Losing weight and eating yogurt

Due to too much travelling, too many restaurant dinners, and a variety of other personal defects, I decided a few weeks ago that I needed to lose several pounds. Fortunately, I do lose weight quickly, and have made great progress over the past 3 weeks. My weight loss diet is one that I stumbled upon years ago – and it always works. The main staple of this diet is low fat yogurt (I prefer Publix brands – excellent taste and a nice variety of flavors). I also really jack up the aerobic activity during these periods, believing that decreased calories and increased expenditures is the perfect combination for successful weight reduction.

I choose yogurt now (and in the past) because it tastes good and has plenty of vitamins. Apparently, yogurt really is a great choice. Today I performed a Google search on yogurt and diet and found these articles – Yogurt May Help Burn Fat, Promote Weight Loss and Yogurt May Help Promote Weight Loss

An isocaloric diet that incorporates yogurt promotes greater weight loss, according to the results of a 12-week trial published in the April issue of the International Journal of Obesity. The investigators speculate that the increased amount of calcium (Ca) and suppression of calcitriol make this diet more effective.

“We have previously demonstrated an antiobesity effect of dietary Ca; this is largely mediated by Ca suppression of calcitriol levels, resulting in reduced adipocyte intracellular Ca2+ and, consequently, a coordinated increase in lipid utilization and decrease in lipogenesis,” write M. B. Zemel, from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, and colleagues. “Notably, dairy Ca is markedly more effective than other Ca sources.”

In this study, 34 obese subjects were placed on a balanced deficit (–500 kcal/day) diet and randomized to control (400-500 mg Ca/day; n = 16) or yogurt (1,100 mg Ca/day; n = 18) treatments for 12 weeks. Macronutrients and fiber in the diets of both groups were held constant at the U.S. average. At baseline and after 12 weeks, the investigators measured body weight, body fat and fat distribution (using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry), blood pressure, and circulating lipids.

For patients on the yogurt diet, fat loss was dramatically increased (–4.437 ± 0.47 vs –2.757 ± 0.73 kg in the control group; P < .005), and lean tissue loss was reduced by 31%. Truncal fat loss was increased by 81% for patients on the yogurt diet compared with those on the control diet (P < .001), as reflected in a much greater reduction in waist circumference (–3.997 ± 0.48 cm vs –0.587 ± 1.04 cm; P < .001). Compared with the control group, the proportion of fat lost from the trunk was higher in the yogurt diet group (P < .005).

"Isocaloric substitution of yogurt for other foods significantly augments fat loss and reduces central adiposity during energy restriction," the authors write. "These data add to a growing body of observational and clinical observations that support a role for dietary calcium and dairy foods in controlling excess adiposity."

Very interesting! I must point out that the studies were supported by a yogurt selling company – thus, I am not ready to get overly excited. However, my personal observations (albeit anecdotal) certainly support the hypothesis.

I highly recommend the apple pie low fat yogurt – delicious!!!!!