Vegetarian weight loss programs are becoming very popular. Many doctors and researchers agree a vegan or vegetarian diet, particularly one that is low in fat, is the best weight loss diet.
Help for Obesity
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), overweight is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. Approximately 65% of the U.S. population is overweight and 31% is obese. A million Americans die every three and a half years as a result of obesity.
Weight Loss Diets - Why Nothing Works?
Especially in the U.S., weight loss is big business. People who want to lose weight seem to be always on the latest popular diets.
“Although there has been, and continues to be, research in the area of weight loss, so far nothing seems to work in the long-term,” said April Hochstrasser, author of The Patient’s Guide to Weight Loss Surgery. According to her, group support programs such as Weight Watchers, TOPS, and Jenny Craig, flourish because of excellent short-term results but such programs seldom succeed in the maintenance of desired weight loss, leading to many more attempts with the same program before a dieter gives up. Some people come back to the same diet programs 25 to 50 times because of their proven initial success, not realizing that the same program has led to just as many failures. For example, the average two-year weight loss for people who join Weight Watchers is five pounds or 2.7 kg.
Dr. Deborah Wilson also noted in the Vegetarian Starter Kit that there has not been a single study indicating that high-protein diets like Atkins work for more than a year – in fact, two studies showed that weight loss on the Atkins diet reversed or stalled after just six months. Atkins himself died at 258 pounds.
Vegan Diet Weight Loss - The Only Effective Way
“The only weight-loss plan that has been scientifically proved to take weight off and keep it off for more than a year is a vegan diet,” wrote Dr. Wilson. Because vegetarian diets are the only diets that work for long-term weight loss, it is no surprise that population studies show that meat-eaters have three times the obesity rate of vegetarians and nine times the obesity rate of vegans, according to Dr. Wilson.
The Vegetarian Starter Kit found that adult vegans are 10 to 20 pounds lighter than adult meat-eaters. In addition to looking slimmer, being lighter reduces the risk of various health problems such as type 2 diabetes.
Some people become vegan or vegetarian immediately, while others change their diet little by little. Many people agree becoming a vegan is much more than just weight loss. Actress Alicia Silverstone said: “Once I became vegan, my nails were stronger, my skin was glowing, I lost a lot of weight…Going vegan is the single best thing I've done in my life. I am so much happier and more confident.”
Read more related articles: What Do Vegans Eat? and Becoming a Vegetarian
Sources:
Hochstrasser, April, The Patient’s Guide to Weight Loss Surgery: Everything You Need to Know About Gastric Bypass and Bariatiric Surgery, Hatherleigh Press, 2009
Mercy For Animals, Vegetarian Starter Kit, Chicago
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, Vegetarian Starter Kit, Norfolk
Vegan OutReach, Why Vegan?, Tucson, 2009
Miki Garcia - Miki is a freelance writer from San Francisco. After obtaining her master’s degree in journalism from City University London, UK, ...
