Some Weight Loss Myths

By Rob Esmund, 19th Jul 2010 | Follow this author | RSS Feed | Short URL http://nut.bz/2ai6u3h./
Posted in Wikinut>Health>Diet & Nutrition

There are a number of misconceptions and just plain wrong ideas about weight loss. This article picks up on a few of them.

Popular myths

Don't be fat

There are a number of ideas in circulation that just aren’t necessarily true and this article picks out a few of the common ones. The following are some popular misconceptions;
• Any product for weight loss labelled as “natural” must be safe – This is not necessarily so since many of these products have not undergone rigorous properly conducted trials to establish safety, never mind efficacy. A good example is ephedra which was popular for some time before it was banned for being a dangerous substance. There are compounds that occur in nature that are toxic to humans and there is not a lot of control on these substances if they fall outside the category of drugs or medicines.
• A food that is labelled as low-fat is low in calories - Low-fat foods can be high in sugar and/or flour content and hence still be high in calories .It is important therefore to check food labels to see the exact calorie content.
• Lifting weights is bad because it will add weight to your frame – In fact weight loss helps lose weight because it builds more muscle which then burns more calories than other body tissues. Engaging in strength training two or three times a week can be an effective part of an overall weight loss program.
• Crash diets will lose weight for good – There is some controversy about this but the general consensus is that a severe diet is too hard to maintain and that inevitably you will give up and go back to your normal kind of diet or even over indulge in high sugar and high calorie foods on the rebound. A more sensible middle way is better for long term weight loss.
• You need to exercise like an athlete to lose any weight – This is not so. Building regular, moderate exercise into your daily routine is what is required. 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise five times a week will be sufficient to help you lose weight. You can even split the 30 minute sessions into shorter sessions if you like with little loss of effectiveness.
• Healthy foods are more expensive – This is not necessarily so. You can easily pay more for a ready prepared meal which is high in sugar and salt, than for a meal prepared yourself from fresh ingredients.
• Margarine contains less fat than butter – There is not a lot of difference in terms of total fat but margarine contains less saturated fat than butter. Margarine is however, likely to contain hydrogenated fats or trans-fats which may well be more harmful to health than saturated fats.

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