Olive oil for weight loss reviews
Medical professionals are greatly concerned about the obesity problem in the United States. Obesity often comes hand-in-hand with high levels of cholesterol and lipids in the blood (hyperlipidemia), heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, certain cancers, and a higher rate of premature death. Health-care professionals often recommend following a strict but healthy diet in order to lose weight. Simply switching to olive oil will trim down your waistline a bit. Research suggests that replacing other types of fats with monounsaturated fat, especially olive oil, helps people lose a moderate amount of weight without additional food restriction or physical activity. So just imagine what adding a lower-calorie diet and increased physical activity (which is always a good idea) to the consumption of monounsaturated fats like olive oil could do for your weight-loss efforts. FDA scientists reviewed many different studies when they evaluated whether to allow health claims for monounsaturated fat on food labels in 2003. A number of studies showed that when people substituted monounsaturated-fat-rich olive oil for saturated fat, they either maintained their weight or lost weight. A diet high in monounsaturated fat and low in carbohydrates actually resulted in more weight loss than a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet. However, the FDA did not approve this particular claim for food labels. Instead, the agency approved a stronger claim linking the consumption of 23 grams (about two tablespoons) of olive oil to a decreased risk of coronary heart disease. Another study showed that when people ate monounsaturated fat, they ate less. For example, when served bread with olive oil, participants ate 23 percent less bread than when they ate it with butter, a saturated fat. Scientists speculate that because monounsaturated fat is more satisfying than other types of fat, people eat less of it. Also, insulin became less able to prevent the breakdown of fat, which made it easier for fat cells to release their stored fat for elimination by the body. A pair of studies that were published in the Asia-Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2004 looked at whether a diet high in monounsaturated fat was more effective for weight loss than a diet that was low in total fat. The studies also examined the effects of a Mediterranean diet on blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels. The two studies tracked a total of 255 participants (155 in one study, 100 in the other) for 15 months.
