best diet plan

What is the best diet plan?

Generally when we talk about a diet that is good for health, what quickly comes to mind is a balanced diet. But a weight loss diet shouldn’t have to be balanced but healthy. So a healthy diet is more desirable for a person looking to loss drop some pounds.

The best diet plan for weight loss consists of plenty of proteins, small amounts of carbohydrates and an insignificant amount of fat. Some people prefer to abstain from fatty foods entirely when trying to loss weight. It should also contain a rich amount of vitamins, minerals and other essential nutrients to ensure good health and vitality.

There is usually a conflict whether a balanced diet is good for people trying to loss weight or not. The thing is, balanced diet consists of every form of food and a significant amount in order to supply the body with all the needed nutrients. But some of these are harmful when taken in large quantities and so should be regulated especially in Heart disease patients, which bring us to the need to eat a healthy diet rather than a balanced one. A healthy diet considers your peculiar condition and so your meals are tailored just for you.

What then constitute a healthy Diet for Weight Loss?

It is easy to understand that any meal that can supply the body with its essential need with little or no negative effect on our lipid profile should be ideal. You need to keep cholesterol out of your foods.

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES- Fruits and vegetables contain a very little, if any, amount of cholesterol. They are usually low in fat, calories and salt. These fruits are also very good and rich sources of anti-oxidants like vitamins A, C and E.

BREADS, CEREALS AND POTATOS

Grains all belong to this category and are mainly carbohydrate rich food sources and ideal as a source of energy when loosing weight. It is easier to burn off unlike fat. Many of them are rich in vitamins especially the B-vitamins. Examples include rice, cereals, corn, beans etc. The amount of cereals and others should not be too much and at the same time do not be over zealous about losing weight so that you do not create hypoglycemia for yourself-this is very important.

MILK AND DAIRY PRODUCTS

Many people think that because you are on diet so you shouldn’t eat the things you like anymore. This myth is held especially when it concerns diary products. That is not true because dieting has become more advance, with the availability of non fat milk, low sugar milk and ice cream. Foods in this group provide the body with high-quality protein and are our main sources of calcium. There are also the major sources of vitamin D, potassium, vitamin A, vitamin B12, riboflavin, niacin and phosphorous and so we can not afford to avoid them due to the fact that we are trying to loss weight. Except we are on these products, then dietary supplements should be an essential part of our dieting.

MEAT and FISH

Oh yes! You can eat meat but it has to be white. You can eat chicken and of course fish. These are some form food you can eat without stuffing yourself with cholesterol but do not add fat like butter or vegetable oil to it in excess while cooking as that defeats the purpose.

Obesity-Body Mass Index (BMI).

What is obesity?

Obesity is considered based on the weight of a person compared to the height and has become a very important parameter of determining the level of fitness in people.

An internationally accepted index used by experts to determine who is and who is not obese is called the Body Mass Index (BMI). The BMI accepted as normal, ranges between 18 and 28, and any one above the upper limit is classified as an obese person. The more obese a person is, the more likely he or she is to develop health problems.

Further grading considers the severity of obesity by classifying obesity into mild, morbid and malignant obesity. Mild obesity involving a body mass index (BMI 30+) causes less morbidity than morbid obesity (BMI 40+) or malignant obesity (BMI 50+). Malignant obesity is the most dangerous and these people are very prone to heart attacks. For example, someone who is 40 percent overweight is has a two-fold chance of dying a premature death than the other person whose BMI is within normal range. So it is an issue of life and death we are talking about.

So to simply put it, obesity is excessive body fat.

How do we calculate our BMI?

Everyone needs to be able to calculate his/her BMI in order to know when to seek medical advice. It can be calculated using weight in kg and height in meters or weight in pounds and height in inches.

The easiest way to find out your BMI is to use a BMI table for adults. There is also a handy BMI calculator at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's website. As stated before, to find your BMI, you need to know your height and your weight.

The formula is: BMI = Weight (kg)/ {Height}2 (m)

You can also take your weight in pounds, divide that number by your height in inches squared, and multiply the result by 703 to get your BMI.

That is BMI= [Weight (Ibs)/{Height}(inches)] *730

If your BMI is 25-29.9, you are in the "overweight" category and not yet obese but being at the upper limit of normal is a sign you are slowly becoming obese. There are three classes of obesity:

• Class I obesity — BMI of 30-34.9
• Class II obesity— of 35-39.9
• Class III obesity— of 40 and higher

Other classifications are Mild, Morbid and Malignant. Whatever classification you use, a BMI of 30 and above is unhealthy and that increases your weight related health risk.

Obesity therefore predisposes you to Heart diseases, stroke, diabetes, cancer of the gallbladder; breast, uterus, cervix, and ovaries (for women) and cancer of the colon; rectum, and prostate (for men). Gallstones, osteoarthritis, gout, apnea, high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure, pregnancy related problems, irregular menstrual cycles and infertility, psychological and social effects etc.

To avoid these arrays of health risks, we must learn to eat just the amount of food the body needs. Eating too much and a sedentary lifestyle is a major culprit causing obesity.