10 Best Weight Loss Diets: and a little advice

Our patients regulalry ask us, "what is the best way to loose weight?"  It's a simple question, however lasting & significant weight loss is almost never a simple chore.  One answer to the "best way" questions comes form the 2020 edition of U.S. News and World Report Best Hospitals.  In an article titled Diets That Pay Off is their ranking of 41 diet plans, performed by a panel of 25 nationally recognized researchers, educators, healthcare professionals and authors.  They consider both short-term and long-term weight loss, nutrition, safety, diabetes, heart health, and ease of compliance. 

BEST FOR WEIGHT LOSS WAS WEIGHT WATCHERS followed by Volumetrics, Flexitarian, Jenny Craig and Vegan, Engine 2, Ornish, Raw Food, HMR Program, Mayo Clinic, and finally Slimfast.  Best overall is the Mediterranean diet, but it ranks 17th for weight loss.  The article also gives top ten lists in 5 other categories: Best for Diabetes, Best for the Heart, Best Plant-Based, Best Commercial, and Easiest-to-Follow Diets.  This link will take you to their article:  https://health.usnews.com/best-diet/best-weight-loss-diets 

Dr. Graham's general advice to patients includes these points:

1)  Pick a new way to eat for a lifetime.  If your eating habits brought you to an overweight state they shouldn't continue.  Resist the attempt to change for a short time, achieve weight loss, then revert to your past eating habits.

2)  Calorie restriction is key for weight loss.  If you change the types of foods you consume, but don't reduce the calories, you are unlikely to succeed. 

3)  Exercise is important to health.  Exercise added to limiting calories will improve your results, however our patients rarely loose weight by exercise alone.

2)  Prefer unprocessed fruits & vegetables, like people ate 100 years ago.  Shop the outside of the grocery store.  Fresh fruits and vegetables in season are best.  Refrigeration is fine.

3)  Frozen, unseasoned fruits and vegetables are excellent.  They bring variety to your diet when they're not in season. 

4)  Whole, unprocessed grains.  Healthy fats.  Less red meat.  Limited sugar. 

Finally, we love to see the success of the group of our patients who have lost 30, 40, 50 or more pounds. 

Congratulations, and thanks for letting us play a part in your best look.