limiting food groups e.g. carbs/fat

[Gary Turner]

Ignore the media, listen to me lol

Cutting out any food group isn't a good idea. All natural fats are good for us. Proteins are good for us. Carbohydrates are good for us, even sugar if not eaten to excess. Oh, that word. Excess. Excess of anything is bad for us...

Reducing fat, or reducing carbohydrates, both have efficacy (they work) in respect to weight loss. Carbohydrates only provide us with energy (generalisation). So cutting out on carbohydrates that are low in nutritional value is a great step forward for anyone with weight loss goals.

We cannot live without fat or protein. We can live without carbohydrates. We can't thrive though - to thrive we need a little of each, and the right amount will depend on the individual.

I could write a book on this topic alone. My advice here is to ignore the media sensationalism and find the right approach for yourself...

[Douglas Twenefour]

Hi, just adding to what Gary and Linda have said. You have to find a way of eating less - you may want to estimate how much you are eating now and find a way to reduce this. It helps if you eat more fruit and vegetables and this can help you to reduce the portions of other foods - starchy foods, fats, proteins etc. The emphasis is reducing the portions rather than cutting out any food group. Within each food group e.g. the starchy foods always go for the ones that are less processed. So in a nut shell opt for more fruit and vegetables, whole grains, pulses and lower fat dairy foods.
If you find low fat/ low sugar messaging confusing, try reading labels and look out for the traffic light system – choosing more greens and ambers and less of the reds. You may also want to read the ingredient list to see how much of the sugar/ fat is added.

All the best