The weight-loss industry in the United States is worth its share in billions of dollars. An impressive number, but unsurprising statistic, being that one in three Americans suffers from obesity. This is only the tip of the scale because the number does not account for all the ranges in between, from the overweight to the fad dieters who struggle with the same fifteen pounds. According to PRWeb.com, there are approximately 75 million dieters in the United States at any given time.

That’s a lot of people struggling with the same question. When did losing weight become so complicated? According to a recent New York Times article, two new studies have shown that exercise alone will not necessarily result in weight loss. Exercise cannot only be insignificantly effective in the fight against fat—it can actually lead to weight gain. Muscle weights more than fat.

Perhaps it’s a question of overestimating not only our workouts, but also ourselves. That euphoric feeling of satisfaction so brutally earned can lead us into thinking that, certainly, that second piece of cheesecake cannot be all that bad. We earned it.

What the studies showed is a fact easily forgotten amongst the Dukan diets and Insanity workouts that claim to resolve, but rarely keep in mind, the simplicity of weight loss: Weight loss is simple math. You only need to burn more calories than you consume: calories in, calories out. This may seem to oversimplify a daunting struggle, but it can be helpful to keep in mind and maintain realistic goals. You can work yourself to death, but if you are still eating more than you consume, then all that effort is moot. Exercise should not be used to compensate for past or future indulgences.

It turns out that contrary to popular belief, exercise can actually lower your metabolism. Our bodies can become accustomed to exercise. For example, you may be burning a large number of calories, but if your metabolism slows down, you may actually be burning less than you thought. You will lose fewer calories, rather than if your metabolism stayed the same.

What all of these findings best seem to illustrate is that moderation is key. Eating in moderation and exercising in moderation should eventually lead to weight loss. It may not be as fast as only drinking spicy lemonade for seven days, but it is far more effective and easier to stick to.

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Over the years, there has been a growing trend among Hollywood starlets, and it’s not their sense in fashion. The image of the it-girl is younger, taller and skinnier than ever. And with the social media growing at a rapidly fast pace, young girls are bombarded with images of scarily thin starlets.

With that in mind, what message is Hollywood sending to females all over the world? And how are young girls coping with the pressure to be alarmingly skinny?

According to a recent study, 81% of ten-year-old girls are afraid of being fat, while 42% of girls in grades first through third claim they want to be thinner. Some question whether or not the media is having a negative impact on body image amongst females, and there definitely is a direct correlation.

‘In a recent poll, “79% of teenage girls who vomit and 73% of teenage girls who use diet pills are frequent readers of women’s health and fitness magazines.” Canadian researcher, Gregory Fouts has reported that over 75% of females in TV sitcoms are underweight while only 5% are of an average or healthy BMI (body mass index).

Gisele Bundchen is just one of the astonishingly thin starlets who was recently praised for her body. VOGUE magazine stated that Gisele, “strays from the rail thin body image of the quintessential supermodel,” yet, she stands 5’11’’ and is estimated to weigh a mere 115 pounds, which is 25% below her ideal body weight. In contrast, the average American woman is 5’4’’ and weighs approximately 140 pounds. This is a drastic difference from the average size of the female supermodel.

As the average woman’s weight has increased over the years, Hollywood stars are continuing to drop numbers on the scale. The diet industry has generated over 40 billion dollars last year as many average size women are resorting to diet pills and fad diets to lose those extra pounds and conform to the societial ideal of thinness. 

Many women progress from a single diet into pathological dieting and according to RadarPrograms.com, “one out of every three women and one out of every four men are on a diet at any given time.”

Starlets like Keira Knightley, Kate Bosworth, Mary-Kate Olsen, Nicole Richie, Lindsay Lohan, and Nicky Hilton are among several celebrities who have been publicly noted regarding their shrinking frames. Most recent, Angelina Jolie has faced a lot of questioning regarding her emaciated figure.

Jolie has stated in interviews that she goes on a crash diet that she refers to as her ‘movie diet’, in order to be pin-thin when the cameras start rolling. She has gone to such extremes as an intake of only 600 calories a day. When asked how she gets in tip-top shape before a fashion show, Adrianna Lima has revealed her secrets, which are a far cry from healthy. Lima claims she doesn’t eat any solid food for nine days before a show and refuses to intake any water while prepping 24 hours before the show starts.

As women all over the world read dieting advice such as this, there is one positive side to it. The Hollywood scene has become so obsessed with body image and size that magazines and fashion industries attempt to “buck this trend” of the stick-thin look, in search of new trends.

The Quebec magazine, Coupe de Pouce has recently been including more and more plus-size women in their articles while one of the world’s biggest fashion capitols, Milan, has decided to ban any “ultra-thin” model from the runway. Spain has joined in on the efforts by creating a project that includes measuring healthy weight women’s clothing sizes with laser.

If we could get advertisers and others in the Hollywood industry to start taking a stand in healthier living then there is a chance of change the statistics and to start making a positive impact on women and their body image.

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One of the biggest issues on people’s mind today is their weight. Whether it’s trying to lose it or maintain it, weight is often a lingering issue. It all starts with what we are comparing ourselves to. Looking through a magazine and you’re faced with images of men and women who have been photo shopped to perfection. People then look for the quick fix, the easiest, laziest way to lose weight: fad diets.

While there are hundreds of dieting techniques floating around on the internet and in your local bookshop, there are a few that stand out. All offer quick weight loss, however, how many of them offer long term weight loss, without severe health risks?

The Cabbage Soup Diet

This diet is well known, and often falls in and out of popular favor. It’s a seven day diet that consists of eating large amounts of cabbage soup, different fruits on different days, cranberry juice (the real stuff, not the cocktail), and a few baked potatoes and meat or fish.

The only pros noticeable is that result is fast and some enjoy eating the soup. The cons however, pile up. To name a few, the nutritional value is extremely low, the soup itself is bland, it results in large amounts of gas, and the weight loss is short term.

If you’re looking for a quick weight loss and don’t mind the limited short term effect, the cabbage soup diet will seem appealing. If you can accept continually pass gas and living on an exceptionally bland diet, then you could try this out. However, considering the social stigma and lack of nutrition, this could be enough reason to steer clear.

The Negative Calorie Diet

The concept of burning more calories than you eat to lose weight makes sense. However, the concept of eating food with such low calorie count that you burn more while eating it has no scientific support.

The diet consists of mainly greens, including asparagus, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, celery and zucchini. What they tell you is that if you only eat these items, your body will actually burn more calories than the vegetables are worth during digestion. Makes sense right?

The only, yet great flaw with this is that no scientific research supports the claim that this calorie burning process is true. In addition, this diet is implying that exercise is not needed to lose weight. Essentially, the main thing you’re going to be losing will be muscle mass instead of fat. Neither a healthy nor appealing choice.

Diet Pills

Diet pills, widespread and well known, is a weight loss technique which is not always a bad option. For those over a body mass index of 27, it can be a helpful starting point to losing weight. However, while pills can kickstart the road to long term weight loss, it should never be a long term solution. People often find the rapid weight loss of diet pills a confidence boost in attaining their goals, but with long term use, there is a risk of unwanted dependency.

Using diet pills long term will come with several health risks other than dependency. Many sideeffects have been associated to increased blood pressure, increased heart rate and heart failure; especially among users of pills containing Ehepdra.

If you do decide to use diet pills, you should always check with your physician first, as mixing them with prescription medicine can also have severe negative side effects.

The Human Chorionic Gonadotropin Hormone Diet  (HCG)

While this diet was created in 1971, it did not hit popularity until around 2009. Human chorionic Gonadotropin is a hormone found in the strangest of places, including pregnant women’s urine and certain tumors. It has been proven effective on boys with Frohlich’s syndrome, but there is little to no scientific background for helping adults to lose weight.

The diet involves eating a menu of lean protein items and a calorie restriction of 500 per day, along with injecting or oral intake of the HCG hormone. Exercise? It’s actually discouraged. Since there is no proof that the HCG hormone even works, you are most likely to contribute your weight loss to the 500 calorie a day aspect.

The average woman aged 19-30 needs 2,000 to 2,400 calories a day, women aged 31-50 need 1,800 to 2,200 and women aged 50 and over should be taking in between 1,600 to 2,200 calories. This is to meet basic energy and physical function needs. Without it, your body won’t be able to function properly.

Yet again, the side effects here are significant and in numbers. Negative effects include headaches, risk of blood clots, restlessness, and depression. Not to mention that HCG is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and research shows that doctors in the past were paid up to $100,000 to prescribe the HCG hormone without even meeting with patients.

Overall, with all the risks and uncertain effects of HCG, using this fad diet is definitely not worth it. Fad diets will always be present as people love quick fixes. However, remember that the effects are never long term, and can often lead to loss of muscle mass instead of fat, while ushering in severe health risks and a myriad of other healthrelated side effects.

If you are looking into a fad diet, always talk to your physician about the benefits and side effects first. Remember, your overall health should always come first.

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