Is dieting healthy?
Government response to poor diets
In response to concerns about crash dieting on one hand and rising obesity levels on the other, the Government watchdog, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), produced a report in 2006 providing guidance on how best to manage excess weight and obesity.
Rather than severely restricting your food intake, NICE recommends that we should be eating five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, avoiding foods that are high in fat and sugar and being physically active as part of our everyday life5. It's not exactly rocket science. However, it's certainly easier said than done.
The secret to long-term healthy weight
- Before you shrug off the sensible advice and reach for a diet shake as the easiest way to get results fast, bear in mind that what you really want is to keep the weight off for good.
- NICE goes on to recommend that weight loss programmes should only be followed if they are based on a balanced healthy diet, encourage regular physical activity and expect people to lose no more than one to two pounds a week.
- The report states, "Programmes that do not meet these criteria are unlikely to help people maintain a healthy weight in the long term."5 So how do you lose the weight and keep it off?
NICE recommendations for achieving a healthy weight5
- Eat breakfast
- Base your meals on starchy foods such as potatoes, bread, rice and pasta, choosing wholegrain varieties where possible
- Eat plenty of fibre-rich foods – such as oats, beans, peas, lentils, grains, seeds, fruit and vegetables, wholegrain bread, brown rice and pasta
- Eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables each day, instead of foods higher in fat and calories
- Eat a low-fat diet and avoid increasing your fat and/or calorie intake
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Avoid:
- Fried foods
- Drinks and confectionery high in added sugars
- Other food high in fat and sugar e.g. take-away and fast foods
- Watch the portion size of meals and snacks, and how often you are eating
- For adults, minimise the calories you take in from alcohol.
References:
- Obesity: the prevention, identification, assessment and management of overweight and obesity in adults and children, December 2006, National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and National Collaborating Centre for Primary Care
Slender Bear 30/04/09
This is great - I was expecting to read all about diet drinks and sweeteners which are really not good for you and nobody really knows what effect they have on the body in the long term. Sensible healthy food and diet is the way forward and not ‘diet foods’