Post-menopausal women often have a hard time losing weight. But,
promising new research shows that there may be simple dietary
considerations that may help shed pounds - and keep them off for good.
What's
on the list of foods to avoid and items to chow down on? It's
relatively simple: Eating less sugar, meats and cheeses and consuming
more fruits and vegetables were shown to help long-term weight loss.
"With more than one-third of all Americans considered obese, it's
clear that standard behavioral obesity treatment is producing poor
long-term results," lead investigator Bethany Barone Gibbs, assistant
professor at the University of Pittsburgh's department of health and
physical activity, said in the university press release.
"We found that some important behaviors differ for long-term versus
short-term weight control among women in their 50s and 60s, who are
already at higher risk for weight gain."
Traditionally,
women are told to watch their calorie intake to lose weight, which may
not be sustainable for long periods of time. Because post-menopausal women have a natural energy expenditure decline, it's even harder for
them to lose and maintain weight.
"Not only does
motivation decrease after you start losing weight, there are
physiological changes, including a decreased resting metabolic rate,"
Gibbs said in the news release.
"Appetite-related hormones increase. Researchers studying the brain are
now finding that you have enhanced rewards and increased motivation to
eat when you've lost weight."
Investigators looked at 481
obese and overweight post-menopausal women who had a waist size of more
than 31.5 inches. Some of the group was instructed to join a lifestyle
change group, which met regularly with nutritionists, exercise
physiologists and psychologists. They were instructed to reduce total,
saturated and trans fat along with cholesterol from meat, dairy, fats,
oils, baked goods, and snacks; reduce energy intake and increase foods
high in soluble fiber. Eating fruits, vegetables, whole grains and items
high in plant stanols/sterols known to lower cholesterol and omega-3
fatty acids like fish were also encouraged. Exercise toward the minimum
goal of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical exercise a week was
slowly introduced. If the participant wanted to, they were given tips on
how to increase their exercise to up to 240 minutes per week.
The
others were given the option of attending a health education group in
which healthcare professionals educated the subjects on women's health,
with no specific attention towards weight loss.
Weight
was recorded at six months and 48 months. On average, the women in the
lifestyle change group lost 8 pounds over the four years. In comparison,
the women in the health education group lost only half a pound.
However, 57 percent of the intervention participants and 29 percent of
controls had maintained at least a five-pound weight loss.
In
both groups, short-term weight loss during the first six months was
attributed the most to eating less sugar and fried foods, as well as
eating more fish. After four years, continued decreases in eating
deserts, sugary drinks, meats and cheeses with increases in eating more
fruits and vegetables helped increase weight loss, showing these
practices were more appropriate for long-term effects.
"People
are so motivated when they start a weight loss program," Gibbs said in
the news release. "You can say, 'I'm never going to eat another piece of
pie,' and you see the pounds coming off. Eating fruits and vegetables
may not make as big a difference in your caloric intake. But that small
change can build up and give you a better long-term result, because it's
not as hard to do as giving up French fries forever."
Just
how little of an change did people have to make? Adding two servings a
day of fruits and vegetables from what they previously ate was shown to
result in a three-pound weight loss four years later. Cutting down 16
ounces daily of sugary beverages also was linked a three-pound deduction
in the same period of time.
Eating at restaurants less
was also shown to have some impact on weight loss, but since dining out
decreased regardless of weight loss at the 48 month mark, researchers
hypothesized that it may have also had to do with economic factors.
The study appears in the September 2012 issue of the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
"This
study provides a glimpse at why changes in eating patterns must be
maintainable for weight loss to be sustainable," Connie Diekman,
director of university nutrition at Washington University in St. Louis,
said to HealthDay. She was not involved in the study.
Karen Giblin, president of the menopause support organization Red Hot Mamas North America, Inc. told NBC News
that the study displays what so many menopausal women in America
struggle with: the ability to shed pounds. She was not involved with the
study either, but co-authored a book with Dr. Mache Seibel on the
subject called "Eat to Defeat Menopause."
"I recall at
age 25 if I wanted to lose five pounds I could do it in a week. Now, it
takes far longer to lose weight," she admitted.
But
simple things similar to what the study showed like making exercise an
active part of her life, not skipping meals and snacking on healthier
items like fruit or almonds helped her lose weight.
"It's
so hard counting calories and keeping food diaries for years and years
and years," Gibbs said. "We have a population-sized problem here."
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