Is Your Diet Killing You?

Our bodies are equipped to store fat because for centuries people would have to go a long time without food and also regularly experienced famine. Even though most people are not dealing with famine today, our bodies are equipped at the cellular level to combat starvation. Even if the starvation is voluntary. This is why diets do not work and could actually be killing you. The following are the reasons that dieting could be harmful to your health.

1. It could increase the risk premature death and heart disease. If you are a yo-yo dieter (someone who goes up and down in weight do to dieting) you have a higher overall death rate and twice the normal risk of heart disease. This is true whether you are thin or obese. Some doctors go as far as saying that staying obese could be less harmful than yo-yo dieting. In doing research on heart health, I have found that heart health experts have stressed the importance of avoiding dieting for preventing heart disease and reducing the risk of death if you already have the disease.
2. You teach the body to store more fat. When dieting, the body compensates to store more energy or fat. The ensymes that store fat double up thinking that the body is experiencing a famine. It does not matter that the famine is self-imposed, the body does not know that.
3. Slows your weight loss. This has been proven in rat and human studies.
4. Your metabolism decreases. When you diet, the body is triggered to reduce the need for energy in order to be more efficient.
5. Increases your overeating and binges. Studies have shown that when humans are restricted from food, the brain sends out a waterfall of messages with cravings to eat more.
6. Your body shape changes. If you are a chronic dieter you tend to gain weight in the abdominal area. I know several people who look deformed because of this. My sister-in-law is one of them. She is ultra thin, but she has a belly that makes her look 3-4 months pregnant. In fact, she is often asked by strangers when the baby will be due.
7. Dieting causes you to lose awareness of when you are full or satisfied. Since diets tell you when and what to eat, you lose touch with your biological needs. You stop eating when still hungry and therefore you are ravenous for your next meal which causes you to overeat or binge.

Dieting also has emotional and psychological negative affects.  If you would like to know what they are please contact me on Facebook.