Diet For Fat Burning With Hormones

Fat accumulation especially around your midsection, increases your chances of developing chronic disease. Abdominal fat increases your risk of heart disease, diabetes and breast cancer, warns the Harvard Medical School. Making changes in your diet helps to eliminate a source of fat. Your diet can also increase fat burning by providing nutritional support for hormone production so you can harness your body's physiology to help you lose fat.

Fat Intake

One of the primary goals of your diet for fat burning with hormones should be to reduce your dietary fat. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends that your diet consist of no more than 35 percent of calories from fat. You should consume no more than 10 percent from saturated fats. The goal is not to eliminate fat because it is necessary for hormone production. Rather, you want stay within the recommended limits.

Hormonal Support

Hormones of the thyroid control your body's metabolism. To keep it functioning properly, your diet should include adequate intake of iodine, selenium and zinc. You should also meet your body's need for vitamins D and E. Dark, leafy vegetables and lean proteins provide good sources for these essential nutrients.

Considerations

To burn fat, your caloric intake should not exceed your calorie burn. If you consume more than you burn off, your body will store the excess as fat. An adult, sedentary woman between 31 and 50 should consume no more than 1,800 calories a day. If you are active, you can increase your caloric intake to 2,200 calories. The important thing is to maintain the proper balance of calories.

Benefits

If you follow a diet for fat burning, you can better maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight is a major risk factor for several health conditions including heart disease and diabetes. Following a healthy diet gives you an opportunity to take control of the risk factors you can control. Making good choices is easier than ever with product labeling. You can avoid high-fat foods, while concentrating on those which provide nutritional support for hormone production.

Prevention/Solution

If following a diet for fat burning with hormones is difficult, you may find that focusing on nutrient-dense foods will help you balance your nutritional needs with adequate food intake. You can further assist the fat-burning process by limiting or eliminating empty calories from your diet. A 2002 study by Sharon Elliott and colleagues of the University of California found that high consumption of sugary foods and beverages increased the rate of obesity and impaired hormone communication with the nervous system. Through simple dietary changes, you can help your body burn fat.