Natural Health Society of Australia - How to Lose Weight Naturally

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How to Lose Weight Naturally

Overweight and obesity are worthy of remedial action because of long-term dangers to health and possible adverse effects on self-esteem.

Men typically store fat around the belly and women typically on the hips. It is abdominal fat, rather than hip fat, that increases the risk of high blood pressure, obesity and heart disease.

Part of the problem is that the range of foods in Australia has never been wider or more appealing. Nor so loaded with calories, especially from fat, which, weight for weight, supplies two-and-a-quarter times as many calories as do proteins and carbohydrates.

CAUSES AND SOLUTIONS

There are numerous causes of obesity. Below are some of the possible causes and actions that can be taken to help overcome them.

Slow Metabolism

Regular, vigorous physical activity is the main thing which enables us to increase metabolic rate quickly and easily.

Because of its multiple effect on metabolic rate, physical activity burns calories at a much faster rate than we would expect. Even when resting, a fit person has a faster metabolism and burns energy more rapidly than an unfit person.

Regular physical activity in combination with a balanced diet of natural foods are the essence of overcoming obesity for most people.

Overeating

To Counter False Appetite:

Write down every item you eat and how much of it over a week. Record your mood at the time, where you were and what you were doing. From this record, look for cues that arouse your interest in food.
Find other ways of coping with negative emotions like anger, resentment, frustration or depression. Go for a walk, write a letter, become absorbed with a hobby, and so on.
To focus and strengthen your mental efforts, set one-day goals such as "Just for today I will eat only at mealtimes and just enough to satisfy hunger."
Decide in advance on rewards that you will give yourself at the end of each day or week that you succeed in not overeating. It might be a long-distance phone call, a visit to a friend or a yoga class, or at the end of the week buying a new dress, shirt or some novelty.
Let there be no guilt associated with food in any way. You have hurt nobody but yourself, so why feel guilty!

Overeating is easier to avoid on a balanced diet of natural foods than when filling up on heavy, calorie-laden processed foods. Under Natural Health Dietary Guidelines, approximately three-quarters of total food intake is fresh vegetables and fruits - foods which contain from 75% to 95% water with fibre made soft and bulky by this high water content.

Under these guidelines, foods that supply protein, carbohydrate and fat are added to the fresh vegetables and fruits. For a person of average size, these are (per day):

Adequate protein. Approximately 100 - 150 grams of protein-rich food, meaning legumes, nuts, seeds, free- range eggs or soft cheese. (In a non-vegetarian diet, flesh foods are the protein source). Plant protein foods supply valuable essential fatty acids.

Starchy food in the form of up to 100 grams of grain foods (bread, pasta, rice, wholemeal cakes, etc) OR around 200 grams of potato, sweet potato or pumpkin.

Approximately 60 grams of dried fruit (nature’s confectionery) - optional.

Up to 30 grams of vegetable oil (extra-virgin olive oil, flax oil, coconut fat) or butter as a garnish. Flax oil is a rich source of essential omega-3 fatty acids.

With natural foods it is possible to be satisfied with a full stomach three times a day without overeating. There is the added bonus of almost certain expectation of greatly improved health and wellbeing.

Some key points in applying the guidelines are:

Have well-spaced meals so that each meal is completely digested before starting the next meal. Eating too soon results in putrefaction of proteins and fermentation of carbohydrates, producing toxaemia and fluid retention - and maybe cellulite.
Three meals a day is the norm. For overcoming obesity, some practitioners recommend five or more small meals daily. If this is done, the meals must be well-spaced and small enough to keep overall calorie intake approximately the same.
Avoid the causes of fluid retention wherever possible, particularly salt, caffeine, hormone therapy and some manmade chemicals.
Have a satisfying breakfast, preferably of fruit alone. If this seems inadequate, add something simple like plain acidophilus yoghurt or sunflower seeds or a few nuts or muesli. Some people find that if they eat starchy grain food early in the day, they want more starchy foods later in the day, and finish up eating too much.

High Insulin Levels

The key to the high levels of insulin associated with fat production/retention and false appetite, is to get the insulin down. The body will then produce large amounts of hormone-sensitive lipase and burn fat all day long.

The best way to lower insulin is exercise; it is very effective. Particularly go for resistance exercise - strength training - that builds muscles.

In addition, restore insulin sensitivity by avoiding the fructose in processed foods and in refined sugar which, when digested, yields glucose and fructose.

Hypoglycaemia and Adrenal Exhaustion

Work out the cause of the chronic low blood sugar and make the changes that are indicated. If it is high-GI foods, most commonly refined sugar and refined flour, it is imperative to change to low-GI foods.

If you have a high intake of stimulants, especially the ubiquitous caffeine, it will be necessary to cut down on coffee, chocolates and any other sources.

If stress is causing hypoglycaemia, there are all the standard relaxation techniques to choose from - meditation, stress management courses, yoga, relaxation audio-tapes and just plain exercise. Avoid worrying about problems that are somebody else’s problem, unless you can help. If you can help, do what you can and then forget it. If stress is due to overwork, you may need to take a really good holiday.

Hypothyroidism

As iodine deficiency is a common cause of hypothyroidism, it may help to take sea kelp which is a rich source of iodine balanced by many other minerals. A brief account of overcoming hypothyroidism is given in the Autumn 2004 issue of NVNH.

DANGERS OF OBESITY

If obesity is not dealt with, there is a high risk of long-term harm, including the following:

High blood pressure and heart failure. Each extra kilo of fatty tissue means there will be a few kilometres of extra blood vessels requiring blood to be pumped through them. This increases blood pressure and overloads the heart. Blood pressure often falls with weight reduction.

Osteoarthritis may result from the strain placed on the joints by the extra weight.

Diabetes. The extra tissue increases the demand for insulin, and fat decreases the effectiveness of insulin; this double trouble can lead to diabetes.

Kidney disease may result from the associated high blood pressure.

Gallstones are thought to be more common with obesity.

Increased risk with surgery. Should surgery be had for any purpose, more anaesthetic will be required, creating a greater risk of complications.

Sleep apnoea. This occurs mainly in obese men. Heart disease is a possible consequence, and if the airways are closed for three to four minutes, it can be death.

Reproductive Disorders. Supplementing the work of the ovaries, adipose tissue also produces oestrogen. Excess fat producing excess oestrogen may result in menstrual problems, breast cysts, cancer of the breasts or uterus and other problems.

(Summarised from “How To Lose Weight Naturally”, Natural Health and Vegetarian Life, Winter 2008.)