Each new year brings new hope and many weight loss goals that often go unrealized.

"The foundation of any weight loss program, whether it involves different types of programs, medications, procedures ­­— it does get down to lifestyle and diet and physical activity. The way people go about this sometimes isn't productive. Just starving and trying to exercise for a couple of hours a day usually doesn't work well," says Dr. Donald Hensrud, an internal medicine physician specializing in nutrition and weight management, and editor of the "Mayo Clinic Diet."

"The Mayo Clinic diet is more than a diet. It's a lifestyle change program,” Dr. Hensrud says.  “Making lifestyle changes that work over a period of time is an approach that works.” That's what he recommends in the newly released third edition of the "Mayo Clinic Diet." It's a long-term weight management program created by a team of experts at Mayo Clinic based on research and clinical experience.

Health impact of weight loss

Losing 5% to 10% of your total body weight may have a significant impact on your health. For instance, a person who weighs 200 pounds and brings the weight down to 190 pounds has a 5% weight loss. This can lower blood pressure, blood sugar levels and levels of fats in the blood called triglycerides, resulting in a reduced risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and other medical conditions.

Watch: Dr. Donald Hensrud talks about the "Mayo Clinic Diet."

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video is available in the downloads at the end of the post. Please courtesy: Mayo Clinic News Network. Name super/CG: Donald Hensrud, M.D./Internal Medicine/Mayo Clinic.

Habits

Dr. Hensrud says the Mayo Clinic diet is designed to help people adopt healthy new habits and break unhealthy old ones.  It's based on the concept that eating low-calorie dense foods that are healthy can help improve health and better manage weight.

With all habits, it takes time to establish them, says Dr. Hensrud. Planning is key to establishing and maintaining strategies for new healthy habits.

Healthy weight pyramid

"At the base of the Mayo Clinic healthy weight pyramid are fruits and vegetables. We recommend generous amounts of fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables that taste great. They're low in calorie density, so we can eat a lot of food but not get a lot of calories."

Dr. Hensrud says dieting or weight management should be practical and enjoyable.

"In the other food groups on the Mayo Clinic healthy weight pyramid, we recommend healthier choices — whole grains, lean sources of protein and dairy, and heart-healthy fats, such as nuts and olive oil. And there's even, at the tip of the pyramid, a role for sweets," he says. "Nobody has a perfect diet. Everybody needs a treat now and then. By following this dietary program, people can practically and enjoyably manage their weight and improve their health."

"At the center of the pyramid is daily physical activity, again, to better help manage our weight and to improve our overall health," says Dr. Hensrud.

Support new goals

Ranked as a top diet for 2023 by U.S. News and World Report, there isn't one way of eating with the Mayo Clinic diet; there are keto, gluten-free, and Mediterranean diets. And there is an online Mayo Clinic diet program to help support the many challenges of weight loss.

Attempting a weight loss program can feel overwhelming, so Dr. Hensrud recommends starting with baby steps.

"People underestimate how their quality of life can improve by moving more — playing with your grandchildren, doing different activities. And you don't have to starve yourself or go on a diet. That's not sustainable. This can be and should be an enjoyable, realistic and practical journey," says Dr. Hensrud.

Related posts:

• Mayo Clinic Minute: Strategies for health success in the new year.
• I’ve been diagnosed with prediabetes. What does that mean?

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It’s that time of year again: wedding season. This can be a time of blissful happiness or a time that stretches the limits of self-restraint while trying to keep your health in check.

“It’s important to remember to limit yourself while attending a wedding,” says Dr. Gabriel Berendes, a Mayo Clinic Health System Family Medicine physician. “Most often, people become so caught up in the festivities, they forget to remember to take care of themselves.”

Most people have more than one wedding to attend during the year which can  add on pounds, if not watched closely.

“Overeating can lead to numerous health issues, such as emotional and physical damage to the body and mind,” adds Dr. Berendes. “This can be due to loss of confidence and increased weight, as well as causing damage to the digestive system.”

Dr. Berendes recommends these tips for watching your wedding season weight:

• Participate in morning activity.
  Go for a run or walk, or a quick workout, or go golfing. These ideas, among others, can help clear the mind, as well as help you feel calm, centered and more in control of the choices you’ll make later in the day.
• Don’t skip meals.
  Trying to save up calories will leave you feeling tired, angry and more likely to overconsume during cocktail hour.
• Pace yourself.
  Choose the amount you want to drink. One drink per course (cocktail hour, dinner and reception) is a good rule of thumb. If that’s not sensible to you, limit yourself to one drink per hour, alternating water with alcohol. This advice is for of-age wedding guests who plan to stay put. Never to drink and drive.
• Choose wisely.
  There’s no law saying you can’t have one of everything, although it’s good to limit yourself to a few options. Determine what you want to make room for. Try sticking to one plate, filling half with vegetables and the rest with protein and starchy vegetables, such as beans and potatoes.”
• Dance.
  Hitting the dance floor can help you lose 200 to 300 calories per half hour. This gives you an extra excuse to show off your dance moves — good or bad — and burn off the calories you’ve consumed during the day.

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ROCHESTER, Minn. – A new survey by Mayo Clinic revealed that more than two-thirds of African-Americans are concerned about their heart health (71 percent), which is significantly more than Caucasian (41 percent) or Hispanic (37 percent) respondents. Respondents from the South (51 percent) were also significantly more likely to express concern than those in the Northeast (39 percent) or West (35 percent).

These findings were uncovered as part of the Mayo Clinic National Health Checkup, which first launched in January 2016 and provides a quick pulse on consumer health opinions and behaviors at multiple times throughout the year.

“The Mayo Clinic National Health Checkup helps us to better understand the health knowledge and practices of all Americans, beyond the patients that walk through our doors,” says John Wald, M.D., medical director for Public Affairs at Mayo Clinic. “With each survey, we’re able to pinpoint what we’re doing well as a nation and what needs improvement, so that we can create a dialogue about those important topics.”

MEDIA CONTACT: Kelly Reller, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, newsbureau@mayo.edu

Search engines help consumers learn more, manage health conditions

While many people joke around about “Dr. Google,” survey respondents confirmed that Americans find general search engines to be the most helpful tool in learning more about health conditions (71 percent) and proactively managing their health (62 percent).

When it comes to knowledge of heart health, doctors (81 percent) were cited as having the biggest influence on consumer knowledge, followed by family members (63 percent). The most likely reasons to think about heart health include:

• A family member or friend being diagnosed with heart disease (84 percent)
• Visiting a primary care physician (80 percent)
• Conversations with a significant other or children (69 percent)

1 in 4 has family history of heart disease before age 55

Nearly a quarter of respondents (24 percent) cited a family history of heart disease (i.e., heart attack, bypass surgery or stents before 55). This history impacted knowledge and behaviors for many respondents:

• Eighty-five percent answered that they were more aware of the symptoms of a heart attack because of their family history.
• Top lifestyle modifications due to family history of heart disease included making dietary changes (67 percent), monitoring blood pressure and cholesterol regularly (59 percent), and increasing exercise (51 percent).
• Among baby boomers, 53 percent of those with a family history of heart disease answered that they took a daily aspirin, and the same percentage kept an aspirin with them at all times.

When asked what they do to help prevent heart disease, men (68 percent) were more likely than women (60 percent) to say that they exercise regularly, and women (68 percent) were more likely than men (58 percent) to answer that they eat heart-healthy foods.

“Knowledge is power,” says Dr. Wald. “You can manage your risk for heart disease by taking proactive steps, such as improving your diet, exercising regularly, and keeping a check on your cholesterol and blood pressure. To top it off, Mayo Clinic now offers a blood test that can predict the likelihood of having a heart attack within one year, which helps us intervene early and prevent a heart attack before it happens.”

Click to see the entire National Health Checkup infographic.

Women exercise for weight loss; men exercise for recreation

The survey also explored healthy behaviors, such as exercise, revealing that men and women have different motivators. Women (70 percent) are more likely than men (60 percent) to exercise for weight loss or management; whereas, men (59 percent) are more likely than women (45 percent) to exercise for recreation. Less than half of respondents answered that they knew what their target heart rate should be during exercise. Maintaining a target heart rate can reduce the risk of overtraining or not training enough.

Job and/or school ranks as top stressor for Americans

Unrelieved stress can damage your arteries and worsen other risk factors for heart disease. When asked to pick the one factor that contributed the most to their level of stress over the past year, respondents were most likely to answer their job and/or school (29 percent):

• Baby boomers (17 percent) were more likely than millennials (10 percent) to cite politics as a top stressor.
• Hispanic respondents (41 percent) were more likely to answer job and/or school than Caucasians (27 percent) or African-Americans (18 percent).
• African-American respondents (20 percent) were more likely to list health issues as their primary cause of stress than Caucasians (10 percent) or Hispanics (4 percent).

“Our third National Health Checkup revealed that African-Americans not only are more concerned about their heart health, but they also experience significantly more stress as a result of their health issues,” says Dr. Wald. “It is clear that we need to help empower all Americans, and in particular those who are most concerned about their heart health, to help manage their risk. Discuss these concerns with your doctor, and know your family history.”

###

About the Mayo Clinic National Health Checkup
The Mayo Clinic National Health Checkup was conducted through an ORC International Telephone CARAVAN survey of 1,005 adults living in the continental U.S. and was conducted Dec. 15-18, 2016. To learn more, visit healthcheckup.mayoclinic.org.

About Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to clinical practice, education and research, providing expert, whole-person care to everyone who needs healing. For more information, visit http://www.mayoclinic.org/about-mayo-clinic or https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/.

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Myth or Matter-of-Fact: Depression screening in the U.S. is routinely done by primary care providers.

Listen to the program at 9:05 a.m. CST on Saturday, March 12, and follow #MayoClinicRadio.

Mayo Clinic Radio is available on iHeartRadio.

Access archived shows.

Mayo Clinic Radio is a weekly one-hour radio program highlighting health and medical information from Mayo Clinic.

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Myth or Matter-of-Fact: Depression screening in the U.S. is routinely done by primary care providers.

Listen to the program at 9:05 a.m. CST on Saturday, March 12.

Miss the show?  Here's the Mayo Clinic Radio podcast.

Follow #MayoClinicRadio and tweet your questions.

Mayo Clinic Radio is available on iHeartRadio.

Mayo Clinic Radio is a weekly one-hour radio program highlighting health and medical information from Mayo Clinic.

Access archived shows.

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Holidays are usually enjoyable. However, unhealthy habits can be attached to the parties and gatherings. Here are 10 tips from Allie Wergin, registered dietitian nutritionist at Mayo Clinic Health System, to help you have a healthier holiday:

1. Don’t skip meals. Skipping a meal with the goal of saving calories prior to a holiday event can often backfire and lead to overeating due to ravenous feelings of hunger. Having a filling snack, such as fruit, string cheese, yogurt or a small handful of nuts, can help to curb your appetite and prevent overeating.
2. Contribute a healthy dish. Ensure at least one nutritious choice is available at potlucks by contributing a healthy dish.
3. Choose your splurges. Scan the buffet or dinner table and choose a couple holiday favorites to splurge on instead of foods that you can have any other day of the year.
4. Think Color. Make a plate look festive by including fruits and veggies. Aim to cover half the plate.
5. Choose drinks wisely. Stick to calorie-free drinks, such as water, tea or seltzer, instead of high-calorie festive drinks. Alcoholic beverages contribute empty calories and can cause you to make poor judgments with food. If you do choose to drink alcohol, do so in moderation, and alternate each alcoholic drink with a glass of water.
6. Visit the people, not the food. Move socializing away from the buffet or appetizer table to prevent mindless eating.
7. Say no to food pushers (politely).
8. Savor seasonal treats. Having treats once a year will not make or break your weight. Make sure you take time to really taste and enjoy that special treat when you have it.
9. Eat until you are satisfied, not stuffed. No one likes that icky, stuffed feeling after a meal. Eat slowly, and check your fullness levels while you’re eating. Remember — there are always leftovers!
10. Don’t feel guilty. If you did overindulge, don’t beat yourself up. Just make sure your next meal is healthy, and be sure to incorporate exercise into your routine.

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Myth or Matter-of-Fact: Inflammatory bowel disease and irritable bowel syndrome are both conditions from which full recovery is possible.

Miss the show?  Here's the podcast:  MayoClinicRadio 07-04-15 PODCAST

Follow #MayoClinicRadio and tweet your questions.

Mayo Clinic Radio is available on iHeartRadio.

Mayo Clinic Radio is a weekly one-hour radio program highlighting health and medical information from Mayo Clinic.

To find and listen to archived shows, click here.

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THIS WEEK'S TOP STORIES

Memory loss: When to seek help
Losing your memory may be a sign of normal aging, a treatable condition or the onset of dementia. Know when to see your doctor.

EXPERT ANSWERS
Hangover prevention: Do lighter colored drinks help?
Drinking lighter colored drinks is not a good method of hangover prevention — but it may help a little.

Loss of taste and smell: Natural with aging?
Aging can play a role in the loss of taste and smell, but not always. Learn about other factors.

Click here to get a free e-subscription to the Housecall newsletter.

PLUS ADDITIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
Restless legs syndrome
Video: Tomosynthesis: New breast cancer screening
Prediabetes
Watery eyes

HEALTHY RECIPES
Creole-style black-eyed peas
Cod with lemon and capers
Brown rice pilaf with asparagus and mushrooms
Chipotle spiced shrimp

HEALTH TIP OF THE WEEK
Laugh more, stress less
Humor can help reduce stress by providing a positive way of looking at problems. Humor can also help you perceive what's ridiculous or absurd in a situation. To promote humor in your life, follow these steps: 1. Be open to humor. Give yourself permission to laugh, even during tough times. 2. Surround yourself with humor. Try hanging cartoons in your workstation. 3. Seek out humor. Look for humor in everyday situations. Or watch a favorite comedy DVD. 4. Share your humor. Tell a funny true story to a coworker or friend.

NOW BLOGGING
Nutrition-wise: Weight management mantra: Maintain, don't gain
Try thinking about about weight in a new way: Focus on a healthy lifestyle that prevents weight gain rather than on dieting for weight loss.

The post Monday’s Housecall appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Trick-or-treating and Halloween fun might seem like harmless childhood activities, but according to registered dietitian Diane Dressel with Mayo Clinic Health System, the holiday can have frightening consequences to those struggling with their weight. “Halloween can be the first challenge to people watching their weight as they approach the holiday feasting seasons of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s. You can move Halloween festivities beyond just candy.” Dressel is a program coordinator for Mayo Clinic Health System’s Weight Management Services, and offers the following advice:

• Halloween candy packs a punch. Hard candies contain 110 calories per ounce; chocolate bars are 150 calories per ounce. Even the innocent looking fun-sized candy bars average 100 calories each, meaning 10 of them could easily exceed 1,000 calories. A child’s caloric intake for an entire day is typically 1,800.
• Minimize trick-or-treat temptations. Hold off on buying Halloween candy too early to minimize snacking. Don’t purchase your favorite candy. Consider sugar-free gum, small bags of pretzels or fat-free candies. Forego sugary treats altogether by giving out stickers, temporary tattoos, bouncy balls, yo-yos, colorful pencils or pencil toppers.
• Make your Halloween party a scream with healthy snacks. Veggie or fruit platters with fat-free dips, fat-free popcorn and sugar-free gelatin can be real crowd-pleasers.

CHECK OUT THESE HALLOWEEN RECIPES:

Witches Brew with Funny Face Ice Cubes

Diet or sugar-free blueberry juice (can combine with another sugar-free fruit juice)

Blueberries

Mandarin oranges or strips of strawberries

1.      Pour juice into punch bowl.

2.      Fill ice tray or muffin tin half full with water and freeze.

3.      After the water is frozen, add blueberries (for eyes) and orange or strawberry strip (for the mouth).

4.      Cover with water and freeze again.

5.      Add ice cubes to punch before serving.

Yogurt Fruit Dip

3 cartons of blueberry light yogurt

8 ounces fat-free cream cheese

2 – 3 tablespoons lemon juice

Dash of lemon zest

Blend until smooth.

100 calories per cup

Pumpkin Dip

1 can pumpkin

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 package (small) sugar-free vanilla instant pudding

1 cup skim milk

½ teaspoon nutmeg

Mix until smooth, spread in a shallow dish. Top with whipped topping.

160 calories per cup

Quick Caramel Dip

1 package sugar-free instant butterscotch pudding

1 package dry-mix whipped topping

1 ½ cups skim milk

Mix well.

10 calories per tablespoon

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