Food experts look at the best way to lose weight!

A healthier lifestyle is one of the top good intentions people identify at the start of the year. “Some people decide to be more active.  Others will concentrate on healthier food and drink” says Kris Gillis, the president of the Flemish association of dieticians.  “Some people foreswear alcohol for a month.  Others will try to stay off sweets and biscuits”.

Clearly there are many approaches to this good intention! Dieticians also often see more clients in January: people really are eager to change their eating habits.

Low carb diet

One of the options is to avoid carbohydrates: potatoes, bread, pasta and rice or simple sugars in biscuits, waffles and crisps.  As a result your body will burn more of its fat because its usual source of fuel, carbohydrates, has disappeared.

Food expert Celien Rombouts and her Healthy Habits Celien on social media are no fans of diets. Celien believes a diet can help you to lose weight, but will be very hard to stick to in the long run.  Both she and Kris believe if you won’t be able to keep it up there’s no point in starting on a diet in the first place.

Keto diet

In the keto diet the focus is again on carbohydrates, but here protein is allowed.  Effort is made to avoid avocadoes, salmon, olive oil, nuts and several other products.  The keto diet originated in the US where people often eat greasy food.   

The diet includes animal fats and saturated fatty acids and over time these can lead to cardiovascular disease, the experts warn.

Intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting has been popularised by numerous celebrities.  It involves not eating during a part of the day.  One option is only to eat during an 8-hour period every day.  There’s no need to avoid any foodstuffs, but Kris warns this can only work if you don’t start eating far more during the 8-hour period when you are allowed to eat.

Protein rich diet

A protein rich diet is another option.  It worked for Bart De Wever, the erstwhile podgy leader of the Flemish nationalist party.  Carbohydrates are avoided, while the focus is on proteins, the human body’s building bricks.  “One or two meals are replaced by shakes” explains Celien.  “It’s a pretty expensive option and the shakes are never as nutritious or varied as ordinary food”.

“It works as long as you can keep it up” says Kris, who has his doubts this is a solution for the long run because you need to say ‘no’ to so many foods.

Juice diet

“Juice diets are often popular as crash diets” explains Celien.  “In this way it’s easy to limit calory intake to 500 calories a day”. It’s a very clear and transparent diet, but Celien is no fan because it only works while you keep it up.

Mediterranean diet

The Mediterranean diet can lead to a very colourful-looking dish with lots of vegetables.  Fans opt for vegetable fats like olive oil instead of animal fats and white meats with lean proteins, small portions of meat and fish with vegetables giving you the filling feeling.

The experts agree this is the diet that has the greatest impact on your health: it’s varied with lots of greens, minerals and vitamins.  The impact on your weight will be lower, but you should retain the weight loss even after two years.

Conclusion

Kris believes all diets possess some value, but warns they often exaggerate: “There are three main components, carbohydrates, fats and proteins, all are needed, each has a function.  By scratching a component in a particular diet, you create a risk”.

Celien doesn’t believe in diets with limitations and no-no’s but urges people to focus on healthy eating.

The bottom line, says Kris, is the fact that whatever the diet, if you want to lose weight you need to consume fewer calories that have to be burned.