Going on a diet is unlikely to lead to long-term weight loss, according to a new study.

Researchers in California found people typically lose between five and 10% of their starting weight during the first six months of a diet. But the study found between a third and two-thirds of people who went on diets regained more weight than they had lost, within four or five years.

The study was carried out by researchers at UCLA, California’s biggest university. The report found that the majority of people regained all the weight, plus more. Sustained weight loss was found in only a small minority of participants, while complete loss regain was found in the majority. Diets do not lead to sustained weight loss or health benefits for the majority of people.

Researchers analysed 31 long-term studies that followed participants for two to five years. They concluded that most of them would have been better off not going on the diet at all. Their weight would have been pretty much the same, and their bodies would not suffer the wear and tear of losing weight and gaining it all back.

It’s official: research published in April 2007 has confirmed what you probably already knew: crash diets just don’t work.

Losing weight takes time and patience. Although it’s been said over and over again it’s so important for weight management that it can never be repeated enough: crash diets, however tempting they may sound are not the answer.

Although you may lose weight initially the chances are you’ll end up putting it all back on again. Quick-fix and faddy diets don’t teach you how to change your eating habits on a long-term basis, which is what you really need to do if you’re going to keep the weight off. So forget about dieting, fad or otherwise, and think about a whole new way of eating. Successful dieters are not people who are on a diet at all but those who learn how to change both their eating habits and attitude towards food for the rest of their life.

To recap: the statistics on diet successes aren’t good and only a very tiny percentage of dieters achieve permanent weight loss. The key to losing weight and keeping it off is modifying the way you eat permanently. So to help you become one of those that do achieve permanent weight loss, here are my ten golden rules for healthy weight loss that you can trust to help you stay slim for life.

• Rule 1: Never skip Breakfast

The old saying that ‘breakfast is the most important meal of the day’ is certainly on the money when it comes to dieting. Nothing gets our metabolism (fat burning) going faster than breakfast after a good night’s sleep.

This is because sleeping causes our metabolism to slow right down and breakfast kick-starts it again for us. But always remember that just as important as having breakfast itself, it’s also important to choose healthy breakfast options such as wholegrain cereals like porridge, organic live natural dairy products like yogurt, organic eggs and fruit.

• Rule 2: Get plenty of sleep

New links to the importance of sleep to weight loss are being uncovered all the time. One case in point was a series of studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association which showed that sleep loss can make weight loss far more difficult than it needs to be. So to make sure your weight loss doesn’t encounter any hidden barriers to success, get plenty of sleep.

• Rule 3: Eat regularly

Eating little and often will help curb hunger pangs and keep your blood sugar levels and fat burning metabolism steady, so make sure you have a selection of healthy snacks on hand. Aim to eat three small to medium sized meals a day, plus two or three healthy snacks and don’t go longer than three hours without eating.

• Rule 4: Don’t try to lose weight quickly

Gaining significant weight usually takes years and so losing a significant amount of weight takes time. Our bodies don’t like sudden and significant change; in fact they are built to resist it.

This resistance has a scientific name called homeostasis. If you try to lose weight too quickly, what happens? Your body automatically slows down its metabolism, that is, the rate at which you burn energy to survive and function. That’s homeostasis at work.

In addition to keeping your body from fighting against you on the weight loss front, losing weight too quickly doesn’t work because early rapid weight loss usually results from losing body fluid and muscle tissue which is not healthy nor helpful in your battle to lose weight. Rapid and significant weight loss from dieting alone is usually indicative of a very calorie restrictive diet which is also counterproductive because for most of us it is unsustainable and when the weight is gained again it goes on as fat.

So you actually get fatter after a diet and then the next diet has to be even more restrictive and so it goes on. You should be aiming for a weight loss of no more than 1 to 2 pounds a week and then it will be coming off as fat.

• Rule 5: Make fruits and vegetables your best friends

They are full of important metabolism (fat burning) and health boosting vitamins and minerals, and are also wonderfully low in calories. Make the most of them.

• Rule 6: Keep moving

Exercise keeps your metabolism up which is why weight training to build or maintain your muscle mass and aerobic activity like walking, jogging, cycling and swimming are so important when you want to lose weight.

Diet alone is not the best route to weight loss and to staying in an ideal weight range. To lose weight safely and keep it off permanently, always combine healthy eating and exercise. Around 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise a day is a minimum requirement so if you don’t want to join a gym, find ways to include more activity into your life, for example walking more instead of driving or taking the stairs instead of the lift.

• Rule 7: Don’t deny yourself the foods you enjoy

Most diets fail because they require us to eat plenty of foods we don’t actually like.

If we don’t like what we’re eating we’re not going to stick with our diet for more than a week or two. The key to successful weight loss is to reduce the amount we eat and introduce healthier options of the foods we like gradually into our diet over time.

Also don’t deny yourself the foods you enjoy. If you cut out all the foods you enjoy your diet is bound to fail. Moderation is the name of the game when it comes to healthy eating and long term weight loss. Think of eating well 80% of the time, the odd blip is fine.

• Rule 8: Watch what you drink as well as eat

As well as helping to keep us healthy, drinking sufficient amounts of water keeps us feeling full and stops us from feeling hungry, and when we drink plenty of water we usually drink less soft drinks, coffee and alcohol, all of which can add significant amounts of calories, not to mention additives and preservatives, to our daily intake.

• Rule 9: Avoid extremes of any kind

Balance is not only the key to a happy, healthy life; it is also the key to a healthy diet and weight loss. Be wary of any diets that are very restricted either in the types of food that you can eat or the amount.

Diets that are extreme in one way or another are likely to be very unhealthy at best and very dangerous to your health at worst. If you’re ever considering such a diet, which will probably promise very rapid and significant results, remember that your body is designed to maintain the status quo and the only way to successfully lose weight and keep it off is to make sure you get enough nutrients from a wide variety of foods.

• Rule 10: Streamline your cooking

Eating well isn’t just about the food you choose — how you cook it matters too. Here are some essential bits of kit that will help you make your cooking tastier and healthier.

• A set of good stainless steel pans means you are not using the unhealthy non-stick ones.
• An oil mister delivers the fine mist of oil — great for lightly coating your pans. It will give your food a crispy texture without leaving it swimming in oil.
• A steamer: Up to 70 per cent of vitamins B and C can be destroyed by boiling or overcooking vegetables in large amounts of water. Steaming helps preserve these vitamins and also the colour and flavour of the vegetables.

Bear in mind that if you have a lot of weight to lose, you’ve got a better chance of success if you get help.

Even if your weight isn’t directly affecting your health now, it is a great idea to get help in your battle against the bulge from either good books or professionals like nutritionists, who will give you a plan to follow and monitor how you are doing to keep you on track and help motivate you. (If you live near London or Tunbridge Wells you are very welcome to come in to the clinic to see one of my nutritionists for professional help.)

There may be an emotional component to your eating habits and these may need to be resolved if they are getting in the way of your weight loss. In addition to getting support, stress management is advised because stress is a hidden trigger for weight gain, especially around the waist. (See Is Stress making you ill and overweight).

Finally, don’t give up or panic when you have a bad day (because the chances are you will). Just start again the next day. One bad day will not ruin your healthy eating plan. Good luck with your weight loss and remember that if you keep in mind my ten golden rules of weight loss for life you are sure to be a success story in the making.

Stress is common to us all and a little of it is a positive thing because it spices up our lives. Too much stress, however, can be dangerous.

Research has shown that if it gets out of hand it can increase your chances of getting ill and overweight. Some of the symptoms of stress are obvious, for example headaches and mood swings, but others are not so easy to spot. Here are some of the most common health problems that can flare up as a result of stress overload:

Fat around the middle

If you’re a woman and you tend to carry your excess weight around the middle, it may be linked to stress. When you’re stressed your body releases hormones, including cortisol, to boost blood sugar and give you a shot of energy you need to deal with the stress. But if the cause of stress is not removed or managed, cortisol levels remain high and eventually your body adapts to this constant state of emergency by increasing your appetite for high energy foods and keeping a convenient fat store around your waist, near your vital organs where it can be most easily converted back into energy.

To help yourself, make exercise a priority because it will not just boost your metabolism and help you burn fat, it will also reduce the negative effects of the fat storing hormones cortisol and insulin.

Cutting down on sugar and refined carbohydrates is also recommended as these increase the likelihood of blood sugar problems that can lead to weight gain so eat plenty of whole grains, including vegetables, essential fats, good quality protein and whole grains instead.

To keep your blood sugar levels steady you should also aim to eat five or six small meals a day. Last but by no means least get plenty of quality sleep because there is a strong link between tiredness and high cortisol levels. (For a more detailed three month ‘lose your belly’ plan see my book ‘Fat around the Middle’).

Problem skin

According to research from the American Academy of Dermatology, stress triggers the production of androgens (male hormones), which increase the production of follicle clogging sebum and provide nourishment for bacteria responsible for acne. In addition, stress slows down wound healing and may make symptoms of skin conditions like acne, eczema, psoriasis and dermatitis worse.

To help yourself, get plenty of quality sleep, as lack of sleep is linked to acne breakouts. You should also eat regularly and cut down on caffeine as fasting and too many cups of coffee can slow down the natural exfoliation process.

Drinking more water is absolutely crucial as the skin is an organ of elimination and you can eliminate toxins through the kidneys rather than through the skin with the more water you drink. Nettle tea may also be able to help clear the lymphatic system. Taking the herb milk thistle is helpful for detoxification as it improves liver function.

Digestive troubles

Stress can be the cause of digestive upsets and it can make symptoms of irritable bowel worse. This is because during the body’s stress response powerful chemicals are released which make you want to empty your bowels quickly so you are lighter for action.

To help yourself, increase the amount of natural whole foods in your diet by eating more whole grains, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds and legumes. Live organic bio yogurt, containing Lactobacillus acidophilus or acidophilus supplements, may help line your bowel with healthy stress resistant bacteria.

Acupuncture is often used to ease stress as it is thought to stimulate the release of natural painkillers that can help reduce the effects of stress and hypnotherapy may also be able to encourage regular bowel movements by boosting feelings of general well being.

A number of herbal remedies may also help including: garlic for diarrhoea and indigestion, ginger for flatulence and peppermint or chamomile tea for intestinal cramps. Goldenseal may also help normalise bowel function and Siberian ginseng is an adaptogen (balancing herb) that can help the body adapt to stress.

Constantly getting colds

If you seem to get every cold or bug that is going around your immunity might be impaired by stress. Research has shown that high levels of stress double your chances of getting ill when exposed to a cold virus; more research needs to be done but it is thought that stress hormones interfere with immune function in some way.

To help yourself, eat a healthy, whole food, if possible, organic diet that gives you plenty of immune boosting nutrients found in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, oily fish and whole grains. You may also want to supplement with vitamin C (as ascorbate, not ascorbic acid) with bio flavonoids and some herbs (e.g. echinacea) that can boost your immunity and help you cope better with stress.

Twitchy legs

If you get pins and needles or cramps in your legs or an irresistible urge to move them you may be suffering from restless leg syndrome that is estimated to affect around one in twenty people regularly and tends to occur when you are tired or stressed. The exact cause is unknown but it may be due to a form of nerve irritation that is linked with a lack of iron, magnesium and folic acid in your diet.

To help yourself, increase your intake of foods rich in magnesium, (leafy green vegetables and whole grains) iron (parsley and pulses) and folic acid (vegetables and whole grains). Smoking and drinking alcohol seem to make restless legs worse so avoiding them will help. During the day it is also worthwhile doing exercises to stretch your leg muscles and a warm bath before bed with a few drops of rosemary essential oil will ease stress and prevent the likelihood of attacks during the night. Magnesium is a muscle relaxant and can be helpful in supplement form as magnesium malate.

Keep forgetting things

When you are feeling stressed or anxious the first thing to go is often your ability to concentrate and your memory. High levels of the stress hormone cortisol can limit the amount of glucose sent to the memory centre in your brain (hippocampus). Even short periods of intense stress can have a negative impact on brain function but the good news is that all the effects are reversible when cortisol levels are reduced.

To help yourself, keep your brain as active as possible because the more you stretch your brain the better it works. Keep your brain busy by reading demanding books or doing puzzles that require you to concentrate. You should also increase your intake of foods rich in thiamine (vitamin B1) such as brewer’s yeast, brown rice, whole grain bread and cereals. As well as thiamine other B vitamins and the minerals potassium, magnesium, calcium, iron and zinc are important for good memory function.

Eating more fish or supplementing with fish oils will certainly help as they contain phosphatidycholine that helps boost memory function. Finally, you may want to consider taking the herb ginkgo biloba which can improve blood flow to the brain and improve memory and concentration.

Loss of libido

In general stress dampens libido. This may be because higher levels of cortisol interfere with the healthy function of reproductive hormones and also because (most sex therapists agree that sex begins in the head) when you are feeling anxious and unsettled sex is probably the last thing on your mind.

To help yourself, deal with common place stresses by checking out my top ten stress busting tips. It’s also important to eat healthily. Vitamins A and B, essential fats and the minerals zinc and selenium are all crucial for libido and exercise helps too, by boosting your mood and your body image.

There are also numerous herbal treatments that are thought to help increase sexual desire and these include agnus castus, damiana, dong quai, siberian ginseng, for women, and saw palmetto and St John’s Wort for men. Finally, aromatherapists believe that certain scents can have an aphrodisiac effect. Jasmine, rose, sandalwood and vanilla can be uplifting and sensual if used in a bath or as a massage oil.

Note: If you want to take herbs make sure you are not taking any medication that can cause the herbs to be contraindicated.