About 50 million U.S. adults attempt a weight loss program annually, Colorado State University reports. If you're concerned not just about your weight but your long-term health, you may want to eat a diet that limits processed foods. Fortunately, there are a number of effective food plans to lose weight that include an abundance of non-processed foods.
Paleo Diet
The paleo diet doesn't just limit processed foods, it doesn't allow any processed foods at all. That's because the paleo diet attempts to recreate the way that humans in the Paleolithic Era ate. This means strictly excluded processed foods like bread, cereal, candy, chips and fast food. According to ThePaleoDiet.com, the diet has a number of advantages over other food plans to lose weight such as increasing metabolism, promoting satiety and helping you maintain precious muscle mass as the pounds fly off.
Atkins Diet
The low-carb Atkins diet limits many processed foods like baked goods, grains and sugary snacks. Instead, Atkins dieters fill up on non-processed foods like vegetables, fruits and meat. Research published in the March 2007 issue of the "Journal of the American Medical Association" found that Atkins dieters lost significantly more weight over one year --an average of 10 lbs.-- compared to other popular diet plans.
Mediterranean Diet
The cornerstone of the Mediterranean diet is non-processed foods like nuts, fatty fish, lean meats and dairy. A study from the July 2008 "New England Journal of Medicine" found that following the Mediterranean diet can help overweight people lose weight and reduce their risk of heart disease.
Vegan Diets
Healthy vegan diets that include an abundance of non-processed foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, brown rice, soybeans and legumes is a healthy approach to weight loss. People who switch to vegetarian and vegan diets often lose weight, MayoClinic.com reports. However, they add that not all people successfully maintain their weight on a vegan diet. If you switch to a vegan diet, limit your intake of processed vegan foods such as candy and vegan cookies.
References
- Colorado State University: Weight Loss Products and Programs
- ThePaleoDiet.com: Weight Loss and the Paleo Diet
- "JAMA"; Comparison of the Atkins, Zone, Ornish, and LEARN Diets for Change in Weight and Related Risk Factors Among Overweight Premenopausal Women; C Gardner et al.; March 2007
- "NEJM"; Weight Loss with a Low-Carbohydrate, Mediterranean, or Low-Fat Diet; I Shai et al.; July 2008
- MayoClinic.com: If I switch to a vegetarian diet, will I lose weight?
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