Obesity is a national epidemic, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimating that 72.5 million adults are currently obese. If you have a body mass index, or BMI, of more than 25, it's time to take the necessary steps to bring your weight down to a healthy level with diet and exercise. Before taking part in a diet, it's important to talk to your doctor and examine the possible positive and negative effects the diet may have on your body.
Cardiovascular Benefits
A weight loss diet provides certain cardiovascular benefits, especially if the diet is centered on low-fat foods, or cholesterol lowering foods such as olive oil or whole grains. When you lose weight you help increase your cardiovascular health by reducing blood pressure, lowering your LDL "bad" cholesterol numbers and increasing your HDL "good" cholesterol numbers, states the American Heart Association.
Blood Glucose
Losing weight can also help you balance your blood sugar levels. When you are overweight or obese, you put yourself at a higher risk for developing type 2 diabetes. With this disease, your body either become resistant to insulin, or does not produce enough insulin to help remove glucose from your bloodstream. Excess glucose buildup can lead to serious problems such as glaucoma, neuropathy, heart disease and kidney damage.
Disease Prevention
Losing weight through your diet can also help prevent certain diseases and precursors for disease including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and even some forms of cancer--like cancer of the uterus, breasts, kidneys esophagus and colon--states the National Institutes of Health.
Starvation
One potentially negative effect of a weight loss diet is starvation. This is especially common with fad diets that revolve around severe calorie restriction. Your body needs calories to create the energy to fuel your body and all the interior tissues and organs that allow you to live. If it cannot get these calories your body can begin to waste away resulting in serious health problems and even death.
Eating Disorders
Eating disorders can also develop out of extreme weight loss diets. The two most common of these disorders are anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Anorexia occurs when you begin to obsess over the size of your body, and as a result stop eating the foods you need to survive. Bulimia also revolves around body image, but instead of not eating at all, someone with bulimia will binge eat and then purge the food they eat by throwing it up.
Malnutrition
Malnutrition can also occur through weight loss dieting and is more commonly seen with diets with severe calorie restriction or that cut out certain foods or macronutrients, such as carbohydrates. A diet should consist of a wide variety of foods in order to obtain all the necessary minerals and vitamins the body needs to operate correctly. Removing foods or food groups for long periods of time from your diet can also remove their essential nutrients, resulting in malnutrition.
References
- American Heart Association: American Heart Association Guidelines for Weight Management Programs for Healthy Adults
- National Institutes of Health: Do You Know the Health Risks of Being Overweight?
- Weight Control Information Network: Understanding Adult Obesity
- MayoClinic.com: Anorexia
- American Diabetes Association: Diabetes Complications
Member Comments