Diet and Natural Weight Loss

• Reduce or eliminate foods made with white flour or white sugar, and avoid refined foods which have a high glycemic index rating (link to glycemic index text)

• A golden rule is to ensure there is protein with each meal. A serving size is about the size of your palm and about as thick. This is equivalent to approximately 20g of pure protein a meal and includes meat, poultry, fish and seafood. Protein stabilises blood sugars, aiding in ‘fat loss’.

• Cut out all sugar and artificial sweeteners. You will have to become a label reader because sugar can be added to almost anything, including savoury foods such as baked beans, tomato ketchup and even bread. To make sugar content appear lower, manufacturers list all the different types of sugar separately (look for words ending in -ose, such as fructose, glucose and sucrose).

• Choose your carbohydrate foods from fruit and vegetables and a small amount of low GI grains such as brown rice and wholegrains.

• Minimise refined/processed carbohydrates such as sugar, sweets, chocolate, white flour, refined grains, dried fruit and fruit juices.

• Include omega oils in your diet. These allow your cell membranes to work efficiently, slow the absorption of carbohydrate into your bloodstream and make food taste good. Good examples are oily fish, flaxseed oil, safflower and sunflower oil.

• Restrict saturated fats found in organ meats, fat on red meat, high-fat dairy foods and coconut. These tend to make the cell membrane very rigid so blood sugar cannot pass easily into the cell.

Top Diet Tips for Weight Loss

• A very simple tip to help with weight loss is to chew well and take your time when eating. It takes your brain 20 minutes to register that you are full, so if you eat more slowly, you will actually want to eat less.

• Eat little and often. Don’t let more than five hours pass between meals. By skipping meals regularly, your metabolism will slow down because your body thinks there is a shortage of food. Always have healthy snacks available.

• Don’t go grocery shopping when you are hungry or before a meal. You are more likely to make poorer food choices. Stick to the outside isles of the supermarket. The inside isles contain non-perishable items and these can include chocolate, sweets, biscuits, and other sugar-laden food that should not be consumed if you want to lose weight!

Supplements for Weight Loss

If you have been yo-yo dieting for a number of years, either restricting your food intake or trying different diet drinks or pills, it is likely that you are deficient in a number of vitamins and minerals. Supplements will help if you know you’ve been depriving yourself for a long time.

• A good multivitamin and mineral tablet - a good foundation supplement.

• Chromium is essential for insulin’s response on blood sugar, and helps with cravings, hunger and weight loss/fat burning.

• Zinc helps with appetite control and is necessary for the correct action of insulin, hence a healthy blood sugar balance. It also functions together with selenium and vitamins A and E in the manufacture of thyroid hormone.

• Magnesium balances blood sugar levels, is essential for energy production, and assists with fluid retention. There is a strong link between magnesium deficiency and insulin resistance.

• Coenzyme Q10 is essential for energy production and normal carbohydrate metabolism (the way our bodies break down the carbohydrates we eat to turn them into energy).

• B vitamins are important for energy production, fat burning, digestion and hormone imbalances, including your thyroid gland and metabolism.

• Omega oils improve blood sugar balance and aid in fat burning.

• Amino acids for liver function; glutathione, glutamine and sulphur containing amino acids aid in liver detoxification.

NB. For best results, try these recommended supplements for a period of three months. These supplements are best taken under the care and guidance of your healthcare practitioner.

Herbs for Weight Loss

• Coleus – for fat burning and boosting thyroid gland function

• Bladderwrack/Kelp – for boosting thyroid gland function

• Gymnema –for sugar cravings and blood sugar balance fat burning

• Milk thistle, Rosemary, Schizandra, Dandelion root, Globe artichoke – for the liver and gall bladder to burn fat more efficiently and aid weight control.

NB. You should not take any of the above herbs if you are taking the oral contraceptive pill, fertility drugs, HRT or any other hormonal treatment or other medication unless they are recommended by a registered, experienced practitioner.

Exercise and Weight Loss

Exercise is an essential part of any weight loss program and makes up a large part of living in accordance with wellness principles. The first way to make it enjoyable is to choose a form of exercise that you enjoy. The second and most important rule is to BEGIN SLOWLY. The other thing to remember is that once you are fit, exercise gives you a sense of wellbeing.

More Naturopathic Tips for Weight Loss

• Embrace wellness and vitality principles. Understand that weight gain is a symptom of an imbalanced body. For true weight loss to occur it requires the whole body to become balanced. Resist old habits and embrace a new lifestyle which has far greater rewards than your old ways.

• Meditation. Practice meditation regularly to correct previous attachments to food and exercise. Meditation also assists the body with reducing cravings associated with the withdrawal of toxins.

For a personalised appointment and prescription for natural weight loss, click here to make a booking for phone and online consultations.

Return to the Natural Hormone Health Home Page