Fat Loss Nutrition: What the Food Industry is Hiding from You

By Natalie Beech | November 24, 2006

More people than ever are on a diet and yet obesity is now epidemic. Diet foods such as low-fat and low-carb products are a $7.6 billion-a-year business but if they worked, then fat loss would not be an issue. The simple fact is that the food industry keeps you fat with processed foods, so it can sell you more diet products. Avoidance of both is the path to weight loss.

To understand fat loss nutrition, you need to understand the basics – the right fat loss nutrition combined with the right kind of exercise. The problem with many diets is that they are not balanced and so you cannot keep them going over the long-term. Then comes the crushing disappointment when dieting stops and the weight piles back on. The key to fat loss nutrition is to focus on eating right, rather than actual weight loss. For a balanced meal you would be eating approximately 4 grams of carbohydrate and 1.5 grams of fat for every 3 grams of protein. What is crucial is the type of fat, carbohydrate and protein you eat.

Good Fats and Bad Fats

The secret to healthy weight loss is not low-fat, it is quality fat. The fats to avoid are the toxic ‘trans’ fats or hydrogenated fats in processed and fried foods. We also have an excess of omega-6 fats in our diet which can lead to insulin resistance (see the section on Carbohydrates). It is important to reduce the amount of vegetable oils, grain-fed beef and many processed foods (omega-6 fats) in your diet. At the same time you will probably need to increase the omega-3 fats in your diet to obtain the ideal 1:1 ration of omega-3 to omega-6. Oily fish, fish-oil capsules, or flaxseed oil are the best sources of omega-3 fats.

Saturated fat is not the enemy it once was – a myth perpetuated by the polyunsaturated vegetable oil industry. Coconut oil, which is a good saturated fat, has been shown to increase weight loss as it helps to stimulate metabolism, and regulate blood sugar, so even helps in burning fat for energy. You might be surprised to know that it is also good for your heart, as well as being a weapon in the fat loss nutrition arsenal.

The fat loss nutrition advice is to keep your extra-virgin olive oil for salad dressings and use coconut oil for cooking.

Carbohydrate Quality and Fat Loss Nutrition

Insulin resistance is the key to weight loss. Reverse it to burn the fat off. It is not so much the fat in the foods we eat but the excess carbohydrates from our starchy and sugary diet that is making us fat and unhealthy.

Bread, pasta, cereal, rice and potatoes, (and even corn) particularly as processed food, are consumed in excess. Great for the food industry, but not for you. They contribute to the over-production of insulin, leading to insulin-resistance. The over-refined carbohydrate creates a sugar surge in our blood and the body can only respond by converting it to fat and dumping it in the rolls of fat in our bulging stomachs.

Fat loss Nutrition Tip: Fiber plays a powerful role in weight control. Brown rice and vegetables are high in fiber. When you do eat grains, make sure they are whole grains.

When Protein Helps in Fat Loss Nutrition

You can slow down the release of sugar into the blood stream, the sugar rush, by eating protein with your carbohydrates. This is not a recommendation to eat red meat at every meal, which has been linked to colon cancer. You just need to eat a little of other sources of protein such as beans, lean white meat and fish.

A little bit of protein at every meal is an important fat loss nutrition approach to blood sugar balance. Even a handful of pumpkin seeds eaten with an apple can slow digestion and even out your metabolism.

Balance and Quality

Weight loss has little to do with willpower. Fat loss nutrition is all about the right balance and quality of foods, and the right exercise. This balance is easily obtained by avoiding all the low-fat, low-carb, high-protein, high-fat diet fads and avoiding processed foods as much as possible. If you get the fat loss nutrition right, you don’t have to be overly concerned about how much you eat and you wont go hungry.

Natalie Beech discovers the truth about fat loss nutrition and healthy weight loss. Get the latest information from a nutritionist’s point of view at the Fatloss-Fitness Website

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