Weight Loss: Beware of Radical Therapies

It is common place nowadays to see announcements on social media platforms, posters and flyers on ways to rapidly lose weight…even within three days!

While some have tried the therapies and succeeded, others are suffering from the consequences of such therapies including no lose of weight at all.

Slimming Teas: Weight Loss by Burning or Expelling Fats

Many do swear by slimming teas. Many of such teas function by melting fats of those who consume them or causing them to poop out fats accumulated within the system.

Testimonies abound on how people lost weight especially through this pooping fat therapy.

In spite of these testimonies, there still loom fears of excessive pooping which could cause dehydration.

Sports as a Means to Lose Weight

Sports Instructors are amongst those who have won many over through their weight loss therapy offers.

While some do sports to be healthy, others go in for sports as a means to lose some weight.

This has worked like magic for many though others are not committed enough to follow a sports programme towards weight loss.

Diet-related Therapies

A Nutritionist, Linda Seuna takes us into discovering some diet-related weight loss therapies and their effects, while recommending better options.

 

“An extreme or radical weight loss therapy is a form of treatment that is often promoted as being one of the best ways to lose a lot of weight within the wink of an eye. It usually takes the form of a very restrictive and specific diet plan to follow within three or more days,” the Nutritionist begins.

Linda Seuna adds that most people, especially women, tend to follow these therapies because very fast results are produced and implementation seems to be easier as well as much more affordable.

Many do this without considering the long-term health effects, the Nutritionist explains.

She now outlines three diet-related weight loss therapies:

1. The Tapeworm Diet:

It involves swallowing a tapeworm egg in the form of a pill. Once inside the body system, the egg hatches as well as grows, then gobbles down whatever is eaten which leads to weight loss. However, this diet can be very harmful and lead to bacterial infections, abdominal pain and neurological issues.

2. The Single-Food Diet

In this type of diet, you are allowed to consume only one food group or one type of food. Some examples include the fruit-only or the cabbage soup-only diets.

Before we move on, let’s quickly break a myth: A single food (or food group) on earth that can provide all the nutrients you need on its own does not exist. Therefore, each of the 12 food groups we know is important, shouldn’t be eliminated and can all be eaten within a balanced diet.

If the single food diet is followed long-term, serious health damage could be sustained, such as anaemia and osteoporosis.

3. The Baby Food Diet:

Here several meals or snacks are replaced with baby foods like mashed irish potatoes, puréed green beans and blended meat. It also involves the consumption of very strict baby food size portions (25-75 calories in each portion) throughout the day.

But, beware of this type of diet as baby foods wouldn’t fulfil an adult’s calorie requirement for the day (about 2000 kcal/day vs merely 500 kcal/day on a baby food diet) and result in severe nutritional imbalance, fatigue, irritability, low energy…

Suggested Steps to Lose Weight Safely and Sustainably

The Nutritionist proposes ways of losing weight which are safer.

1. Fix any unhealthy relationship with food.

2. Set SMART  goals

3. Follow a balanced and healthy weight loss meal plan.

4. Move more

5. Sleep and rest well

6. Create a support system with a partner or join a support group

7. Think beyond your scale, to evaluate your weight loss progress

8. If you need to lose more than 5kg, ask for help from your nutritionist

*Eleanor Ayuketah Ngochi*

www.LindaEvaSeuna.com