Methods of Losing Weight
The variety of ways to lose weight nowadays is impressive. Some people decide to have surgeries, take pills, or starve themselves to death to reach this goal. The purpose of this essay is to compare and contrast the health benefits and the consequences of weight loss between different methods. However, the best way to lose weight is to eat healthy food and exercise properly and regularly, because this method is more beneficial and the results are always positive.
During the last decades, technology has gone so far that now people get an unexpected chance of quick change of body and health. Although weight loss or bariatric surgery is a fast mean of losing weight and getting fit body, this type of weight loss is not for everybody. It is recommended only for those people who failed in any other method of losing weight or for those who have serious health issues or severe obesity. There are two types of bariatric surgery: restrictive and malabsorptive (Berdanier, Dwyer, & Feldman, 2008). Restrictive surgery limits food intake by shrinking stomach size, modifying long-term eating behavior. Malabsorptive surgery restraints the absorption of food by extraction or rearrangement of the digestive system (Berdanier et al., 2008). There are certain similarities and differences in benefits and consequences of these two procedures. The advantages of restrictive surgery are that it is technically easier to carry out, and, unlike the malabsorptive one, there are fewer mineral and vitamin deficiencies. The advantage of the malabsorptive surgery as well as the restrictive one is rapid weight loss without changing eating habits. The disadvantage of the restrictive procedure is the risk of increasing frequency of calorie consumption. Unfortunately, malabsorptive surgery excludes most of the small intestine from the digestive tract; that is why it absorbs few calories and nutrients. In contrast to the restrictive procedure, this type cannot be recommended because it results in various nutritional deficiencies (Berdanier et al., 2008). As mentioned above, weight loss surgery can be very effective in the achievement of long-term weight loss. Even though the benefits of these procedures are obvious, like any other surgery, they carry many risks, which vary according to the age and the degree of obesity.
- Free plagiarism report (on request)
- Free title page
- Free customer support 24/7
- Free outline (on request)
- Free reference list/bibliography
- Free abstract (on request)
Another way to lose or control weight is taking weight loss drugs. A doctor prescribes them for those people who could not lose weight with any other method. Before buying any medication, a person should consult a doctor whether the U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves these drugs or not (Deeugenio & Henn, 2004). FDA approval shows that the drug is relatively safe. The two types of weight loss pills are prescription drugs and over-the-counter medication. Like any other method of losing weight, they have their benefits and drawbacks. A doctor prescribes prescription drugs in more severe cases to those people who have serious health problems. On the contrary to prescription drugs, over-the-counter is a nonprescription medication, which includes herbal products or dietary supplements (Deeugenio & Henn, 2004). Just as prescription pills, OTC ones contain herbs that burn calories, increase the expenditure of energy, suppress appetite, and decrease fat. The side effects of both of these types are hypertension; increased blood pressure, pulse, and heart rate; dizziness; insomnia; constipation; and vomiting (Deeugenio & Henn, 2004). In comparison to prescription drugs, they are cheaper and easy to buy. Unlike the prescription drugs, the disadvantage of the OTC pills is that the FDA does not monitor them. It is obvious that taking medication in order to lose weight is not suitable and may not work for everybody. Diet pills alone without regular physical activity and diet plan will not show any results.
Starvation is a severe food restriction in order to lose weight. Nevertheless, the result of starvation is always reverse. Not eating enough food slows down metabolism and stores fat. It will be impossible to lose weight whether exercising or not. Starvation relates to fasting and dieting. Fasting is an old practice, usually used because of religious views to develop self-discipline, but if it is used to lose weight, it may have irreversible consequences. Today fasting presupposes the consumption of water, juices, and tea. People fast for quick weight loss, but in fact, they lose only body fluid, not fat. Another type of starvation is dieting. Today we can find so many popular and trendy diets proposing to lose weight in several days. In fact, none of them will bring the desired effect. Fasting slows down a metabolic rate, so when a person starts eating ordinary food again, all the lost weight will be regained. Dieting, as well as fasting, will never bring positive results and only make it easier to gain weight. Dieting leads to imbalance between energy take and energy expenditure. This imbalance may cause eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia (Deeugenio & Henn, 2004). On the one hand, due to both of these methods, people lose weight fast, but they also can gain it back even faster.
If a person wants to lose weight in a more natural way, it is important to try eating only healthy food. Healthy diets should provide food from each of the following food groups: grains, vegetables and legumes, fruit, dairy, poultry, fish, and eggs. In addition, body cells, brain, muscles, and digestive system require water for the healthy functioning. The recommended fluid intake is eight glasses of water, 250 ml each per day. Food provides us with calories. Exercising, as well as normal body functioning, burns calories. If we eat more calories than we burn, we can gain fat and weight, and vice versa. That is why suddenly lowering of calories can result in many health problems. Another issue while eating healthy is a consumption of macronutrients. Moreover, people cannot live without proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. Finally, people should never forget about healthy snacks during the day. Healthy eating and regular exercises are vital for weight loss. This combination can boost the level of energy so that a person feels better physically and mentally. Therefore, if a person wants to get fit naturally, the consistency is required in every action. However, exhausting yourself at the gym will not bring desirable results. Experts state that exercising for thirty minutes three or four days per week will be more than enough for weight loss.
To conclude with, all methods of weight loss will bring certain results. However, they are not always the positive ones. The surgery and diet pills are most suitable for people with high obesity rates. Even though these methods have a great deal of benefits, there is no less number of drawbacks. Hence, both of these methods require a thorough doctor’s consultation. The starvation type of losing weight does not have any notable benefits, but the amount of consequences is enormous. The best advice for overweight people is to avoid any type of starvation. Thus, it is clear that the best way to lose weight and feel good and healthy about yourself is to maintain healthy lifestyle. Unlike all other methods of weight loss, the embracement of a healthy lifestyle has no side effects. It is the cheapest way of getting fit, and it requires a small amount of free time.