Losing weight can be a confusing business. Some claim that it’s simply a matter of exercise and fitness whilst others say that the key is to concentrate on diet and nutrition. In order to protect your well-being, we’ve compiled some commonly-held myths that can be damaging to your well-being.
First of all, many people believe that having a vegan diet is a great way to lose weight. They think that simply eliminating meat from their diet will help the pounds fall off. This is not entirely a myth; research has shown that those who follow a vegetarian and vegan diet are likely to weigh less than meat-eating people.
It is not wise, however, to simply switch to a vegan diet, because without proper vigilance, this kind of restrictive diet can lead to a serious shortage in vitamins and nutrients in the body. Being on such a restricted diet can also lead to dieters actually reaching for processed food or biscuits and treats more often as their daily diet is so unvaried and restrictive.
Others may try to cut out all the carbs from their diet to lose weight. In actual fact, carbs are important for energy, and many foods that are rich in carbohydrates are also packed full of vitamins, nutrients and fibre. You need carbohydrates to help fuel your body for exercise. Carbs also make your body feel good, so if you cut them out you can end up craving them and this can then lead to moments of serious weakness where you eat a whole cake instead of just a slice of cake!
Finally, diet drinks are usually thought of as helpful, but in actual fact new research is showing that these artificially sweetened drinks trick our bodies into craving more sweetness, and they also increase our appetite.