Many of the patients we see at our Healthy Living Clinic suffering from non-communicable diseases (NCD), like high blood pressure or Type 2 diabetes are further incapacitated by being grossly obese.

Say, a person, about 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 meters) tall, weighing 130 kg or more. Many of such cases are at risk of major complications such as stroke, heart attack or worse. Even if they agree to strictly follow the whole food plant-based (WFPB) diet that METI recommends for controlling or reversing NCD, it will take them on average about one year to return to their ideal weight. 

This is based on the observation that on average, the person strictly following this diet will lose about 1 kilogram per week. In such cases, we recommend to the persons to follow the Maximum Weight Loss program devised years ago by one of the pioneers of the WFPB nutritional program, Dr John McDougall.  It offers a 10-point checklist for Maximum Weight Loss, which is based on two important considerations: being able to eat without having to count your calories, and at the same time, being able to eat enough so that you never feel hungry. So, these are the 10 strategies to follow:

1. Start each meal with a soup and/or salad and/or fruit. It is based on the fact that such food items take up space and fill your stomach, and at the same time are ‘low-calorie’ foods.  For example, salads and vegetables only provide 100 calories per pound and fruits 300 calories per pound. They are calorie-poor but nutrient dense and because they provide bulk, they are able to ‘fill you up’ and break your hunger. 
2. Follow the 50/50 plate method for your meals, filling half your plate (by visual volume) with non-starchy vegetables and 50 per cent (by visual volume) with minimally processed starches, such as the usual root crops, breadfruit or rice and legumes (which are beans, peas and lentils).  Choose fruit for dessert. This is based on the same principle of eating low-calorie foods, yet providing bulk, which takes time to digest, so that you never feel hungry. 
3. Greatly reduce or eliminate added sugars and added salts.  This includes all highly processed junk food that is high in salt, oils and sugars and contains lots of refined carbohydrates. 
4. Eliminate all animal foods (dairy, meat, eggs, fish, seafood). This is an obvious rule that must be respected if you follow the WFPB diet in any way. 
5. Eliminate all higher-fat plant foods (i.e. nuts, seeds, avocados, tofu). This is based on the fact that these foods, although they are whole foods and are part of the WFPB diet are high in calories and should be avoided if you want to lose weight more rapidly. 
6. Eliminate any added oil. Oils are the most calorie-dense foods: about 4000 calories per pound. When making vegetable stews, simply use water. 
7. Eliminate all higher calorie-dense foods including flour products (that means bread which has 2500 calories per pound), muffins, crackers, dry cereals, cookies, cakes) and dried fruit.
8. Don’t drink your calories (avoid juices & sugar-sweetened beverages). Instead, eat whole fruits. 
9. Follow these principles, eating whenever you are hungry until you are comfortably full. Develop a routine and usually, try to have three meals a day, with the morning meal the heaviest and the evening meal the lightest. Don't starve yourself and don't stuff yourself.
10. And finally, avoid being sedentary and aim for at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise daily (i.e., brisk walking). That is all it needs to have the maximum calorie-burning potential: no need to run the marathon! If you follow these guidelines, without cheating, you are bound to lose 2 kilograms a week on average. Once you have reduced your weight to the point you are now overweight, you can relax these rules, while still following the WFPB diet: you can go back to eating wholemeal bread, and higher-fat plant foods like nuts, seeds and dried fruits.  

As always, we invite you to visit the METI Healthy Living Clinic at House No. 51 at Moto'otua (across from the Kokobanana Restaurant) to become further acquainted with the METI whole food plant-based diet and Lifestyle Change programs. Or call us at 30550. Learning how to follow these programs might be your ‘game changer’.