Mediterranean diet is best way to tackle obesity, say doctors

[Northerner]

A Mediterranean diet may be a better way of tackling obesity than calorie counting, leading doctors have said.

Writing in the Postgraduate Medical Journal (PMJ), the doctors said a Mediterranean diet quickly reduced the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

And they said it may be better than low-fat diets for sustained weight loss.

Official NHS advice is to monitor calorie intake to maintain a healthy weight.

Last month NHS leaders stressed the need for urgent action to tackle obesity and the health problems that often go with it.

The PMJ editorial argues a focus on food intake is the best approach, but it warns crash dieting is harmful.

Signatories of the piece included the chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, Prof Terence Stephenson, and Dr Mahiben Maruthappu, who has a senior role at NHS England.

They criticise the weight-loss industry for focusing on calorie restriction rather than "good nutrition".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-29929403

Dr Alison Tedstone, the chief nutritionist at Public Health England, said there was no single silver-bullet solution.

"Government advice is to eat plenty of bread, rice, potatoes, pasta and other starchy foods"

Hmm...I wonder why we have such a problem with weight and Type 2 diabetes? 🙄

 

[KookyCat]

One of cardiologists was on BBC breakfast the other day. I could have wept when he started speaking. Olive oil obviously is good for you but he actually said 500 calories from oil is better than 500 calories from carbohydrate 🙂. Lots of fruit and veg (I'm not with him on the fruit necessarily unless it's tomato, avocado or olives but I'll let him off), full fat dairy (shock horror), avoid low fat because it's full of nasties, eat oily fish, and nuts. He also said he followed his own advice and lost a stone.

What I find so frustrating about the current nutritional guidelines is that they would make me gain weight, and honestly I have a stubbornly good metabolism so that's hard. The only time I've ever had a weight problem was thyroid related after a brush with a late bloom glandular fever, I was referred to a dietician because having never before then been overweight I had absolutely no idea what to do to make it shift, followed the diet they gave and piled more weight on, and developed a very odd carb craving cycle. I was very active still and eating less than 1500 calories and still couldn't budge a pound. It annoys me now that it took me so long to go rogue, it's unlike me I'm normally rogue within minutes, but eventually I switched back to the diet I had before and within 6 months I was back to the same weight I'd been before the thyroid issue hit. I never gained or lost a pound until the the B12/DKA drama. What is really frustrating is the endocrinologist who saw me in hospital said my diet and activity levels were the reason I coped so well with the DKA (well, being the not dying and not devastating my internal organs given it was as severe as it gets). Then in the next breath they're telling me to change my diet to high carb low fat, did that for 4 weeks felt like death had blood sugars in the stratosphere, went rogue and the blood sugars fell in line.

The other really annoying thing is I feel like I have to omit my dietary preferences when speaking to them because it just causes conflict. Don't get me wrong I'm not one to shy away from conflict but it gets deeply boring when we have to have the same waste of time conversation about why I'm not going to eat low fat dairy (because there is absolutely no justification for doing so), or why I will not eat my own body weight in rice and pasta every day, or and here's my favourite, why the muck they call "low fat spread" will never enter enter my body, butter or olive oil spread all the way for me. I'm even more annoyed that they think people are not capable of understanding the difference between "good" fat and "bad" fat, if they were just straightforward about it people would get it. Portion sizes are problematic because we've adjusted to large volume, but the reason I don't really eat rice or pasta or spuds is they stop me eating the things I actually like because I'm stuffed like a turkey after a few mouthfuls of rice, I'd rather have my Thai green curry with green veg because then I can eat the curry which is the bit I enjoy, and given that the coconut milk is pretty high fat it's self limiting because I get fuller quicker. Blimey I actually didn't realise I was so annoyed by this but I seem to have a fire and brimstone level of anger 😱

 

[Northerner]

Things do seem to be changing, but oh so slowly So many people here have reported great success with a high fat/low carb diet, yet they cling on to research done decades ago, and there are too many dieticians and HCPs who refuse to move with the times

The problem is that so many will take their advice as gospel and be fearful of experimenting

 

[KookyCat]

Tricky isn't it, going against medical advice is very hard for most people. I have a "rogue" trait that's just not under my control, which is useful in this context but gets me into lots of trouble most of the time 🙂. My friend who has type 2 has just gone rogue, but she's pretty hysterical about it at the moment, although calming down since in the first month she's lost half a stone, enjoyed her food and has better waking and post meal figures. She's still eating some carbs in fact quite a bit just not the amount advocated. I didn't apply any pressure btw I wouldn't do that, but she knows I think it's a great idea. I can't think of anything better than watching her transform her life, she's a wonderful person, just the type of person the world needs 🙂

 

[Northerner]

Tricky isn't it, going against medical advice is very hard for most people. I have a "rogue" trait that's just not under my control, which is useful in this context but gets me into lots of trouble most of the time 🙂. My friend who has type 2 has just gone rogue, but she's pretty hysterical about it at the moment, although calming down since in the first month she's lost half a stone, enjoyed her food and has better waking and post meal figures. She's still eating some carbs in fact quite a bit just not the amount advocated. I didn't apply any pressure btw I wouldn't do that, but she knows I think it's a great idea. I can't think of anything better than watching her transform her life, she's a wonderful person, just the type of person the world needs 🙂

That's great news about your friend 🙂 I'm one of those people who has to be convinced first before I will accept something. I can remember how surprised my boss was during a boardroom battle when I steadfastly refused to accept what the directors were asking for, because it was ill-considered and most likely unworkable. I think that was also when I realised that I no longer feared 'authority' figures and decided I would no longer be shouted down or bullied. HCPs have to have a pretty firm foundation for anything they want me to comply with!

 

[trophywench]

Ever since they brought the dietary guidelines in which dictated more carb, I've ignored them. In my book I don't low carb at all. I regard what I eat daily AS a normal diet, not low or high anything., on which I know I neither lose nor gain weight. And that's it isn't it?

Alan Shanley says it all in his tag line about life as a whole -

Everything in moderation - except laughter!

And FWIW for me personally that's roughly 100g, often less, sometimes more.

 

[KookyCat]

Ever since they brought the dietary guidelines in which dictated more carb, I've ignored them. In my book I don't low carb at all. I regard what I eat daily AS a normal diet, not low or high anything., on which I know I neither lose nor gain weight. And that's it isn't it?

Alan Shanley says it all in his tag line about life as a whole -

Everything in moderation - except laughter!

And FWIW for me personally that's roughly 100g, often less, sometimes more.

I quite agree, I'd rather have a little of something really really nice than a whole lot of something that's just passable, bit like the little packet of Hotel chocolate truffles in my bag just waiting for to be my after dinner treat. Course I might not fancy them if I have to stuff more jelly babies in, the man in Eat insisted their chicken salad had 28g of carb (it has potato salad in there and a dressing) I was sceptical but I took his word for it and an hour later I'm stuffing jelly babies in to rectify a 2.9 and I hate jelly babies only marginally less than those chalky glucose things 🙄

 

[Northerner]

I'm between 100-150g carbs a day, which is more than adequate. I've also learned to curb the 'eyes are greedier than belly syndrome' - when I feel hungry before a meal instead of preparing a huge meal I now prepare a meal that will fill me nicely and not stuff me to the gills, and I'm fine. 🙂

 

[KookyCat]

I'm between 100-150g carbs a day, which is more than adequate. I've also learned to curb the 'eyes are greedier than belly syndrome' - when I feel hungry before a meal instead of preparing a huge meal I now prepare a meal that will fill me nicely and not stuff me to the gills, and I'm fine. 🙂

I'm similar I suppose, but I mostly only get to 150 if there's a dessert involved or if I'm having a bread day. I love proper bread the heavier and darker the better 🙂. I went to the Christmas markets today and was going to pick up a German rye loaf but thought I'd better not because I may just have eaten the entire thing with the Bavarian peppercorn cheese that found its way into my shopping bag (I paid for it but it wasn't my fault 😉).