Low-fat diets: effectiveness, description and examples

General rules

One of the options for diets aimed at losing weight is the so-called “fat-free diet.” The essence of the diet is clear from its name and lies in limiting fat in the diet. At the same time, the recommendations of various authors vary significantly: from the complete exclusion of fats from the diet to specific figures for fat consumption (5-10% of the diet). Unfortunately, most people who want to lose weight associate fat consumption only with the size of the subcutaneous fat layer. While fats are one of the main food nutrients that take part in all metabolic , participate in the construction of cell membranes, are one of the sources of energy and create conditions for the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins ( A , E ).
Fats, being a source of polyunsaturated fatty acids, in particular omega 3 and 6 are necessary for the synthesis of a number of hormones , maintaining normal function of the cardiovascular system, and the production of anti-inflammatory prostaglandins . A completely low-fat diet can only lead to negative consequences and harm your health. In addition, it is quite difficult to create a “fat-free” diet menu, since most products still contain vegetable/animal fats in varying quantities. Therefore, the definition of a low-fat diet is more correct to mean a low-fat diet.

The basis of these types of diets is the question, to what level should fats be limited? Some authors suggest that the amount of fat in the diet should be below 30 g/day. Others are convinced that the fat content cannot fall below 50 g/day. Most likely, the minimum acceptable amount of fat must be determined individually depending on a number of parameters: age, gender, level of physical activity, health status. It is necessary to proceed from the calculation that 1 g of lipids releases 9.3 Kcal during oxidation. Therefore, when forming a diet with a physiologically normal content of proteins (90 g) and carbohydrates (400 g), the energy component of which is 4.1 Kcal/gram, you can determine how energy-reduced your diet will be with a given fat content in the diet .

For a fairly effective weight loss process, the energy component of the daily diet should be 1800-2000 kcal/day, which is achieved by reducing fat intake to 40-50 g/day with the physiological norm of protein and carbohydrates. When limiting fats, primarily eliminate trans fats, limit saturated fats, and consume unsaturated fats in moderation.

However, in addition to monitoring the quantitative fat content in the diet, it is equally important to monitor the qualitative composition of fats. When limiting fat to 10-15% of the total calorie intake, achieved through the inclusion of low-fat/low-fat foods in the diet, it is important to maintain the correct ratio between monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, which should be 1:1. Products containing monounsaturated acids include olive, nut, sesame, rapeseed, sunflower oil, almonds, peanuts, cashew nuts, and avocados. And to products containing polyunsaturated fatty acids - soybean, corn oil, flax, salmon and other types of red fish, sesame seeds, walnuts.

A low-fat diet includes the consumption of foods/dishes with a minimum content of animal/vegetable fats: lean meats (veal, chicken, turkey, rabbit), low-fat fish (cod, pike, flounder, trout), various cereals, bread/crackers from wholemeal flour, mushrooms, vegetables and fruits, low-fat fermented milk products.

Excluded: fatty cottage cheese, fatty meat/fish, cheeses, sweet cheeses, milk, mayonnaise, cream, fermented baked milk, animal/cooking fat (lard, bacon). It is important to limit hidden fats in the diet, which are found in large quantities in ice cream, smoked meats, offal, cheeses, sausages, cookies, confectionery, egg yolks, fast food, canned fish and meat, chocolate, and sweets. The duration of a fat-restricted diet should not exceed 14 days.

Pros of a low-fat diet

When talking about such a dietary regimen, they mean reducing the amount of fat, but not eliminating it completely. Fats make up the protective capsule of internal organs and are part of the structure of cell membranes; they are necessary for the normal functioning of the hormonal system and the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, K, E).

However, a low-fat diet does provide health benefits:

• reduces the load on the liver and pancreas;
• helps lower LDL levels in the blood (“bad” cholesterol);
• allows you to reduce the total caloric content of your diet and get rid of excess weight.

Thus, a low-fat diet will be useful for people who control their weight (including athletes), people at risk for cardiovascular diseases, as well as anyone who seeks to improve their health and well-being.

Authorized Products

• A low-fat diet involves the inclusion of bran/grain dried bread/crackers in the diet.
• The first courses are prepared using vegetable broth with the addition of vegetables/potatoes. To prepare second courses, take boiled lean meat of lean beef, poultry or rabbit.
• For fish dishes, low-fat varieties are used (pike, pike perch, carp, cod) or seafood - squid, shrimp.
• Porridge (buckwheat, oatmeal, wheat), rice and vegetables (various types of cabbage, cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, zucchini) are shown as a side dish.
• Dairy products - yogurt, low-fat cottage cheese, yogurt, kefir.
• As appetizers - salads/vinaigrettes seasoned with vegetable oil.
• Free liquid in the amount of 1.5-2.0 liters/day should enter the body mainly in the form of non-carbonated mineral water, green/black tea without sugar, fruit and berry juices (tomato, apple, plum, pomegranate), rosehip decoction, compotes .

Table of permitted products

Rules to follow

There are a number of rules that must be followed on a hypocaloric diet in order for it to be as successful as possible. The main ones are listed below.

1. Complete rejection of fast carbohydrates, junk and fatty foods.
2. Reducing calories consumed per day by about one and a half to two times.
3. Exclusion of certain foods during the diet.
4. Consume plenty of lean protein to avoid lean muscle mass.
5. Consultation with a doctor on a menu compiled according to the rules of a hypocaloric diet.
6. Taking a vitamin complex to maintain balance in the body.
7. Drink plenty of clean and mineral water, reduce salt intake.

Fully or partially limited products

• A low-fat diet involves the complete exclusion from the diet of fresh wheat bread and flour products, fatty meats and meat products (sausages, canned food), fatty varieties of sea/river fish, pork/beef and confectionery fat.
• Strong fatty broths with meat and fish, fried, smoked and salted foods, fatty cottage cheese, cream, baked milk, sweet yogurt, fried eggs, cheese curds, and fatty cheeses are excluded.
• It is not recommended to include pasta and semolina, mayonnaise, spicy/fatty snacks, and spices in your diet.
• It is prohibited to consume sugar, confectionery, chocolate, sweets, jam, ice cream, honey, preserves and any alcoholic beverages.
• As for vegetables, you should limit the consumption of potatoes, green peas, pickled and salted vegetables.
• Fruits: grapes, bananas, figs, dates, raisins.
• Mustard, horseradish, pepper, seasonings and fatty hot sauces are excluded. Limit the consumption of butter.
• As for drinks, it is not recommended to include cocoa, sweet fruit juices, or tea with milk in your diet.

Table of prohibited products

How many kg can you lose per month by eliminating animal fat from your diet?

Not by much. In those times when my health allowed me to withstand Lent, I never lost more than 3 kg (the maximum, and it’s not a fact that it was precisely because of the lack of animal fats, and not proteins or something else).

There is such a thing - animal fat called “human fat.” It is he who is deposited with us where we last want to see him. Our body produces it from carbohydrates, mainly sugars. Moreover, it does not matter to him whether he processes lactose from milk (animal origin) or sucrose with fructose (vegetable origin) - everything is the same.

There is no direct relationship between the amount of fat consumed and your own. Some substances are digested faster, others slower, but when the intake constantly exceeds the expenditure, the body will store fat.

Traditional African-American soul food is basically very fatty, as slaves got the leftovers, mostly minced meat. The current American fast food originates from this food.

But while the blacks worked without straightening their backs on plantations or in other industries that required constant expenditure of physical strength, there were no fat boars among them.

Changing lifestyles while maintaining dietary traditions are largely to blame for widespread excess weight among African Americans and the lower classes of other ethnic groups.

Source: https://www.bolshoyvopros.ru/questions/2406541-na-skolko-kg-mozhno-pohudet-v-mesjac-iskljuchiv-iz-pitanija-zhivotnyj-zhir.html

Menu (Power Mode)

The low-fat diet menu is based on a list of allowed/prohibited foods. Below is a sample menu for the week.

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Reviews and results

Reviews of the low-fat diet among those who have practiced it vary significantly. Reviews from most of them boil down to the fact that a low-fat diet is not a good option for a weight loss diet and it is better to use other, more rational types of diets.

• “... I have been struggling with excess weight my entire adult life. I tried many of them, but unfortunately, as with most diets, after 1-3 months the weight returned to the initial figures. For a change, I decided to try a low-fat diet, but after a week I stopped it on the advice of a nurse friend, who said that it could lead to hormonal imbalance. And the result after a week on the diet was not impressive, the weight loss was only 750 grams.”

Useful video

Watch Dean Ornish's diet in this video:

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