Trying to lose weight? Don't bother with calorie counting or 'diet' drinks, says health expert
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For most of us, the idea of getting in shape and shedding those extra kilos is a constant struggle. Naturally, we're all on the lookout for the secret to getting rid of those extra kilos and maintaining a healthy weight in the long term.
More often than not, results don't come as expected, and people give up on their resolutions or turn to drastic weight loss methods. In the past decade, the world witnessed a skyrocketing rise in obesity rates, a stark contrast to the multiple 'healthy eating' trends promoted to the public.
If you're among the many whose weight loss resolutions didn't pan out as expected, you're not alone. It seems that your instincts are on point – adopting a 'cut out all the calories' mentality most likely won't get you where you want to be.
Speaking of weight loss myths, a renowned expert revealed why calorie-counting and diet drinks are likely contributing to people's weight gain and health issues, not improving them.
Prof Spector says that the multi-million dollar weight loss industry is fueled by a lot of weight loss myths. Credit: Daily Mail (left), iStock (right).
Professor Tim Spector has been an epidemiologist for the past 30 years, analysing how and why various diseases spread across various groups of people. Since the launch of his book, he's been actively campaigning against many diet food industry misconceptions, including the claims that:
It makes sense to think that switching from sugary drinks to 'diet' drinks would help people lose weight, especially since early studies supported this idea. But a lot of research shows that artificial sweeteners are neither harmless nor inactive. In fact, they may cause sugar spikes that are bad for your metabolic health and weight overall.
According to Professor Spector, one possible explanation is that the brain's normal responses are thrown off by the difference between how sweet something tastes and how little energy it gives you. When your brain doesn't get the energy it needs, it may send signals to the body to make you consume more.
Diet soft drinks can push you to consume more sweets. Credit: Shutterstock/Tom Eversley.
'Another mechanism is that artificial sweeteners disrupt the delicate balance of microbes which live in your gut, knocking out some of the helpful ones, shrinking their species diversity and encouraging others to produce unhelpful chemicals which upset our normal metabolism and predispose us to poor sugar metabolism,' the health expert added.
'It's likely both mechanisms contribute to an overall disruption of our metabolism, as well as the other ten or so artificial ingredients needed to make these drinks. These “so-called” diet drinks are designed to satisfy a high threshold for sweetness – so you retain a sweet tooth even if you switch from natural sweeteners.'
Aside from artificial sweeteners and diet beverages, we used to think that the only thing wrong with ultra-processed foods like sweetened breakfast cereals, ice cream, boxed soups and sauces, and tortilla chips was that they were high in fat, sugar, and salt.
Therefore, we reasoned that if a reformulated version showed up with fewer of these substances and fewer calories, it would be 'healthier' and safer to eat.
Sadly, that isn't the case, according to Prof Spector.
Ultra-processed foods (UPFs), in his opinion, are notorious for their lack of nutritional value, including low levels of protein, fibre, and beneficial plant compounds (polyphenols), as well as their high chemical content that increases hunger and has been linked in numerous studies to an increased risk of disease and an early death.
The effects of counting calories every meal can differ from person to person. Credit: Shutterstock.
Professor Spector also says that counting calories isn't the best way to maintain a healthy weight because it doesn't take into account how different our bodies are and how our metabolisms react to different foods.
'No two people will respond in the same way either, and our reactions to any food will vary according to myriad different factors including your gut microbiome composition, metabolic responses to fat and sugar, the time of day, how hungry or not you are, whether you've slept well or badly, whether you've exercised or are stressed,' he says.
The health expert claims that as we get older, stress, poor sleep, hormones, disease, and, especially for women, menopause, can all have a significant impact on how we react to food. This implies that eating habits that may have served us well in our youth will likely need to be reconsidered as we age.
You heard it from here, folks! In addition to avoiding so-called 'diet' beverages that are touted as healthier choices, we should also refrain from giving ourselves a hard time calculating calories at every meal.
As always, before making any dietary changes, it is important to speak with your doctor or GP first to determine the best course of action. Stay safe and healthy, everyone!
More often than not, results don't come as expected, and people give up on their resolutions or turn to drastic weight loss methods. In the past decade, the world witnessed a skyrocketing rise in obesity rates, a stark contrast to the multiple 'healthy eating' trends promoted to the public.
If you're among the many whose weight loss resolutions didn't pan out as expected, you're not alone. It seems that your instincts are on point – adopting a 'cut out all the calories' mentality most likely won't get you where you want to be.
Speaking of weight loss myths, a renowned expert revealed why calorie-counting and diet drinks are likely contributing to people's weight gain and health issues, not improving them.
Prof Spector says that the multi-million dollar weight loss industry is fueled by a lot of weight loss myths. Credit: Daily Mail (left), iStock (right).
Professor Tim Spector has been an epidemiologist for the past 30 years, analysing how and why various diseases spread across various groups of people. Since the launch of his book, he's been actively campaigning against many diet food industry misconceptions, including the claims that:
- all calories are equal,
- low-calorie foods are good,
- artificial sweeteners are healthy,
- and high levels of processing are harmless.
It makes sense to think that switching from sugary drinks to 'diet' drinks would help people lose weight, especially since early studies supported this idea. But a lot of research shows that artificial sweeteners are neither harmless nor inactive. In fact, they may cause sugar spikes that are bad for your metabolic health and weight overall.
According to Professor Spector, one possible explanation is that the brain's normal responses are thrown off by the difference between how sweet something tastes and how little energy it gives you. When your brain doesn't get the energy it needs, it may send signals to the body to make you consume more.
Diet soft drinks can push you to consume more sweets. Credit: Shutterstock/Tom Eversley.
'Another mechanism is that artificial sweeteners disrupt the delicate balance of microbes which live in your gut, knocking out some of the helpful ones, shrinking their species diversity and encouraging others to produce unhelpful chemicals which upset our normal metabolism and predispose us to poor sugar metabolism,' the health expert added.
'It's likely both mechanisms contribute to an overall disruption of our metabolism, as well as the other ten or so artificial ingredients needed to make these drinks. These “so-called” diet drinks are designed to satisfy a high threshold for sweetness – so you retain a sweet tooth even if you switch from natural sweeteners.'
Aside from artificial sweeteners and diet beverages, we used to think that the only thing wrong with ultra-processed foods like sweetened breakfast cereals, ice cream, boxed soups and sauces, and tortilla chips was that they were high in fat, sugar, and salt.
Therefore, we reasoned that if a reformulated version showed up with fewer of these substances and fewer calories, it would be 'healthier' and safer to eat.
Sadly, that isn't the case, according to Prof Spector.
Ultra-processed foods (UPFs), in his opinion, are notorious for their lack of nutritional value, including low levels of protein, fibre, and beneficial plant compounds (polyphenols), as well as their high chemical content that increases hunger and has been linked in numerous studies to an increased risk of disease and an early death.
The effects of counting calories every meal can differ from person to person. Credit: Shutterstock.
Professor Spector also says that counting calories isn't the best way to maintain a healthy weight because it doesn't take into account how different our bodies are and how our metabolisms react to different foods.
'No two people will respond in the same way either, and our reactions to any food will vary according to myriad different factors including your gut microbiome composition, metabolic responses to fat and sugar, the time of day, how hungry or not you are, whether you've slept well or badly, whether you've exercised or are stressed,' he says.
The health expert claims that as we get older, stress, poor sleep, hormones, disease, and, especially for women, menopause, can all have a significant impact on how we react to food. This implies that eating habits that may have served us well in our youth will likely need to be reconsidered as we age.
You heard it from here, folks! In addition to avoiding so-called 'diet' beverages that are touted as healthier choices, we should also refrain from giving ourselves a hard time calculating calories at every meal.
As always, before making any dietary changes, it is important to speak with your doctor or GP first to determine the best course of action. Stay safe and healthy, everyone!
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