Weight loss Tips

GUZZLING water before meals won’t help you lose weight, scientists have discovered.

The diet myth was scotched by Japanese boffins who checked the weight and waist measurements of more than 1,000 women.

They found no link between water intake and weight.

But soup could be a dieter’s secret weapon.

The study, published in the journal Nutrition, shows women who eat a lot of water-rich foods, such as soup, had slightly smaller waists.

Drinking water is not the only diet advice to be disproved by scientists.

MYTH: BAN SUGAR

SUGAR has around 15 calories for every teaspoon, so cutting out the sweet stuff is the first step in many diets.

But a study at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh found that a little of what you fancy really does do you good.

They tracked 69 overweight women. Some were given a calorie-controlled diet that included sugar and some were told to exercise.

A third group got both the diet and exercise advice and a fourth were left to their own devices to act as a control group.

After 12 weeks, the greatest weight loss was in the group who had eaten sugar as part of a calorie-controlled diet and taken more exercise.

Dr Sandra Drummond says dieters found it easier to stick to eating plans when they include a little sugar.

MYTH: LOW-FAT SNACKS

WATCH out for that “low in fat” label which appears on many snack foods such as cereal bars.

Researchers at Cornell University in the US found that people consume up to 50 per cent more calories when they eat low-fat versions of snack foods compared with the standard versions.

Brian Wansink, who directed the research, says: “Often the fat-free version is not much lower in calories than the regular version - often only about 11 per cent.

“Low-fat labels just trick people into eating more.”

Kellogg’s Nutri-Grain strawberry bar weighs just 37g but contains 131 calories. McVitie’s Go Ahead! brand features a “lower fat” Yogurt Break range - but a two-slice tropical fruits bar has 156 calories.

You would be better off having a chocolate snack - a two-finger KitKat contains just 106 calories.

MYTH: KICK-START DETOX

WE’VE all seen ads and celebrity endorsements suggesting we spring-clean our diet with a detox.

It is often promoted as a way to kick-start your diet and get quick results. But scientists scoff at the idea that a build-up of toxins leads to weight problems and say rapid weight loss can backfire.

Jacqui Lowden, of the British Dietetic Association, says: “When you cut your calorific intake, your body will adjust and slow your metabolism.

“When you start eating normally again, you will gain weight unless you do more exercise to speed up your metabolism again.”

In fact, most diets are doomed, warn researchers from the University of California.

They found that while people can initially lose five to ten per cent of their weight on any number of diets, most regain it all within five years - and one in three will end up heavier than before.

MYTH: DITCH DAIRY

FULL-FAT cheese and cream are calorie-packed, so it makes sense to cut them out of your diet. But it’s a mistake to totally ditch dairy products.

A number of studies have shown that low-fat dairy foods can help shed the pounds.

Scientists at Cardiff University, who tracked 2,400 men over 20 years, found those who drank a pint or more of milk a day were 62 per cent less likely to become obese.

American researchers found that volunteers who had three servings of low-fat dairy products a day lost 20 per cent more weight than those who had no dairy food.

And scientists at Purdue found that women who ate three or four low-fat dairy servings a day lost an average of 10lb over a year.

One theory is that calcium activates enzymes that break down fat.

MYTH: GO FOR THE BURN

SHORT bursts of exercise will burn more fat than a prolonged workout, a Canadian study has revealed.

A tortoise and hare approach to the gym is the best way to shift fat, according to researchers at the University of Guelph in Ontario - if you take your inspiration from the hare, that is.

They found that volunteers who did ten four-minute high-intensity sessions on an exercise bike burned 36 per cent more fat than those who stuck to a steady pace throughout their workout.

MYTH: BANISH BIG BREAKFASTS

A STUDY by doctors at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge has found that having a big breakfast every day is a sure way to maintain a healthy weight.

People who ate most in the morning put on the least weight - even though they had eaten the most calories.

Researchers say this is because eating up to 50 per cent of your total daily energy intake at breakfast gives the body much more time to metabolise calories more efficiently. But there’s a double whammy.

Earlier studies showed that skipping breakfast increases weight. This is because when the body is starved of food for long periods it starts storing more fat, leading to weight gain.

And a study published in the journal BioMed Central Neuroscience reveals why the temptation to reach for a high-fat snack or sugary treat mid-morning is almost impossible to resist.

When we’re hungry, we become more sensitive to sweet and salty tastes, which makes us much more likely to gorge on cakes and crisps.

But having a low-GI breakfast such as porridge keeps blood sugar and metabolism constant throughout the morning and will help with weight loss.

MYTH: ‘HEALTHY’ READY MEALS

SAINSBURY’S Be Good To Yourself Chicken Tikka Masala and Pilau Rice says it contains 4.8g of fat - but experts working for Channel 4’s Dispatches found one sample contained a third more fat and another nearly twice as much.

They also found that Waitrose Chicken and Mushroom Parcels contain more fat per 100g than the 18.8g in fish and chips, the 16.2g in a kebab and the 13g in a McDonald’s double cheeseburger.

Rules covering nutrition accuracy on labels are stricter for animal feeds than for humans.

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