Why Diets Fail

Keto? Intermittent Fasting? And what about some of those plant-based diets?

#dieting #weightloss #weightstigma

Let’s talk about the science behind some of these popular diets. Social Psychologist Dr. Jeffrey Hunger (a name that suits his specialty!) joins us to break down why dieting doesn’t work, take a critical look at the link between weight and health, and debunk common assumptions about weight and weight stigma. We’ll give you some science-backed tips that will tell you more about staying healthy than the scale ever could!

🩺🥼 Vitals is a series that’s taking a new approach to health and medicine. Hosts Alok Patel, MD, and Sheena Williams RN are going beyond the headlines to answer your questions on the latest health topics. No judgment, no taboos. Just 100% science-based information.

Let’s Connect:

Find our experts and hosts:
:: Dr. Alok Patel ::
Twitter: @AlokPatelMD
Instagram: @alokpatelmd

:: Sheena William, RN ::
Twitter: @Keepingitkinky1
Instagram: @keepingitkinky

:: Jeffrey Hunger, Ph.D. ::
Twitter: @drhunger
Instagram: @drhunger

👓 Fascinating reads if you want to learn more:
More about Ketosis

More about Intermittent fasting

The Racist and Problematic History of the Body Mass Index:

How Weight Shaming Is Literally Sickening:

The Biggest Loser Study (Metabolic Adaptation):

How Health Is Misclassified By Weight

[yippeehaha-yy]

Thank you for this! Over 2 years ago I had to tell my doctor how her asking about my weight was a problem for me in that I was seeing her about my knee! BTW, I'm metabolically healthy even as I'm 10 -20 lbs over the BMI yet I will range from size 12-14. She kept telling me I was obese and that I need to avoid future problems yet she admitted that my blood pressure was low, my cholestral was low, etc, etc. I ended up going to a different doctor...

[wholegrainvideos]

I gotta say this does make me rethink how I'm changing my diet. Possibly the most positive take on being healthy, not just weight loss. 🙂

[JoePatterson]

I hate the names of BMI ranges. Broadly speaking, the lowest all-cause mortality is associated with the "overweight" BMI range. So what is quite possibly the "healthiest" range is named in a way that implies that it's too high. Then there's "normal", which may have been normal for a white male in the 1940's, but isn't so normal now, and even if it were, normality isn't really a useful metric. It definitely feels like the BMI ranges need a re-branding.

[koepisking]

The way I have been tracking my eating this year is limit myself to a serving by grams. I will limit myself to a serving of each thing that my wife and I make, with a minimum of 3 servings in mind. This has helped me limit myself while also not cutting anything out of my diet. I have lost 20 pounds since Christmas doing this!

[One.Zero.One]

Junk food is the biggest factor on how I lost weight. I exercised for 6 months and maybe lost 2 pounds because I still ate unhealthy food. As soon as I replaced junk food with fruits and vegetables I dropped a lot of weight immediately.

[belindavandeventerqueenb]

Preach! I love that medical professionals are saying this. It’s okay to love your body no matter it’s size, and being healthy doesn’t mean being thin.

[florentbarale]

I tried a few diets. One I liked was a detox one, for 3 weeks. The aim was not to lose weight, but to eat healthy. It gave me more energy throughout the day and make for better sleep. I still kept to this day my morning routine with berries I love from this detox diet. Another one I tried was intermittent fasting combined with counting calories. While it worked for a while, it became tedious to count calories for every single meal I had. I stopped because of that. Now what I do is exercise 3-4 times a week to a sport I love (judo). I don’t lose weight but I feel much better in my body and mind.

[CarxV_one]

Gosh I loved this video, so much confusion around self image and food nowadays. Thanks for bringing up some clarity to the topic.

[schnuder]

I’ve found that just logging my food and exercise with a guide of total caloric intake is what works for me; but it needs to be quick and easy.

This wouldn’t be possible without my smartphone where I use an app that I can simply and easily log what I eat and how much exercise I get. This means I can check in when I have a moment when planning out a meal or considering a snack to see where I am, including if I’ve eaten too little, which I do often while working.

I don’t stress out about getting the logs exactly right. I can use my phone’s camera to scan barcodes of items from snacks and other packed foods or of items I’m using to cook with. If I don’t have that info I just search I the app and pick a good enough match. Because of published menus a lot of restaurants and fast food, especially chains, end up with an exact match.

Physical activity plays a part too. The app I use can sync up with other exercise apps but I mostly use the built in step count from my phone and enter in any exercise with a quick rough estimate. Having the ability to log things that aren’t traditional “exercise” is also very helpful, especially when the app has these as pre-existing options. This includes things like house cleaning, laundry, playing with young kids, and carrying an infant or toddler while doing normal activities.

[nervigeanmeldung]

Great video, but a small tip on communication. Dont tell someone what not to think of. Its like telling someone not to think of an pink elephant.
So if you want to bring someone not to feel guilty about the snack they might eat, tell them that the may enjoy it or so, but dont tell them not to feel guilty about it, that will only leed to a feeling of guilt.

[JoePatterson]

The one really frustrating thing about this video is saying "we need to focus less on weight and more on actual indicators of health, and there are plenty of them"... and then you don't mention any of them. What are these actual indicators of health? I'd really like to know...

[jadesnowdee]

I get curious about the studies that after cutting so many calories (=losing a lot of weight) and returning, people gain even more weight and their metabolism slowed down - but are these results similar for people with for e.g. anorexia? They also drastically cut their calorie intake, so does it mean that after recovering they'll be more susceptible to have slower metabolism and gaining weight in the future? I'm just curious - because I'm working with such people and this question is one from those that are worrying them.

[bramnet]

Gotta love all of the ad breaks being about various "alternative" diets.

[paul]

Perhaps less commonly talked about is a healthy diet for those into weight lifting for a hobby, I lift weights for strength building and I am vegan, most people say it can't work, the proteins from a vegan diet aren't as good as animal protein etc. yet for me it seems to work just fine using meat substitutes and a vegan protein powder with Soy milk.
My struggle to get a balance was the opposite, the diet advice I was getting was to eat more and more but actually it led to eating too much and I had to bring it in a bit using trial and error to find the line between being bloated or too lethargic.
Back to the protein differences though I would be interested to know if protein from a vegan diet vs protein from meat and dairy actually makes that much of a noticeable difference from a scientific point of view as I seem to get the same gains as a meat eater on the same amount of protein.

[FirstRisingSouI]

The instant after I clicked on this video, I was very confused for about 10 seconds.

[franciscotorres]

Being "metabolically healthy" means "digest well everything you eat"?

[LynHannan]

Over a year ago I was told by my GP that I was Insulin Resistant/Pre-Diabetic and that my BP was too high to ignore anymore. He gave me 3 months to seriously do something about it, suggesting I cut down on all junk and convenience "foods" and high calourie drinks and to eat more whole foods along with more exercise. He threatened me with meds, saying once I was on them there was no turning back; he knew I didn't want to become my grandmother (looong story about ignorance, apathy, illness, heartache and despair). Within two weeks, I'd found a number of websites and YouTubers who taught me so much about Keto, as well as the science behind it and showcasing the studies (linking them in the description box so we could read them in full if we wished) they referenced when talking about different aspects of Keto. In that first 3 months, I'd lost a few kilos, enough to hold off my GP for a while longer - but he did say I needed to get into it deeper. I was still learning, and feeding an extended family as well made it so much harder for me. Hubby got a job requiring him to go interstate, but Covid caused a 6 week job to turn into a 19 week and 3 day job. When he finally got home, he rushed up to me for a hug and immediately said "WOW! I can touch both my elbows at the same time while hugging you!" He hadn't been around to tempt me ("you gotta live a little, darl") - I knew he meant well, but it was hindering rather than helping; and him being away gave me more impetus to surprise him on his return! I'd lost 29cm from my waist and 15kg of weight. My BP is normal. My BSL is normal. My triglycerides are normal. My Arthritis has improved. My dry skin has improved. I'm sure that if I weren't Peri-menopausal, my PCOS would have been greatly improved as well. I'm still losing weight (I think 5 more kilos would be neat!), but it's not the real issue. I'm not only healthier in my body but in my mind as well, I feel happier in myself (as if I were back on meds for depression and anxiety like I was about a decade ago. I know which foods to substitute out so I can eat almost the same meal as I serve up to everyone else - Spaghetti Bolognese for me is the meat sauce on steamed vegies rather than pasta - AND I NO LONGER MISS THE PASTA! Pasta was my biggest hurdle - but no longer!! This is not a diet for me, it is a lifestyle. Anyone with full type 2 diabetes can turn it around, it will simply take more work initially and close supervision of a Dr. I managed to do it fairly easily because I was only PRE-Diabetic, once I had learned that carbs are literally hiding in everything that is prepackaged and convenient. Looking back, I feel that I've been insulin resistant for the last 30 years. I'd been feeling so blah (not necessarily sick) for so long, I forgot what feeling well felt like. I'm sticking with this lifestyle, I know what my alternative is. Diabetes is rampant in my family (both parents' sides) and I haven't forgotten what my grandmother went through - she didn't see 70. Eat REAL FOOD that you can see the ingredients of, just like what was served 4 or 5 generations ago. Treat treats like treats again and keep them for parties. Convenience foods are not convenient for your body, especially if you have Diabetes or it's in your family. It may be in your genes, but you can wear other pants that will fit better!

[neyedol]

Explore healthy options within your means - try new things from a beneficial perspective. Find new ways to reduce salt and "the bad fats." Don't drink your sweets if you eat your sweets - pick one or the other.

[jasminebellon]

Great video, Just wish they gave more solutions. I learned that you can be different weights and BMIs and still be healthy depending on your race and genetics.

[bazookallamaproductions]

the strongest people in the world typically weigh around 450 lbs lol.