To reduce the number of calories - is one of the first things that comes to your mind when we want to lose weight. According to scientists, this is not an effective way to do so - they advise to adhere to a vegetarian diet, if you decide to lose those extra pounds. Today we decided to deal with this statement.
When it becomes time to lose weight, we often think about how to eat less. Many of us even try to stick to a diet with a small number of calories. But, firstly, such diets are ineffective - extra pounds will return as soon as you return to your habitual diet and lifestyle, and secondly, they are also dangerous - consuming less than 1,200 calories a day, you can earn serious health problems. A recent study by American scientists says that a vegetarian diet is much more effective for weight loss.
The results of a small study were published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition in January 2017. Scientists from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine analyzed the data of 74 volunteers with type 2 diabetes who were randomly assigned to a vegetarian and low-calorie diet.
Six months later it was found out: those who adhered to a vegetarian diet, lost 6.2 kg; participants in the study, sitting on a low-calorie diet, 3.2 kg. From these numbers it is easy to conclude: the vegetarian diet was almost twice as effective. Scientists also analyzed adipose tissue in the hips of participants to find out how diets affect subcutaneous fat deposits and the amount of fat in the muscles. Both diets contributed to the reduction of subcutaneous fat, but those who adhered to a vegetarian diet lost more muscle fat.
"This discovery is important not only for those who suffer from some diseases, but for all who thought about losing weight at least once," says the author of the study, Hanna Kaleova.
According to a well-known fact, only two people out of a hundred can count calories for more than two weeks. Indeed, calorie counting is important for weight loss, but simple calculation is not enough. Our diet consists not only of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, but also of vitamins and trace elements. Reducing the calorie content of food will only produce negative results, so it is necessary to reduce calorie content without reducing the intake of vitamins and minerals. Vegetarian diet reduces the number of calories consumed and stores all the necessary vitamins in our diet. Abandoning meat and switching to a vegetarian diet does not mean that we will eat only vegetables. In the world there is a huge number of foods rich in protein, healthy fats and carbohydrates. With the proper construction of the diet, you will receive the necessary amount of nutrients and vitamins, significantly reducing the number of calories. That's why this diet is more conducive to weight loss than the mathematical calculation of calories - as I said, to stay on a low-calorie diet and count up how much you ate each time, you won’t be able to do it for more than two weeks.