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there are obstacles scattered along the path of everybody’s weight journey. it could be self-doubt. it could be a lack of access to resources and support. it could be the stigmatization and weight bias that is pervasive in society.
the act of eating breakfast (or not) does not itself prevent obesity. though some studies may indicate that people who eat breakfast don’t gain as much weight, that doesn’t mean that it’s the act of eating breakfast that is preventing the weight gain.
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canada’s food guide recommends eating a variety of fruits and veggies to potentially lower the risk of heart disease and suggests filling half your plate with fruit and vegetables. there are also studies showing that increased fruit and non-starchy vegetable consumption is inversely associated with weight change.
one study that specifically examined people living with obesity found that fruit consumption was associated with weight loss among a group of dieters. but while these studies did have some interesting findings about how fruits and vegetables can help aid in weight management, the increased consumption was only part of the puzzle for those patients.
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as van explains here , the human body was designed to operate in hunter-gatherer mode by conserving body weight because our ancestors didn’t always know when their next meal was going to be. fast forward to 2022, and much of the world has food readily available.
it is no wonder, then, that so many people struggle to lose weight when our bodies are actively trying to conserve it.
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a 2019 study out of york university looked at data from more than 11,000 patients at a publicly-funded clinical weight management program and found “those who lost weight quickly had similar improvements in metabolic health with those who lost weight slowly.”
the findings from that study were backed up by another from 2017 that found similar benefits from both fast and slow weight loss, with a few interesting differences. both fast and slow weight loss led to reduction in waist circumference, hip circumference, total body water, body fat mass, lean body mass, and resting metabolic rate (rmr) among the patients.
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one systematic review done at cambridge university press found “no significant difference in waist and hip circumferences, waist:hip ratio and fat-free mass between gradual and rapid [weight loss].” but the same review found beneficial effects of gradual weight loss as compared with rapid weight loss on fat mass, body fat percentage and rmr in people who were overweight or lived with obesity.
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studies show that regular exercise can help lower risk of cognitive impairment from alzheimer’s and dementia , and reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes , cardiovascular disease, cancer, hypertension, depression and osteoporosis.
there are simply innumerable benefits of exercise even though there is evidence that exercise alone won’t necessarily help you lose weight.
a study published in the canadian medical association journal explained the benefits of exercise rather succinctly, “there appears to be a linear relation between physical activity and health status, such that a further increase in physical activity and fitness will lead to additional improvements in health status.”
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this article is made possible by support from
danone canada
and
oikos canada