2019-06-01_Healthy_Food_Guide_UK_(2)

interventionsuchassurgery,but

newstudiesareshowingthat

VLCDsmayofferanalternative.

Onesuch– theDiabetesin

RemissionClinicalTrial(DiRECT)

• recruitedadultswitha BMIof 27
  ormorewho’dbeendiagnosed
  withtype2 diabetesinthepast
  sixyears.Halffollowedstandard
  dietaryadviceforthecondition;
  theotherhalffolloweda VLCDof
  justover800kcala dayforthree
  tofivemonths,followedbythe
  gradualreintroductionoffood
  overtwotoeightweeksand
  additionalsupportforlong-term
  weightmaintenance.
  At 12 months,diabeteswas
  inremissionin46%ofthose
  followingtheVLCDcompared
  withjust4%inthecontrolgroup.
  Themoreweightlost,themore
  likely remission was – just 7% of

●YOUNEEDTOIDENTIFYwhether

youhavea BMIof 30 ormore(goto

healthyfood.co.uk/bmi-calculator).If

yourBMIisunder30,thisisn’tforyou.

●IT’SIMPORTANTTOREFLECT

onwhatyou’vedonesofartotryto

loseweight.Alessrestrictivediet

basedoneatinghealthilyand

reducingcaloriesbyabout600kcal

day– suchasourmonthlydietplan

(seep68)– isa greatstartingpointif

you’renewtolosingweight.However,

ifyou’vealreadymadehealthy

changestoyourdietandincreased

activitylevelsbutarenolongerlosing

weight– andstillhavea BMIof 30

ormore– a VLCDmaybe suitable,

accordingtotheNHS.

●YOUSHOULDN’TFOLLOWa

VLCDwithoutmedicalsupervision.

SeeyourGPfirsttofindoutwhether

theyagreeit’sanappropriatelineof

treatmenttohelpyouloseweight.

This is vital if you take medication for

healthbenefitsassociatedwith

weightloss.Whileanystrategy

thataidsweightlosswillhelp

improvehealthandreducetherisk

factorsthatmakeusmorelikely

todevelophealthproblemssuch

asheartdisease,type2 diabetes

andcertaincancers,losingweight

fastwillreducetherisksooner!

Onecurrentareaofresearch

focusesontheroleofVLCDsfor

peoplewithtype2 diabetes.

Aroundnineoutof 10 adultswith

type2 diabetesareoverweight

orobese,solosingweightis a

cornerstoneoftreatment,asit

leadstobetterbloodsugarcontrol

andinsulinsensitivity.Research

suggestsif thosewithtype 2

diabetescanlose15kgtheymay

beabletoputtheconditioninto

remission.It’sanamountthat’s

hard to achieve without extreme

peoplewitha weightlossof

upto5kgwentintoremission

comparedwith86%ofthosewho

lost15kgormore.Theresults

weredeemedsoimportantthat

NHSEnglandandScotlandhave

nowcommittedmoneytocarry

outfurtherstudiesinthisarea.

Meanwhile,anotherstudy,

calledPREVIEW,hasfoundVLCDs

aren’tjustgoodforputtingtype 2

diabetesintoremission.Because

theycauseweightloss,too,they

maystoppeoplegettingthe

conditioninthefirstplace.Inthis

ongoingstudy,morethan2,000

adultswithpre-diabetesfrom

eightcountries,includingtheUK,

followedan810kcal-a-daydiet

foreightweeks.Onaverage,they

lost11kg,and35%managedto

gettheirbloodsugarlevelsback

within the normal range.

❛Any

weightloss

willreduce

riskfactors,

butlosing

weightfast

reduces

them

sooner❜

WANT TO

GIVE IT A TRY?

Here’s what to consider...

amedicalconditionsuchastype 2

diabetesorhighbloodpressure.Your

GPwillneedtomonitoryoucloselyand

mayneedtomakeadjustmentstoyour

medicationasyouloseweight.

●MEALREPLACEMENT

PRODUCTSaren’tgenerallyavailable

onprescription,soyou’llusuallyneedto

payforthem.Programmesavailablein

theUKincludeCambridgeWeightPlan,

LighterLife,theCounterweight-Plus

programme and Optifast.

●IT’SNOTA LONG-TERMeating

plan.Althoughclinicaltrials

sometimesgoupto 20 weeks,NICE

guidelinessayVLCDsshouldn’t

befollowedformorethan 12 weeks.

●YOUSHOULDPLANwhatyou’ll

doaftertheVLCD.Toavoidregaining

theweightyou’velost,youneedto

planaheadandthinkabouthowyou’ll

reintroducemeals.Studiesshowa

gradualreintroductionoffoodoversix

weeksratherthanoneweekwillhelp

keeptheweightoff.Continuingto

havemealreplacementproductsfor

someofyourmealsmayalsobe

effectiveandhelpyoustayincontrol

ofyourfoodintake.Supportfrom a

healthprofessionaliskey.

●DON’TTHINKyoucanreturnto

previouseatinghabits.Yourlong-term

goalshouldbetoeata healthy,

balanceddietthatincludesfoodsfrom

thefourmaingroups:starchy,high

fibre-carbs;fruitandveg;low-fatdairy

oralternatives;andleanprotein-rich

foods.It’salsovitaltostickwith

portionsizesthatwillhelpin

supportingfurtherweightlossorin

keepingyourweightsteady.Theadvice

in HFG can help you achieve this.

PHOTOS: ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES, POSED BY MODELS

36 HEALTHY FOOD GUIDEJUNE 2019

Weight loss