Have Weight Loss Questions?

Water is the most essential nutrient the body requires to function. Water aids in circulation of fluids, efficient digestion, electrolyte balance, and blood pressure maintenance. In addition, water is also involved in nutrient, hormone, and waste transport. Drinking water is essential to weight loss because of its ability to suppress appetite naturally and its ability to help metabolize stored body fat. Our bodies cannot store water, which is why it’s so important to get daily water intake.

A slow down in weight loss can happen to just about anyone during a diet, and should be considered a natural and normal process. We refer to this process as a weight loss plateau. A plateau can occur from the 5th to the 8th week of a client's program and can last from 2 to 8 days. The phenomenon is related to allowing the body’s metabolism to slow down while you're on a reduced calorie diet.

You are still breaking down fat at a regular rate. As fat leaves the cells to be used as a food source, the body has the task of shrinking the fat cell back to its normal size. If the body is a little sluggish, and does not immediately start shrinking the fat cells, then an empty space is formed in the cell. The law of physics does not allow the body to have empty spaces, so water and salt automatically flow into the fat cell. The water and salt will be removed when the body catches up to the completion of shrinking the fat cells to normal size, and because water weighs more than fat, there may be even a slight weight gain.

Do not become discouraged or go off your diet - you are still losing fat during this period. Once this process is complete, weight reduction will again be shown on the scales. Continue to drink water, as water is the best natural diuretic known to medicine and will aid in shortening the plateau, and continue to take at least a minimum of 2 nutritional supplements daily.

We highly encourage you to choose a variety of foods at every meal in order to help you meet all nutritional requirements. The food choices you make may also have an effect on your weight loss. All foods are released into the body in a time-released manner and different foods require different amounts of time to enter the blood stream. The energy released into the blood stream during digestion is called blood sugar and is the life source necessary for healthy functioning for every part of the human body.

A proper mixture of foods is needed to assure a continuous supply of energy through the blood stream to the vital organs (heart, lungs, brain, liver, kidneys, etc.). Consequently, you will have a higher metabolism and energy level if you eat a variety of foods at every meal.

Fiber has a positive effect on weight control, improving large intestine function and lowering blood cholesterol levels. Researchers have found that fiber-rich diets help protect against heart disease, colon cancer, and diabetes. Fiber is the indigestible portion of plants. Every plant food contains fiber.

Fiber can be classified into two forms: water-soluble and water-insoluble. Studies show that water-soluble fibers are definitely beneficial in improving the control of blood glucose by delaying the stomach's emptying and therefore slowing the absorption of glucose into the bloodstream. Soluble fibers are also responsible for helping to lower blood cholesterol levels. Water insoluble fibers help to move waste more rapidly, preventing constipation and possibly colon cancer.

Fiber intake should consist of both types of fibers in equal amounts to maximize the benefits of fiber as a whole. Fiber promotes weight control by slowing the rate at which food leaves the stomach and by drawing water into the GI tract. This provides a feeling of fullness and/or satiety before a person takes in too many calories.

When you're on a weight loss program, it's hard to get all the important nutrients your body needs. Physicians WEIGHT LOSS Centers vitamins and essential minerals are specially formulated to complement your reduced calorie diet programs to ensure that the minimum recommended daily allowances (RDA) are met. Physicians WEIGHT LOSS Centers vitamin and mineral supplement contains the key vitamins and minerals you need to help protect your good health.

Being overweight can hurt more than just your looks. Obesity is unhealthy and can lead to many medical conditions that can restrict your lifestyle and even shorten your life. Listed below are just a few of these medical conditions related to obesity.

• High Blood Pressure

  High blood pressure (hypertension) can result in varying degrees of damage to the brain (stroke), kidneys (degeneration), and the heart (heart attack). Being overweight is an added stress on these already strained organs. Therefore, it is essential that hypertensive, overweight people lose weight.

• Heart Disease

  As a person gains weight, the heart must work harder to supply nutrients to all tissues of the body. The greater body mass, the greater the strain on the heart. There is a higher incidence of heart disease in people who are overweight.

• Diabetes

  Diabetes is more common in overweight people than in people of normal weight. When an overweight diabetic loses weight, his/her diabetes often improves. (This pertains to Type 2 diabetics.)

• Gallbladder Disease

  A significantly higher incidence of gallbladder disease is observed in overweight people than in those of normal weight.

Physicians WEIGHT LOSS Centers Entrees come in a variety of delicious flavors! They are retort packaged which eliminates the need for preservatives so food has a better taste and texture. These entrees are calorie controlled, portion controlled, and nutrition controlled, so you don't need to worry about weighing, measuring, or taking the time to read labels.

They are convenient to use because they are microwaveable and need no refrigeration; you can take them anywhere, anytime. Their natural ingredients include sauces and gravy, plus herbs and seasoning for great taste so you do not feel deprived while dieting. Physicians WEIGHT LOSS Centers Entrees can help you lose weight when you can't or don't want to cook, and will easily fit into most of our programs.

It is important for you to follow an eating schedule, especially if you feel like you eat constantly throughout the day, or if you eat at irregular and inconsistent times. A schedule doesn't mean three square meals a day. It means choosing a schedule that's convenient and tolerable for you. Keep the number of times you eat under control. A schedule will help you eat less and think more about what you do eat. Do your best to be consistent.

Skipping meals may lead to overeating at the next meal. More importantly, skipping meals can lead to loss of energy and malnutrition. When you skip meals, you may not be getting adequate supplies of dietary components necessary for proper nutrition. Therefore, poor meal habits can directly affect your health.

Caffeine acts as a mild stimulant to the central nervous system and acts as a diuretic resulting in possible fluid loss. For some people, caffeine can speed the heart rate temporarily and increase stomach acid. Caffeine can also cause headaches, insomnia and anxiety.

Another reason we limit caffeine in our programs, is because people tend to use coffee or colas in place of better sources of nutrition such as milk, juice or water. Our protocol is put in place to not only help you lose weight but also to teach you about an overall healthy lifestyle.

ake sure you are not ravenous when you arrive at the restaurant. Have a snack before you leave. Be the first in your group to order to avoid being influenced by someone else's choice. Ask for salad dressings, sauces, and gravies to be served on the side. Choose foods that are broiled, grilled, roasted and steamed instead of fried. Enjoy rolls and breads without butter. Steer clear of alcohol - it's high in calories and may impair your self-control. Finally, eat slowly and enjoy the food, the people and the conversation!

Although eating does stimulate the release of digestive juices, food does not prime the digestive system or stimulate the appetite. The effect you describe is more psychological than physiological. People who have a weight problem often overeat at night, causing lack of hunger in the morning. Fear of getting out of control if something is eaten plays a major role in this pattern. Work on normalizing your eating patterns. Then, you'll find it acceptable to be hungry in the morning. Eating at regular time periods will help in this process.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to resist the temptation of a social drink of champagne, wine, beer, or other favorites. Alcoholic drinks are not calorie free. In fact, alcohol yields 7 calories per gram. A 12-ounce can of beer has about 150 calories, while a 4 ounce glass of wine will provide about 90 calories. One and a half ounces of liquor is about 105 calories.

While on your Physicians WEIGHT LOSS Centers program, you should not consume any alcohol, as it interferes with the metabolism of nutrients and may stimulate your appetite. It also does not provide any significant nutrients. The best thing you can do for yourself to continue progress in your program is to not consume any alcohol. Keep in mind that there will be many times in life that you may want to celebrate or socialize with a drink or two. Avoiding/limiting alcohol intake is a habit you should make an effort to develop to reach and maintain your weight loss goal.

The food choices on each program have been carefully selected to provide a balance of nutrition that may be unique to each program. However, even nutritious choices may be limited due to the nature of the program. For example, the VLCD 800 program is aggressive and more restrictive in menu choices than many of the other Physicians WEIGHT LOSS Centers programs. This helps provide structure and control while on the program. Some nutritious items that are not choices on the VLCD 800 program may be allowed on a more flexible program, such as the LCD 1000 or any of the Low Fat High Energy programs.

NutraSweet is a registered trademark for aspartame, a nutritive sweetener used as a sugar substitute. Aspartame is a combination of two amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine. Individuals with phenylketonuria, a disorder caused by the inability to metabolize phenylalanine in the body, must carefully monitor the amount of phenylalanine in their diets. The warning label alerts these individuals to the presence of the amino acid.

Aspartame is one of the most common artificial sweeteners used in diet products and consumed as a sugar substitute. Although there are no side effects scientifically documented, there are many negative rumors about aspartame. You may have read or heard that aspartame causes headaches, blindness, allergic reactions and various diseases.

Aspartame has been more intensely studied than most other food additives. In the April issue of the University of California, Berkeley Wellness Letter, it is noted that scientific advisors to the European Union, the FDA, the American Medical Association, and the World Health Organization have recently confirmed that aspartame is safe, based on the latest data. The only proven danger is for people with a rare genetic disorder (called phenylketonuria).

The FDA established an Acceptable Daily Intake for aspartame at 50 mg/kg. This amount is equivalent to about 20 diet soft drinks or 97 packets of sugar substitute containing aspartame. The average consumption of aspartame is only 2 to 3 mg/kg.

Physicians Weight Loss Centers uses aspartame in many of its high quality products. You can take comfort that research supports the safety of its use as an ingredient. Aspartame is an artificial sweetener that contributes to the flavor of many low calorie, low sugar Physicians Weight Loss Centers products, which help provide good nutrition and assist with weight loss success!

Sugar alcohols are a group of low-calorie sweeteners. They provide the taste and texture of sugar without all the calories. They are commonly used in sugar-free, low-calorie products such as chewing gums, candies, nutrition bars, desserts and baked goods. Common sugar alcohols are maltitol, sorbitol, mannitol and xylitol.

Sugar alcohols have a chemical structure similar to both sugars and alcohols, but they are metabolized differently. Sugar alcohols are partially absorbed and require little or no insulin. This results in minimal impact on blood sugar levels compared to sugar. An additional benefit is that sugar alcohols do not promote tooth decay. We will probably continue to see sugar alcohols in new products, including Physicians WEIGHT LOSS Centers products, developed to meet the consumer demand for low-calorie, sugar-free products. It's a sweet deal, since such products can help with controlling blood sugar, maintaining good oral health, and managing weight!