary: 1,600
- Moderately active: 1,800
- Active: 2000 to 2,200
If you want to lose weight, you would have to consume less than the amounts listed above. The less you consume, the faster you lose. However, it is important to follow a healthy, well-balanced diet so that you do not become ill, or lose lean tissue (muscle). Ideally, you should check with a dietitian, nutritionist or your doctor.
In some regimes, dieters consume 1,200 calories per day if they are female and 1,500 if they are male. However, do not try to do this yourself without the supervision of a trained expert.
You need to make sure your carbohydrate, protein, and fat ratio is right for good health. Recommendations for carbohydrate intake vary, from 20 to 60 percent for losing weight.
A poor diet and malnutrition can occur regardless of calories. A meal plan should be balanced in terms of nutrients, too. A poor diet can lead not only to malnutrition, but also a low mood and loss of motivation. This can cause to dieters drop out before reaching their target weight.
When dieters have reached their target body weight, they should gradually increase their daily intake until they reach their “weight maintenance” figure
Weight control
Body weight control is much more successful if you can combine a well-balanced diet with regular exercise.
Crash diets may have positive short-term results, but they tend to have poor long-term success rates.
If you manage to sleep between 7 and 8 hours continuously in each 24 hour period, your body weight control will be more successful. Sleep deprivation or lack of sleep can make you put on weight.
In 2009, researchers combined the successful weight loss strategies of 6,000 individuals.
They came up with the following measures to prevent putting weight back on after losing it:
- Physical activity: Do at least 200 minutes each week of moderate-intensity exercise. This should be spread out over at least three days (do not do all the minutes in one go each week).
- Watching TV: Limit your TV watching to no more than 10 hours each week. Many people might find this recommendation particularly difficult to follow.
- Fat limit on diet: Make sure that no more than 30% of your nutritional intake is in the form of fat.
- Eat consistently: Resist the urge to overeat during weekends and holidays. Your food intake should follow a regular routine. Overeating not only upsets your routine, it most likely impacts on your metabolism.
- Breakfast: Never miss it. Breakfast helps stave off hunger later on in the day, and this can help prevent overeating and snacking.
- Monitor yourself: Keep a close check on what you eat and regularly weigh yourself.
Weight and health
Some health professionals and researchers disagree with focusing on weight loss when advising patients and clients. They believe that dieting and weight-loss efforts may lead to further weight gain and poorer health.
Instead, they suggest focusing on better health status, because this results in better body weight control over the long term.
Supplements
A number of supplements are available that claim to help people lose weight.
These include:
- omega-3 products and fish oils
- chitosan, derived from shellfish
- green tea extracts
- some Chinese herbs
- bitter orange extract
According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH), are not these are ineffective, and they are likely to have side effects.
Ephedra was used in weight-loss supplements in the past, but it has been banned because of safety concerns.
Further concerns include items such as “fat burners” being sold without approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the fact that some herbal supplements may not contain exactly what the label says.
Natural remedies
The NCCIH points out that approaches that focus on the mind and the body may help.
Examples include:
- yoga
- meditation
- mindful eating
They recommend finding a qualified and experienced instructor to guide you through these activities.
Bariatric surgery
Bariatric surgery, also known as weight loss surgery, is a surgical procedure which is carried out on people whose body mass index is high enough that it puts them at risk of serious complications.
It is only recommended if other weight-loss strategies have not worked.
The procedure involves either reducing the size of the stomach with a gastric band, or surgically removing part of the stomach.
In some cases, gastric bypass surgery is recommended, in which the small intestines are rerouted to a small stomach pouch.
After the procedure, the person’s appetite is considerably reduced, and they cannot absorb or digest food as fully as before.
Bariatric surgery can be an effective way of reducing body mass index (BMI) for people with severe obesity, although research results for different procedures have not confirmed which type of surgery is best in each case.
The procedure has proven successful in to treating type 2 diabetes and reducing cardiometabolic risk.
It is important to aim for a body weight that is compatible with your height, age, and sex. This article may help you decide: What is my ideal weight?
When is weight loss bad?
In some cases, losing weight may not be the answer.
Weight loss happens when a person exerts more energy than they consume. This is called a negative energy balance. The body seeks out stores of energy, starting with fat, to make up the shortfall.
In a person with little fat, more muscle and lean tissue will be used up. This can lead to further health problems.
These include:
- a higher risk of osteoporosis
- reduced muscle mass and strength
- problems regulating body temperature
- a lower ability to resist infections
A severe loss of body mass can be life-threatening.Recent developments on obesity from MNT news
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