A nutritionist at the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Okunola Oladimeji, discusses issues related to weight loss with MOTUNRAYO JOEL

What does the term ‘overweight’ mean?

Overweight and obesity are words used to describe a person’s weight which is greater than what is generally considered healthy for a given height. The term also identifies ranges of weight that can increase the likelihood of certain diseases and other health problems.

What is the difference between being overweight and obesity?

Overweight is a condition in which a person’s weight is 10 per cent to 20 per cent higher than “normal,” as defined by standard height/weight chart, or has a body mass index of 25 to 30. Obesity, on the other hand, is a condition in which a person’s weight is 20 per cent or more above normal weight or has a BMI of 30 or more.

What does underweight mean and what are its health implications?

Underweight is a term describing a person whose bodyweight is considered too low to be healthy. It refers to people with a BMI below 18.5 or a weight that is 15 per cent to 20 per cent below that normal for their age and height group. Its health implications might be secondary to or symptomatic of an underlying disease. However, the health implications include; poor stamina, weak immune system, amenorrhea (absence of menstruation), infertility, complication during pregnancy, anaemia, hair loss, and osteoporosis (loss of bone density).

Can being overweight trigger health problems?

Yes, it can. Overweight happens when you eat more calories than your body can use. This can lead to some health problems, which include; heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, elevated blood cholesterols and so on. People who are overweight are also at higher risk of developing cancer of the colon, rectum, prostate, breast, cervix, uterus and ovaries. They are more likely to suffer osteoarthritis and low back pain.

How does one know if one is overweight or obese?

This can be determined by checking your Body Mass Index. This can be done by using this simple calculation: check your height in metres, then square it, check your weight in kilogramme, divide your weight by your height in square. If the result you get is between 25-29.9, you are overweight. If the result is between 30-34.9 then that is type 1 obesity. If it is between 35-40, it is type 2 obesity. This is one of the ways one can know if one is obese. However, there are other methods as well, but one of the easiest is to calculate the BMI.

What steps should one take to lose weight?

There are various things to do. They include: eating more natural foods without adding sugar, grease and fat, exercising regularly for at least 30 minutes to one hour daily, avoiding sedentary life style, eating foods rich in dietary fibre and avoid eating late at night. One should also avoid foods that are high in fat and cholesterol. Consume fruits and vegetables regularly.

What type of exercise is the best?

We cannot say a particular exercise is best for everybody; it depends on the age, sex, heart condition, environmental and social factors. Generally, there are simple exercises such as dancing, brisk walking, trekking, gardening, climbing the stairs, that one can do. There are rigorous exercises, like marathon race, cycling, playing football, basketball and so on. There are also simple indoor exercises one can do such as simple aerobics. However, it is important to know one’s medical condition before embarking on any of these exercise routines.

What’s the best exercise to target midsection flab?

One of the causes of abdominal fat is excess consumption of carbohydrate, especially from simple sugar, such as soft drinks, table sugar, chocolate, alcohol and so on. Before embarking on a particular exercise to reduce midsection flab, one needs to cut down simple sugar and fat intake. Meanwhile, the following exercises could help firm abdominal flab, push-up, sit-up, skipping rope, jogging and using the treadmill.

How much exercise should one do?

As I said earlier, if there is no medical condition that restrains one, one should make exercise time fun. What determines how intense one’s exercise is, is the amount of sweat one produces while exercising. It also shows the rate at which one is burning fats and calories.

What is weight cycling and what are its side effects?

Weight cycling is the repeated loss and regain of body weight. When one regains the weight that is already lost, such a person exposes themselves to the health implications related to being overweight. These health implications include heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, elevated blood cholesterols and so much more.

Which is the best diet for weight loss?

The best diet are foods rich in dietary fibre, wholegrain, fruits and vegetables. One should avoid foods that are high in cholesterol, fat and simple sugar.

If one is working on losing weight, should one cut all fat out of one’s diet?

Fats are an important part of daily nutritional needs, so we cannot totally remove fat from our diet. However, what one can do is to reduce fat intake and cholesterol, bad fat (low density lipoprotein) in their diet. Fats are high in calories; a gram of fat contains about nine calories. If I may add, fat from animals is called cholesterol, while fat from plants is called saturated fat. Plant fat is better than animal fat.

What prescription drugs are used to treat obesity?

There are prescription drugs, but some of them have unpleasant side effects. Anyone that desires it should see a medical doctor for proper medical advice.

How can one prevent regaining lost weight?

This is done by strictly controlling one’s diet. Also avoid missing your exercise programme. Avoid being sedentary, get involved in regular physical activities.

Do fried foods aid weight gain?

Yes. If one is serious about losing weight, then one should limit their consumption of fried foods. As I said earlier, a gram of fat amounts to nine calories. If one has to fry beef which is already high in fat, one should realise that the calories will be doubled. If one fries plantain, the calories from it would increase, and this in turn adds to one’s weight, if one doesn’t burn the excess calories. Therefore, it is better and healthier to use other methods of cooking, and eat less fried foods to maintain good weight. Steaming is one of the good methods of cooking other than frying foods. I always advise people to eat moin moin instead of akara, because it is steamed. I also prefer boiled plantain to fried plantain, boiled or stewed meat or chicken instead of fried meat or chicken. They are much healthier.

What is your take on slimming teas and over-the-counter drugs for weight loss?

Slimming teas and weight reducing drugs have negative side effects, especially, on the kidney and liver. If one has to use any of them, they must first consult a medical doctor for proper advice. Proper diet modification, consistent and faithful exercise is much safer. Whatever will make one lose weight so quickly could be dangerous to one’s health. Weight loss should be gradual.

Is it good to engage in fasting to lose weight?

No, fasting should not be adopted for the purpose of losing weight. The body needs nutrients from food to function well and stay healthy. Fasting should be for prayer and religious purpose and the duration should depend on the individual involved. Some people have tried fasting to lose weight and developed health conditions like ulcer.

What is your take on all fruits diet or going vegetarian to lose weight?

One cannot live and stay healthy with only fruits. They can only provide vitamins and minerals for the body. What about other essential nutrients like protein, carbohydrate and fat? This cannot be a healthy practice to lose weight. Vegetarian diet, on the other hand can help to reduce weight, it is healthier. Vegetarians only avoid animal protein and fat from their diet. This is usually replaced with plant protein and fat. With high calorie from animal fat and protein missing in their diet, they are likely to reduce weight and stay healthy.

Is there a connection between drinking beer and pot belly?

Yes. A gram of alcohol will give seven calories; two cans of beer carry about 300 calories. Imagine if one takes two, three to four bottles daily for three to four times a week. Add these to calories gotten from food consumed; there would be much too many calories available in one’s body. If one doesn’t burn these excess calories, the body has a way of converting them to fat. The end product of beer and alcohol consumed is glucose, it has no nutrient. This glucose supplies the calories. This calories converted to fat by the body can contribute to the pot belly. If one is doing hard labour and one drinks beer or alcohol as one works, one would sweat and burn the calories. Or when one dances rigorously at club or party, one could burn some of the calories from beer and alcohol, unlike when one drinks while sitting and then going home to sleep thereafter.

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