We will be publishing more regular information on scientific approach to weight loss. This area has been very popular amongst our clients.

We know now that more than one in two Australians are overweight or obese, and obesity is linked to a range of metabolic diseases. We also know that even 5-10% weight loss can result in a 35% reduction in metabolic risks.

There are many strategies employed as we all know to dealing with weight loss. One of those that has only been recently well researched has been the concept of “energy density” of food.

In a recent randomised trial from the USA, Pennsylvania State University they studied this area with groups of overweight women.
Link to article on energy density and weight loss

The objective was to measure whether the concept of energy density would work for weight loss. The approach looks at the foods that you should be eating rather than simply restricting calories. The foods that have low energy density often contain large amounts of water. A good example of this is the grapefruit. This is about 90% water and has very little energy. Carrots are another example where they are 88% water.

The other important content is the fibre in foods which is higher in fruits, vegetables and wholegrains. Not only does this provide volume to the food but also takes longer to digest and makes people feel full for longer periods.

Foods of high energy density have less bulk and often easily consumed in large amounts. The researches found that increasing the intake of low energy density foods will result in significant weight loss.

Some of the best foods include vegetables such as salad greens, asparagus, green beans, broccoli and zucchini. These are low in kilojoules but high in volume.

Basically what we should aim to do is consume more water and fibre in our food. In doing so we increase the volume we are eating without increasing the calorie intake. Overall you can increase the amount you eat, feel satisfied, and reduce your calorie intake and thereby lose weight.

Some other useful tips are as follows:

• Have fruit slices such as peaches, nectarines or mango on wholemeal toast. This substantially reduces the energy density and make you feel fuller for longer. Adding a squeeze of lemon juice will also lower the glycaemic index and make you feel fuller for longer.
• Start dinner with a soup will also help to fill you up. People also generally find that eating a bowl of soup which may have very few calories will actually make them feel fuller. There is a psychological effect in consuming a large volume even if it is mainly water!
• Adding salads is also very effective but try to use low fat dressing or just lemon juice or vinegar. Soups and salads can take quite a while to eat and will reduce hunger. Also adding wholegrains to salads will help.

By following these guides you can actually consume more and feel satisfied as well as reduce the amount of energy you consume and lose weight.

In the study at one year those subjects who had not only reduced their fat intake but also increased their intake of water rich foods i.e. fruit and vegetables lost on average 8kg at one year.

We will provide more information in our future newsletters on weight loss and healthy lifestyle.

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