5 secrets to lose weight...

A board that works in real life


Diet, exercise programs, calorie counters, even natural products or diet pills, you have tried everything to try to lose that extra pounds, right? You are not alone! According to a recent survey conducted by Ipsos Reid on behalf of the Association of Dairy Farmers of Canada, 80% of Canadians want to lose weight and 58% feel forced to do so. They are not wrong: we know that overweight increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes, hypertension and other health problems. Thus, a scientific analysis published in the February 2008 issue of The Lancet has established a link between being overweight and 20 different cancers, including endometrial and gallbladder. Fortunately, it is easier than you might think to win the battle against the beads. Simply complete the meal after meal, the following tips, from research.


1. Take three dishes for lunch, one for dinner

The results of a study conducted in the United Kingdom from 6764 men and women aged 40 to 75 years have found that those who ingested their greatest amount of calories at breakfast gained less weight than others, regardless of their total caloric intake during the day. So it seems that breakfast is really the most important meal of the three.


2. Learn about all the choices and toppings menu

This is not because a sandwich menu has announced less than eight grams of fat than any other lodge in the same boat. We tend to put in the same basket every dish restaurants displaying a healthy menu, those of the Subway chain, for example, says Brian Wansink, PhD holder, director of the Food and Brand Lab at Cornell University and author of Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think (Bantam). "But sauces, condiments, mayonnaise, all this adds to the calorie counts," he warns.


3. Ignore the salt

Researchers at the University of Helsinki have hypothesized that the tendency to obesity observed in the United States could be explained by the significant increase in salt intake, which in the mid 1980s and late 1990s, has in fact increased by 55%. According to them, the thirst caused by salt causes people to take amount of sugary drinks. Conclusion: to calm your thirst, drink water or soft drinks, and go easy on the salt.


4. Keep an accurate count of your calories

You will have a better estimate of the number of calories consumed if you hold the account of each of your meals and add mentally. To ensure that your estimate is correct, here's what Dr. Wansink advises: "Doubling the number you got." Terribly disturbing, right?


5. Eat more whole grains

According to a 2008 study at the University of Pennsylvania, fiber whole grains (oats, brown rice, wheat bread), not only help to maintain a healthy weight, but to limit the formation of abdominal fat as well as 'prevent inflammation of blood vessels and, therefore, reduce the risk of heart disease associated with it.