Date: Thu, 1 Oct 92 10:54:00 EDT
From: wheeler@super.org (Ferrell S. Wheeler)
To: tms@cs.umd.edu
Subject: PCRM Weight



PERMANENT WEIGHT CONTROL
     Many people believe that, to lose weight, they have to go on a low-
calorie diet. That often means starving oneself until the diet is no longer
tolerable. Then the weight goes right back on~and then some. Happily, there
is a much better way. It is easy and offers many other health benefits,
too.

* No More Diets
     The first thing to realize is that changing eating habits must be more
than a short-term means to an end. Changing eating habits is the
cornerstone of permanent weight control. There is no way to lose "twenty
pounds in two short weeks" and to make it last. Very-low-calorie diets
cause two major problems: they lower one's metabolic rate, making it harder
to slim down, and they lead to binging.

* Fat versus Complex Carbohydrates
     The old myth was that pasta, bread, potatoes, and rice are fattening. Not
true. In fact, carbohydrate-rich foods are perfect for permanent weight
control. Carbohydrates contain less than half the calories of fat, which
means that replacing fatty foods with complex carbohydrates automatically
cuts calories. But calories are only part of the story. Since the beginning
of the century, caloric intake has decreased in America~but, at the same
time, Americans have gotten fatter. A recent study in China found that, on
the average, Chinese people eat twenty percent more calories than
Americans, but they are also slimmer.1 Part of this is due to the sedentary
American lifestyle, but is more to it than exercise alone. Earlier studies
had shown that obese people do not consume more calories than non-obese
people~in many cases, they consume less.2,3
     The body treats carbohydrates differently from fat calories. The
difference comes with how the body stores the energy of different food
types. It is very inefficient for the body to store the energy of
carbohydrates as body fat~it burns twenty-three percent of the calories of
the carbohydrate but fat is converted easily into body fat. Only three
percent of the calories in fat are burned in the process of conversion and
storage.4 It is the type of food, and not so much the quantity, that affects
body fat the most.5

* Protein
     Although protein and carbohydrates have almost the same number of
calories per gram, foods that are high in protein~particularly animal
products~are usually high in fat too. Even "lean" cuts of meat have much
more fat than a healthy body needs. And animal products always lack fiber.
Fiber helps make foods more satisfying without adding many calories, and
it is only found in foods from plants.

* Exercise
     Exercise is essential. Aerobic exercise speeds up the breakdown of fat
in one's body and makes sure that muscle is not lost. Toning exercises and
weight-lifting help firm muscles and increase muscle mass. A combination
of exercises will help one achieve a slimmer, firmer, healthier body in a
shorter period of time. The trick is to find activities that one enjoys and
that can fit one's lifestyle. Walking is popular because it requires no
special equipment and can be done anywhere at anytime.

* Conclusion
     The best weight control program is a high-complex-carbohydrate, low-fat,
vegetarian diet complemented by regular exercise. This is the best choice
for a healthier, longer, happier life.
     For more information, we recommend The Power of Your Plate, by Dr. Neal
Barnard, and The Guide to Healthy Eating, a bi-monthly nutrition magazine
published by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. For more
information on these publications call (202) 686-2210.

References:

1. China: a living lab for epidemiology. Science 1990;248:553-555.
2. Garrow JS. Energy Balance and Obesity in Man. New York: Elsevier, 1974.
3. Braitman LS, Adlin E, Stanton JL. Obesity and caloric intake: the
National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey of 1971-75 (HANES I). J
Chronic Dis 1985;38:727-32.
4. Flatt JP. Energetics of intermediary metabolism. Found in: Garrow JS,
Halliday D, eds. Substrate and Energy Metabolism in Man. London: John
Libbey and Co., 1985;58-69.
5. Dreon DM, Frey-Hewitt B, et al. Dietary fat: carbohydrate ratio and
obesity in middle-aged men. Am J Clin Nutr 1988;47:995-1000.

Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
P.O. Box 6322
Washington, DC 20015
(202) 686-2210


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