Weight Loss Supplements

Weight loss supplements are very popular in certain circles, while there are still many people who disregard such weight loss methods, as not being exactly the healthiest way to get rid of the extra pounds. We are going to investigate today the most popular over-the-counter (OTC) weight loss nutritional supplements, pills and herbs, to see what they claim, what they contain, how they interact with our body, and what are the implications of a long-term use of such weight loss methods. In the end, you’ll be informed and you’ll have to decide if you can include weight loss supplements in your weight loss plans or not. The best would be to get the advice of a nutritionist, as they are the most entitled to help us lose weight while maintaining a good health.

It is going to be a long review, so we may end up in splitting it into several chapters, so you might want to bookmark this page to check back over the next few weeks, as we are going to update our page with new reviews of diet pills, slimming teas or nutritional supplements that cut hunger and appetite.

Weight Loss and Glyconutrients

Recently, scientists coined a new specialization in medicine, nutrition and biology, called glycobiology, which is based on the scientifically proven fact that the human body only needs 8 essential sugars in order to maintain and support life activities. If we were to give a more exact definition to this science,

Glycobiology is the study of the structure, biosynthesis, and biology of saccharides (sugar chains or glycans) that are widely distributed in nature. Sugars or saccharides are essential components of all living things and aspects of the various different roles they play in biology are researched in various different medical, biochemical and biotechnological fields.
(Source: Wikipedia)

There are companies who took these research results and incorporated them into nutrition supplements. Micro Nutra Health is one of these companies which thought of merging science with nature to provide people with products that can help them improve their well-being by taking products that naturally aid nutrition and cellular health. Today MicroNutra has expanded across the globe and is one of the world’s leading edge companies providing original revolutionary breakthroughs in cellular health and orthomolecular nutrition. Micro Nutra Health manufactures products that are derived from quality natural ingredients, making them safe for the whole family. Nevertheless, it is strongly advisable that you ask a doctor before attempting to take nutrition supplements, in order to make sure that you won’t do more harm than good to your body.

Weight loss supplements based on glyconutrients, made by Micro Nutra Health:

Glucofast Price: 67.00Glucofast is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in Glucofast helps support healthy weight loss and healthy blood sugar, without negative side effects.* Glucofast also helps support gradual, healthy weight loss without stimulants.With Glucofast you can: * Help maintain and support healthy blood sugar * Promote healthy weight loss * Live with improved pancreatic health * Help your body support glucose metabolism and sensitivity * Enjoy better overall health	Glucofast Price: 134.00Glucofast is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in Glucofast helps support healthy weight loss and healthy blood sugar without negative side effects.* Glucofast also helps support gradual, healthy weight loss without stimulants.With Glucofast you can: * Help maintain and support healthy blood sugar * Promote healthy weight loss * Live with improved pancreatic health * Help your body support glucose metabolism and sensitivity * Enjoy better overall health
HealthSlim Price: 67.00HealthSlim is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in HealthSlim helps promote better well-being and increase your energy without negative side effects.* HealthSlim contains a proprietary blend of essential natural ingredients designed for maximum results. With HealthSlim you can enjoy: * Support for your healthy diet and weight loss goals * Help to boost your body’s metabolism * Freedom from harsh stimulants found in other weight loss aids * Newfound confidence * Improved self-esteem	HealthSlim Price: 134.00HealthSlim is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in HealthSlim helps promote better well-being and increase your energy without negative side effects.* HealthSlim contains a proprietary blend of essential natural ingredients designed for maximum results.With HealthSlim you can enjoy: * Support for your healthy diet and weight loss goals * Help to boost your body’s metabolism * Freedom from harsh stimulants found in other weight loss aids * Newfound confidence * Improved self-esteem
Lipoway Price: 47.00Lipoway is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in Lipoway helps support gradual, healthy weight loss without stimulants or negative side effects.* Lipoway contains a proprietary blend of plant fiber from the root of the Konjac plant.With Lipoway you can enjoy: * Natural appetite suppressant support * Healthy, safe, and natural weight loss * Non-invasive stomach blockage * Automatic portion control * Support for a healthy colon * Improved regularity * Increased self-esteem and confidence * Better overall health	Lipoway Price: 94.00Lipoway is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in Lipoway helps support gradual, healthy weight loss without stimulants or negative side effects.* Lipoway contains a proprietary blend of plant fiber from the root of the Konjac plant. With Lipoway you can enjoy: * Natural appetite suppressant support * Healthy, safe, and natural weight loss * Non-invasive stomach blockage * Automatic portion control * Support for a healthy colon * Improved regularity * Increased self-esteem and confidence * Better overall health
Zenitrim Price: 57.00Zenitrim is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in Zenitrim helps support gradual, healthy weight loss . . . without stimulants or negative side effects.* Zenitrim contains a proprietary blend of plant fiber from the root of the Konjac plant.With Zenitrim you can enjoy: * Natural appetite suppression * Help to reduce caloric intake from fats * Freedom from low fat diets * Healthy weight loss support * Improved regularity * Support for healthy cholesterol * Better overall health	Zenitrim Price: 114.00Zenitrim is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in Zenitrim helps support gradual, healthy weight loss . . . without stimulants or negative side effects.* Zenitrim contains a proprietary blend of plant fiber from the root of the Konjac plant. With Zenitrim you can enjoy: * Natural appetite suppression * Help to reduce caloric intake from fats * Freedom from low fat diets * Healthy weight loss support * Improved regularity * Support for healthy cholesterol * Better overall health
CarboCurb Price: 57.00CarboCurbâ„¢ is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in CarboCurb helps support gradual, healthy weight loss . . . without stimulants or negative side effects.* CarboCurb contains a proprietary blend of plant fiber from the root of the Konjac plant.With CarboCurb you can enjoy: * Natural appetite suppression * Help reducing calorie intake from carbohydrates * Healthy, safe weight loss support * Improved regularity * Better overall health	CarboCurb Price: 114.00CarboCurb is a nutritional matrix formulated to supplement what you don’t find in your everyday diet. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the natural nutrition in CarboCurb helps support gradual, healthy weight loss . . . without stimulants or negative side effects.* CarboCurb contains a proprietary blend of plant fiber from the root of the Konjac plant.With CarboCurb you can enjoy: * Natural appetite suppression * Help reducing calorie intake from carbohydrates * Healthy, safe weight loss support * Improved regularity * Better overall health

If you want to see more details about each of these dietary supplements, you can click on the pictures above. Stay tuned for the next articles in the “Weight Loss Supplements” series.

The Fast Fat Loss Plan: Get a Free Preview Now

This week we want to introduce to you a new weight loss solution called The Fast Fat Loss Plan. Are you tired of weight loss solutions that do not work or are too difficult to stick with? Are you bored of having to change your wardrobe twice a year because of weight fluctuations?

Low fat diets don’t work because not all fats are created equally. Some fats are good for you and actually help promote weight loss. If low fat products worked, there would not be so many overweight Americans.

Low carb diets don’t work because those diets are hard to stick with. Your body needs carbs to function properly. Carbs are not the enemy, as there are two types of carbs: good carbs and bad carbs. Bad carbs are the ones you don’t need. Certain carbs actually stimulate your metabolism and actually promote weight loss.

Low calorie diets don’t work because the body adjusts the metabolism when not much food is present in the body. It goes into starvation mode and actually burns muscle instead of fat so the body can adjust to the lack of food in the diet. You actually just get weaker and thinner because you lose muscle, and the body retains the fat so it can keep the stored energy to survive. Starving yourself is no way to lose weight. Besides, when you return to your normal number of calories, you’ll gain weight, and this time the extra pounds would consist mainly of fat. So, you trade muscle mass for fat, and this is not a good deal.

The Fast Fat Loss Plan teaches you the right carbs and fats to eat that actually promote weight loss and metabolism boosting. Learn how to eat up to 6 times a day, boost your metabolism naturally and lose weight while having the energy to do so.

We have worked with the author, Dan Burke the Figure Coach, to provide you a free preview of The Fast Fat Loss Plan for our members to download and preview.

Click on the link below and download your free preview of The Fast Fat Loss Plan. We highly recommend the program and think it is worthwhile for you to do so, in case your doctor also agrees.

How Many Calories Our Foods Contain?

We hear many times questions like: how many calories are there in a banana, or in a yogurt, or in a cup of sour cream?

The secret of cooking healthy eating recipes by counting calories lays in knowing what the foods are composed of: carbohydrates, proteins and fat. According to Sadava, David and Orians, Gordon H. Life: The Science of Biology , we can start our calculations from the following facts:

• Fat = 9.5 calories / g
• Carbohydrates = 4.2 calories / g
• Proteins = 4.1calories / g
• Alcohol = 7 calories / g

Knowing that the average human body of an average person needs about 1500 – 2000  calories (1.5 – 2 kcal) for supporting the daily routine activities, you can see for yourself how much you need to eat in order to maintain your actual weight, to lose or gain some pounds, according to your needs. So, losing weight becomes a matter of calculating the daily calories intake, and this is one of the weight loss tips that can secure a healthy slimming.

Calories and Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates, which in chemistry terms are called saccharides, are the food molecules which give us the most energy. Their molecules are very simple and they have an important role in supporting life.

A basic unit of carbohydrate is called by chemists a monosaccharide (CH₂O) such as glucose and fructose. Two combined monosaccharides are known as a disaccharide such as sucrose and lactose. Carbohydrates having between 3 and 6 monosaccharides are named oligosaccharides, while bigger formations are polysaccharides. Some examples of polysaccharides are starch, glycogen and cellulose.

Unlike proteins and fats, carbohydrates are not considered essential nutrients. The body can obtain all its energy by converting fats and proteins.Why then not give up carbs fopr good, and eat only foods based on proteins and fats?

Because fats and proteins are vital building components for tissues and cells, it is not wise to use them for producing energy for the body functions. Carbs and proteins provide the body with about 4 calories per gram while fats supply 9 calories, which is more than double. Put into in SI units, carbs supply  16.7 mega joule of energy for each kilogram. Although it seems like fats provide more calories per gram, it is better to consume carbohydrates for energy production purposes because they are abundantly available in foods like pasta, rice, bread, beans or cereals. They also require less water to be digested.

As you can see, there’s more philosophy behind healthy weight loss, rather than counting pounds, days and calories. This is why nutritionists can help and guide you through the process of getting rid of your extra pounds without suffering from major dis-balances of your body.

Weight Watchers Point Guide

When trying to lose weight, it often happens that weight loss exercise alone is simply not enough to help you shed those pounds. Exercise must be correlated with an adequate diet, if you want stable, long term results and not only a “honeymoon effect” from your slimming program.  Weight Watchers is one of the oldest weight loss programs. It has been around since the 1960s, and they managed to develop a faithful membership of people who found their system worked very well for them. The biggest gain of Weight Watchers, in my view, is the creation of this family spirit, thanks to their regular meetings which help a lot to boost the motivation of their members. Having common goals, common problems, common challenges, and having the chance to discuss them and exchange opinions, thoughts, fears, evolution of those extra pounds losing, is very important is sustaining long-term programs. And weight loss is surely a long-term goal, or at least it should be. Think a bit: you’ve gained all those pounds over several years. How would you expect them to disappear in one week? I heard people telling me that they want to lose 10 pounds in 2 days. 10 pounds in two days, that’s completely insane and it makes no sense from health standpoint whatsoever, even if you take nutritional supplements to provide your body the energy required for proper functioning.

What Can I Eat With Weight Watchers?

This is the first question that comes into the mind of future Weight Watchers members. Their answer is that you can eat absolutely everything you like, provided that you respect a number of Weight Watchers points which are allocated for each meal. Certain quantities of specific foods have certain number of points. You can use those points and combine foods as you wish to create delicious, tasty recipes based on the Weight Watchers points guide.

You can find several examples of Weight Watchers Points recipes on their official website. This is one of my favorites, with a preparation time of only 15 minutes and weighing only 6 Weight Watchers points: White Bean-Tuna Pasta Salad

You can get more recipes by joining the discussion board, which is free. Yet, for the whole program, customized for your weight loss needs, you’ll have to become a Weight Watchers member, and that’s not free. However, if you choose the 3-month saving plan you’ll have to pay only $5 per week for the first 12 weeks. If you want to go for the normal plan, then the monthly fee is $46.90 for the first month, and $16.95 for each additional month.

By joining Weight Watchers, you’ll be able to choose from two food plans, and you’ll benefit from specialist advice and tracking on incorporating exercise, becoming aware of your behavior, and building a supportive environment.

The Flex Plan is based on making better food choices by tracking POINTS® values.

The Core Plan® focuses on eating nutritious, satisfying foods without counting or tracking

I hope I’ve offered you enough details to make you curious about the Weight Watchers Point Guide for weight loss.

The Atkins Diet Reviewed

One of the most famous weight loss diets, all over the world, is the Atkins diet. In the years 1960, there was this doctor, Robert Atkins, who discovered a fantastic method for losing weight, while he was making attempts to get rid of his own extra pounds. When he discovered the diets that made him famous later on, he started to apply it on his patients, after he had seen the great results he’d obtained with it. Later, Dr. Atkins published his revolutionary diet in the book called Dr. Atkins’ Diet Revolution, somewhere in the 1970’s, and he published an updated version of the book in the late 1990’s. The Atkins diet did not only make its author famous and his patients happy and slim, but it also gave birth to a whole industry around the book, as many groceries started to offer foods specially prepared for those who wanted to follow the Atkins Diet.

The Mechanism of Atkins Diet

The main idea is to eat lots of high protein foods, while reducing carbohydrates intake to a minimum. The diet comprises four stages, which, in case of being followed strictly, promise a healthy, stable weight loss, and maintaining it for many years after.

Atkins Diet Stage 1: The Induction

This is the biggest challenge for dieters, because it causes a nutritional and metabolic shock which is not very well supported by everybody. In this stage, your daily carbohydrates intake must be lower than 20 grams, out of which, more than half must come from vegetables. You can eat as much fat as you want, as long as you restrict your carbs to this amount. Atkins advises that you also take some multivitamin supplement, especially if you live an active life and you need a lot of energy.

Atkins Diet Stage 2: The Ongoing Weight Loss

Now you measure your weight weekly, and if you notice a decrease, you are allowed to increase the carbs intake by two grams per each week. You can keep this on as long as you need, until you are happy with the weight you manage to lose, be it 10 pounds, 20 pounds or even more.

Atkins Diet Stage 3: The Pre-Maintenance

Now you can add to your diet 10 more grams of carbs each week, provided that you still lose or you maintain your weight. The purpose of this stage is to find out how many grams of carbs you can eat on a daily basis without gaining more weight. Then you need to stick to that carbohydrates quantity, and so you can remain at the same weight for a long time.

Atkins Diet Stage 4: The Maintenance

In this stage, you keep the carbs quantity constant, while making sure that you eat mostly natural products, you give up refined foods and sugars, and you don’t abuse deep frying.

Atkins Diet Side Effects

What the book doesn’t say but many people have experienced, are the side effects caused by this diet. This is what one Atkins dieter has to share with his readers:

Atkins leads you to believe that the presence of these ketone bodies indicates ongoing fat release. He also assures you that they feed the brain. That is partially true. Here are just a few of the issues he neglects to address:

1. Extended periods of ketosis may affect the chemical composition of the blood in such a way that you increase risk of cardiac incident (blood ketoacidosis).
2. In a state of ketoacidosis, carbon dioxide accumulates in the tissues. Oxygen delivery to the cells is impaired. This can lead to a wide range of disastrous consequences ranging from respiratory ailments to metabolic illness.
3. Toxic ammonia buildup resulting from severe cases of ketoacidosis can be lethal.

As the author says, this is not a must happen for every dieter out there, but if we add the more common potential side effects such as constipation and bad breath, we may come to the conclusion that something is wrong in Dr. Atkins’ diet plan.

Nevertheless, if you insist in trying this diet, please don’t forget to ask your doctor’s advice, to see if your health allows it.

Can Cheating Be Good for Weight Loss Motivation?

One of the reasons so many weight loss plans fail is the lose of motivation. This rule applies not only to losing weight, but to any other activity that requires self-discipline in order to be successful.

How Hard Is It To Keep The Weight Loss Motivation Alive?

This is very hard, and if you choose to do it the tough way, it can be almost impossible. This is perhaps an attribute of the human race: every now and then we need to break free and disobey every possible rule and standard of life we’ve been setting to ourselves. There was even a saying that principles are made for being broken: at least in my case, it proved to work like that. I had some major turning points in life when I just broke up with the past and with the “me” I thought I was, and started over, fresh and new, thus more creative and vivid than ever.

This is the paradox: you can keep your motivation for getting rid of those extra pounds, no matter how many they are, by breaking the rules from time to time, while following a weight loss system which has been proven to fit you, your lifestyle and personality best. Women especially, because they are more prone to cravings when they are on their period. Many “weight losers” think that a little bit of cheating doesn’t spoil an entire fitness diet. They are right, provided that it’s only a little and not a lot of cheating:

When I’m on my period I have a hard time eating good, but I stick to it for the most part. I cheat a little, but nothing more than a chocolate bar or two.

This is a quote from Kristi Brauch’s online diary. Kristi is a wife and a mom (and a great photographer) who took a decision that her family needs healthy nutrition, so they were constantly losing weight over the past 10 months, due to switching to healthier eating habits. Her insight after the “junk food week” brings us back to today’s topic: keeping motivation during long-term weight loss programs. This is her conclusion after breaking the rules and eating whatever she felt for that week:

I think it’s good to have a junk week from time to time so you can remember how horrible and icky all that stuff is.

So, every now and then, dare to ignore a rule or two, and go fool around. Then you’ll see which way made you feel better and your dietary decisions would be easier to take.
Remember that the beauty is in the eyes of the viewer and not in the beautiful thing itself.
Your weight loss plan would suddenly become a blessing and not a curse.

Fast and Healthy Weight Loss Know How

Being overweight is most of the times a pain. Even in childhood, being fat has social implications, as children tend to be merciless and crude, thus making fun of their fat colleagues. Aside from the social facet of obesity, the lack of self esteem followed by anxiety and depression, there’s another side which cannot be neglected: the physical health issue. Being obese has consequences on the cardio-vascular system, on the skeleton and on the joints, and last but not least, on the pulmonary system and on the skin.

There are cases in which, only a minor weight loss of a couple of pounds can bring an improvement of the quality of life, due to the fact that the mental perceives weight loss as a success, as the first step towards a slim, beautiful body which turns heads on the street.

Simple Weight Loss Tips To Follow

Regardless the methods of losing weight you may choose, there are a few rules which would help you make the transition from the over-weight status to a normal weight or even slim person, admired by everybody.

The very first thing to do before starting a weight loss plan, program or diet is to ask for specialized medical advice. A nutritionist or a specialist in metabolism could assess your health status and your overweight condition, then recommend you the best weight loss regimen which would minimize the health risks. Full physical examinations are required in order to determine the most appropriate weight loss technique.

Moreover, if you want your weight loss to happen fast and to be effective, you need to change four major areas of your lifestyle: what to eat, how to eat, behavior and activity level.

Here are a few tips to help over weight people in their weight loss journey:

1. Fast weight loss needs to combine more than one technique or plan, from a positive and determined mindset, to exercise and special workouts for belly, thighs, hips or buttocks, not excluding the help given by food supplements which act as appetite suppressors, thus making you eat smaller quantities of food. Try to choose a diet plan which fits your culinary preferences. There’s no point in trying to eat foods that you hate. Try to allocate at least 15-20 minutes a day to physical exercise. It doesn’t mean you have to exhaust yourself in difficult workouts. Easy activities like brisk walking, running, swimming, and dancing can help maintaining the muscular tone and make your skin firmer.
2. Be realistic. Don’t fix goals like getting rid of 50 pounds in two days. If you are very fat, your mindset should be set on long term objectives rather than short term goals. Of course you’ll have your short term milestones, but they won’t bring you significant progress and you need to be aware of that.
3. Be flexible and open to adjustments. We are unique beings, so we expect our body to have different reactions to different fast weight loss programs and plans. Adjust your calories intake to your physical activity and your workouts to your abilities of doing them. There’s no point in trying to run 30 minutes each day if you suffer from knees injuries or your heart is not the healthiest in the world.
4. Drink plenty of water. Did you know that the human body consists of about 65% water? Give it water in excess and it will thank you by helping you in your attempts of losing weight. Drink at least 6-8 big glasses of water every day, even though you don’t feel the thirst.
5. Avoid deep-fried foods. They contain a lot of fats, and they can make your weight losing efforts useless. Go for grilled foods, they are much better.

Get yourself used to the discipline of healthy living and youi’ll see how all things will become better in your life and how weight loss won’t be such a huge and impossible challenge anymore. You’ll lose 2 pounds, 5 pounds, 20 pounds or even more, without exhausting efforts, depressions and nerves.

Spirulina in Losing Weight

Spirulin, or Spirulina (as it is most known) is an extract from two blue-green algae, Arthrospira platensis, and Arthrospira maxima. It is used by humans worldwide as a food supplement. Spirulina is rich in proteins, but it has less methionine, cysteine and lysine than animal proteins such as meat, eggs or milk. This nutritional supplement is also rich in fatty acids, especially in gamma-linolenic acid.

Spirulina, Weight Loss, Health Improvement

There were some studies done on humans, which showed that spirulina has positive effects on melanosis and keratosis due to chronic arsenic poisoning. Other research proved that spirulina helps undernourished children to gain weight and get rid of anemia. In ordinary people, a study done in 2007 proved that spirulina has the property to lower the total cholesterol levels, while increasing the HDL cholesterol (which is the “good” one), to lower triglycerides and to lower blood pressure.

A popular belief is that if one takes a spirulina tablet before the meals, this would lead to an appetite decrease, thus generating a weight-loss effect on long term. If spirulina is taken after the meals, it has the property to increase appetite, thus helping people eat more and gain weight. There are no studies on this relationship between spirulina and weight loss, but as it is beneficial anyway, anybody needing to get rid of some extra pounds can take it for one month and see if it works or not.

As far as I’m concerned, I’ve seen some slight loss of weight during the two months I’ve taken spirulina, but nothing revolutionary. Recently, I’ve discovered another product from the sea, the Pure Marine Phytoplankton. It managed to cut my appetite, therefore I felt less cravings and I ate less, thus being able to lose some weight without starving.

Nonetheless, the biggest gain was that I felt better, more energized, and I needed less sleep when taking these food supplements based on marine phytoplankton. If any of you is interested in trying the phytoplankton, there’s this promotion ongoing: Buy (3) Bottles of Marine Phytoplankton and Save $30.00. For more details about the product and the current promotions, please click on the banner below:

Are High Protein, Low Carb Diets Healthy?

In order to understand the dangers of dis-balanced weight loss diets and the sequels they may leave in our body, we have to understand first how the human body transforms various types of foods into vital energy. Each time you choose a diet for losing several pounds or more, you need to seriously weight the benefits with the dangers and to ask yourself if you are prepared to trade your health for a temporary weight loss.

The foods we eat contain three major components:

Proteins:

Found in meat, eggs, milk, cheese, proteins contain 4 kilocalories per gram. Proteins need to be part of the daily diet, because in case the body detects a lack of protein intake, it will consume the protein from the muscle mass in order to supply vital energy, leading to muscle wasting. Various sources (like the RDA – Recommended Dietary Allowance) recommend the daily protein intake to be about 46 grams for women and 56 grams for men (aged 19-70), or between 0.8 gram and 1.4 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. Of course, physical activity is a factor which needs to be considered, as well as the body’s need for essential amino acids and nitrogen.

Protein deficiency in nutrition may cause poor health, reduced intelligence or even mental retardation.

Protein excess is also a problem, because the body cannot store it in this form, thus converting it into fatty acids or sugars. Nitrogen is removed from the amino acids by the liver, and excreted by the kidneys as urea, in urine. In case of kidney disease, urea can be harmful, and a low protein diet may be recommended.

Proteins are amongst the most widespread allergens, thus causing a big number of food allergies.

Carbohydrates (or carbs)

Carbohydrates are biomolecules which have the role of storing and transporting the energy in the body. Their digestion requires less water than the digestion of proteins or fats. Carbs are not essential nutrients, because the human body can take all the needed energy from proteins and fats. Carbs contain 3.75 kilocalories per gram and they can be found in foods such as bread, pasta, cereals, beans, potatoes or rice.

Carbs are classified by dietitians and nutritionists in two major groups: simple and complex. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, published by USDA in 2005, gives up this simple – complex classification of carbs, instead recommending fiber-rich foods and whole grains to be consumed for the daily carb intake.

Lipids (fats)

Lipids are very important for a healthy nutrition. While some of them are essential for life, others may be harmful and may be risk factors for heart diseases (like cholesterol, in the case of hypercholesterolemia). Fatty acids are also lipids, and scientists believe that the human body needs essential fatty acids such as omega 6 and omega 3 fatty acids. They are contained in fish oil, and this is why many specialists recommend fish consumption at least three times a week.

Besides the risk of obesity, a high fat intake seriously increases risk for major illnesses, such as diabetes or atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis consists of plaque building up on the inner walls of the arteries, thus generation coronary and cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks or strokes.

What Happens During Low Carb, High Protein Diets

As you’ve already seen, a low level of carbohydrates in nutrition is not a problem for the body, as carbs are not essential nutrients. However, in case you suffer from kidney diseases, you shouldn’t go for high protein diets, because your body would encounter problems in urea excretion.

A study published by the University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, in 2005, shows that the anorexic effect of protein may contribute to the weight loss produced by low-carb diets:

An increase in dietary protein from 15% to 30% of energy at a constant carbohydrate intake produces a sustained decrease in ad libitum caloric intake that may be mediated by increased central nervous system leptin sensitivity and results in significant weight loss. This anorexic effect of protein may contribute to the weight loss produced by low-carbohydrate diets.

(Sopurce: PubMed – indexed for Medline)

So, it seems that high-protein diets really help people lose weight. However, there’s another study, published in 2007 in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, done by Professor A. Trichopoulou and his colleagues at Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, University of Athens Medical School, which aimed to assess the relationship between long-term weight control with low-carb-high-protein diets and mortality. Conclusions of this study done on a sample of adult Greek population:

Prolonged consumption of diets low in carbohydrates and high in protein is associated with an increase in total mortality.

As you can see, the issue of choosing a healthy weight loss plan is more complex than it seems at first glance. This is why a specialist’s advice is priceless and why a bit of research on how our body works can help us understand how easy it is to harm ourselves even with simple wishes such as to get rid of 5-6 pounds to look better.

Keep Healthy While Losing Weight

One of your main goals when losing weight should be to keep healthy. Nobody wants to get fit with the price of giving up health, at least this is what I like to believe.

Keeping healthy during weight loss diets is not as hard as you may be thinking. It requires only a little bit of attention to base your diet on healthy recipes, be them vegetarian or not, on healthy desserts low on sugar, and on respecting a few eating principles which are the key to a healthy nutrition and lifestyle:

1. Breakfast should be your main meal of the day. Never skip breakfast. Your body and your mind need energy to function well, and if you fail on supplying them with this energy in the morning, by 11 o click you’ll be already tired and not productive. Nothing compares with a healthy breakfast to start your day with.
2. It is better to eat five times a day in smaller quantities than eating only three bigger meals. If you eat only 3 meals, your last one would probably be around 7 o clock in the afternoon. If you like to stay up late, you’ll end up by getting to sleep in hunger or by eating at midnight. None of these is OK for a good night rest.
3. Healthy options for menus are not a difficult choice if you take into consideration that on average, a person needs between 1500 and 2500 calories to get energy for a whole day. The main three elements of all foods are carbohydrates, proteins and glucose. Proteins and glucose have about 5 calories per gram, while carbohydrates (or carbs) have on average 10 calories per gram. Keep healthy by eating a balanced menu each day.
4. Fruits should be eaten at separate meals, preferably in the first part of the day. This is because the time your stomach needs to digest fruits is different from the time needed to digest meat, for example. If you mix the two, by eating fruits at the end of a meat-based meal, those fruits would be required to stay in the stomach longer than they really need, leading to fermentation and causing you bloating and digestion troubles. Keep healthy by keeping fruits separate from other foods (half an hour pause after you eat the fruits would be OK).
5. Eat fish at least three times a week. Fish is rich in Omega 3 fatty acids, which are considered to be essential if you want to keep healthy. Fish oil stimulates blood circulation, increases the breakdown of fibrin, a compound with a major role in scar formation, and additionally has been shown to reduce blood pressure. There is strong scientific evidence that n−3 fatty acids significantly reduce blood triglyceride levels and regular intake reduces the risk of heart attack.
6. Exercise. There are many people who are very busy or just sedentary, who wish to lose weight by miracle, or by taking a pill, without any efforts. Exercising doesn’t mean that you really have to sweat every day in the gym and make your heart get tired. You need to adapt the effort level at your age and your health condition. A fitness trainer might be of good help here, if you want to keep healthy.