You should always pay attention to diet, no matter
what your health risk. This can mean making healthier food
choices, such as low-fat and high-fiber foods, which may or
may not reduce the number of calories you eat.
You may also need to intentionally limit the number of
calories you eat. Calorie-restricted diets fall into three
categories:
Not all diet options are appropriate for all people.
However, a moderate deficit diet can be used by everyone, no
matter what your health risk, provided it is based on sound,
healthy eating principles. (See below.)
Both you and your doctor should decide which option is
best for you based on your health risk. The following
information will help you better understand your options so
you may discuss them with your doctor.
What is the best way to moderately restrict
calories?
First, you can eat a wide variety of foods using the Food
Guide Pyramid in Appendix I as a guide. Within each food
group in the pyramid, choose foods that are higher in fiber
or lower in fat, or both. For example, in the bread group,
choose whole-grain breads or cereals, and try to choose
breads or cereals that offer five or more grams of dietary
fiber per serving. The nutrition label will have this fiber
information for you. In the vegetable and fruit group, the
secret is to choose more of each. Try to eat a
minimum of three vegetable selections and two fruit
selections each day. In the milk group, choose low-fat or
fat-free milk, yogurt, or cheese. When you choose foods from
the meat group, choose lower-fat cuts of meat; be careful to
trim off all of the fat you can see, and keep your meat
serving down to about the size of a deck of cards.
Second, it is important to control your portions and
understand what is meant by a "serving," described
in the Food Guide Pyramid. It is not
necessary to give up your favorite foods entirely, but it is
necessary to limit how often you eat these foods and how
much of these foods you eat at any one time.
The pamphlet, Eating Smart Even
When Youre Pressed for Time, that comes with this
booklet offers more information on how to choose foods.
It can help you learn the principles of healthy eating and
moderately limit your calories.
When you reach our cyberkitchen,
our chef and nutritionist can
help you choose a sample breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You
can learn how the
choices you make compare with the estimated number of
calories you need to maintain your weight and how to balance
the food you eat with physical activity. Or, if you want to
lose weight, we can offer
information that will help you. Come visit us!
What is more important: low-calorie foods or
low-fat foods?
If you eat too many calories, you will gain weight, even
if you eat no fat at all. Foods that are high in fat are
also high in calories, because fats have twice as many
calories per ounce than carbohydrates or protein. However,
eating too much low-fat food can prevent weight loss and
even lead to weight gain. To lose weight, it is most
important to eat fewer calories than you burn throughout the
day.
How much weight can I expect to lose on a moderate
deficit diet?
Your rate of weight loss will depend on many things,
including your
initial starting weight, your age and height, your activity
level, and how well you are able to modify your food intake.
Initially, when following a moderate deficit diet and
increased physical activity, it should be possible to lose
one to two pounds a week. As you reduce your weight, it is
normal for this rate of weight loss to slow down, even to a
fraction of a pound a week. However, you will continue to
lose weight over time if you continue to moderately restrict
calories.
How will I be able to keep the weight off?
To keep weight off, you will need to continue these
healthy eating habits and permanently maintain increased
levels of physical activity. After you reach your target
BMI, you will be able to slowly increase the number of
calories you eat. It is important to do this very slowly, so
you can find out how many calories you can eat to maintain a
steady weight without gaining weight.
What about low-calorie diets?
Low-calorie diets usually produce quicker weight loss
than moderate deficit diets, but quick weight loss can
actually cause health problems. It is also a lot harder to
stick with a low-calorie diet, and you could become very
discouraged and give up. Low-calorie diets are usually best
only for people who are short (52 or less) or inactive,
because these people do not use as much energy during the
day as the average person.
What about very low-calorie diets?
A very low-calorie diet is not recommended unless you
have a very serious medical condition that requires fast
weight loss. You should consider a very low-calorie diet
only if it is recommended by your doctor. These diets must
be monitored carefully
by a healthcare professional.
