Five myths about miracle remedies for weight loss
Academic of the Autonomous University of Guadalajara talks about the miraculous remedies that people share and could affect health in the long term.
A great part of the population has fallen into the misleading publicity of those who promise that with a pill we will lose weight, with a miraculous gel we will eliminate all the stored fat, by magic, unfortunately, we look for quick solutions that in reality do not work and could even put our health at risk.
We must understand that fat is essential in our body and is considered the main energy reserve, it has multiple functions in our body and therefore is indispensable, however, when there is an alteration or excess in it that puts our health at risk, such as the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and others, is when we must make changes in our habits and lifestyles. Here are five myths and realities in weight loss:
The more you sweat the more fat you burn
People say "use a girdle to burn more fat", and "the more you sweat the more you will lose weight", actually what is happening in your body when you sweat is that you are excreting, through sweat, water, and some electrolytes, then rather you are dehydrating, also consider that not everyone sweats at the same frequency or intensity. Using girdles to lose weight will only make your organs contract and in fact, the abdominal muscles lose their tone and strength. The key points to burning fat are to take care of your diet, the frequency, duration, and intensity of exercise, adequate rest, and reduce stress, among others.
If you skip meal times you will lose weight
Many times we believe that skipping a meal, which is usually breakfast or dinner, will make us lose weight, when in fact it is important to eat at least 3 meals a day, i.e. breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Something important to consider is that we must consume the minimum amount of calories that our body needs for its proper functioning, if we do not consume the necessary calories, the opposite can happen, that is, we gain weight. So now you know, do not skip meals.
Eating tortillas, rice, or any other type of cereal will make you gain weight
We hear people who tell us: "do not eat tortilla because that will make you lose weight", when in fact it is necessary to have an adequate intake of cereals such as tortilla, rice, pasta, and potatoes, among others, according to the age, gender, weight and height of the person. The cereals that are part of the carbohydrates are the main source of energy for our body and therefore are essential to perform our daily activities, the ideal is to take care only the quality of these cereals, ie, consume foods that have fiber and that most of them are wholemeal.
If you consume "Light" products you will avoid gaining weight
First, we must understand that a "light" product is a food that has reduced the content of one or more substances, for example, fat, energy, calories, sugars, sodium, etc. This is a very common myth, we believe that all light products will make us lose weight, however, many of these products, although they may have a lower content of for example fat, can be very high in sugars, sodium, or some other, therefore, it is important to always have a correct reading of labels and know that not all products that are light will be better, there will be some that do comply with the fact that they are light and others that do not.
Cardiovascular exercise is the best way to lose weight
Cardiovascular exercise has multiple benefits among them the health of the heart, body, and mind, prevention of diseases such as cardiovascular, cancer, and diabetes, among others, regulation and control of blood pressure, etc.
It is true that cardiovascular exercise helps the oxidation of fat and therefore weight loss; however, we cannot leave aside the resistance or strength exercise, since this favors the gain of muscle mass, considering that this can raise the basal energy expenditure (the minimum amount of energy that our body needs for its proper functioning) to 30% or more. So the more muscle mass you have, the more you will oxidize fat. Therefore, each type of exercise has its advantages and we cannot only think that cardiovascular exercise is the best.
Remember to always go to a nutritionist to guide and guide them in what they need on an individual basis. Finally, I would like to share with you my favorite phrase "It is not only about nourishing the body, but also the soul".
By Paulina Ochoa Moreno, Academic of Health Sciences at the Autonomous University of Guadalajara. Source: UAG Press Bulletin
