Most ‘natural’ weight loss products available in South Africa are herbal or nutritional supplements that are formulated to assist with weight loss. The benefits are often not substantiated with clinical trials but these all natural weight loss products are among the more popular over-the-counter (OTC) products available in pharmacies and health shops. Herbal or natural weight loss products should be used cautiously and despite claims of being ’100% safe’ or without side effects, they could cause serious medical complications.
A popular weight loss detox program doing its rounds in South Africa is the lemon detox diet. Touted as the diet of choice for the Hollywood elite, the lemon detox is another starvation diet claiming its weight loss and body cleansing benefits. While fad diets come and go, few are as dangerous as the lemon detox diet and if you are suffering with any chronic disease like diabetes, the lemon detox diet is a sure recipe to land yourself in a hospital.
Glycaemic index (US ~ glycemic) is the measure of a food’s ability to affect the blood sugar levels. This immediate effect is usually based on the type of carbohydrates within a food. Since all foods contain a mixture of carbohydrates, protein and fat to varying degrees, the glycaemic index is relevant to all foods, not only carbohydrates. Awareness about the glycaemic index (GI) of foods is important for us all, but particularly for those suffering with diabetes and obesity.
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Acupuncture is a system of healing closely linked to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) where needles are inserted into specific points in the body to trigger a physiological response. The theory behind weight loss with acupuncture is that a course of treatment sessions will help suppress the appetite and increase the metabolism thereby stimulating the body to burn more calories while eating less.
Losing weight is no easy task. It takes months, if not years, of sensible eating and daily physical activity. Some weight loss products may help with moderately increasing your metabolism, giving you more energy to workout for longer or assist your body in passing out water. Overall the effectiveness of these products are limited and should only be used as an adjunct to a medical weight loss program.
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The Tony Ferguson Weight Loss Program is a weight management program developed by an Australian pharmacist. It uses a combination of meal replacements, nutritional supplements and a healthy eating plan to assist with weight loss. Despite reports of the the Tony Ferguson Weight Loss Program being the next weight loss miracle, it is essentially a low calorie, low GI (glycaemic index), high protein diet with the usual mix of vitamins and supplements.
