Must you be slim to be healthy?

In considering which dietary approach to follow it will be good to consider first what you are trying to achieve. Do you wish simply to lose weight or are you looking to improve your overall health?  The two goals are not necessarily the same. Some people are naturally of bigger build. Metabolically speaking, they can be perfectly healthy while carrying more weight than others. On the other hand, some people are of naturally slimmer build and they will experience discomfort and health problems if they are carrying more weight than they are naturally fitted for.

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How to know what is ideal body weight for you? Doctors long ago designed the measure known as the Body Mass Index (BMI) which gives a general guide, but all agree that it is very general indeed. A healthy BMI is said to be between 18.5 and 25.  A BMI of 25 to 30 is considered in the overweight range while if your BMI is 30 or higher it falls within the range of obesity.  This is based on population statistics and while it is usually not good to be too far above or below these limits, being near, or a few points above the upper limit is not necessarily harmful for you, especially if you do not have other health risk factors such as smoking or diabetes. Some researchers have coined the term “metabolically healthy obesity.” While not all doctors are entirely comfortable with this term most would agree that some people in the overweight range may be perfectly healthy (1), even if frankly obese healthy people may be rare (2).

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What did the ancients think about all this? According to Maharishi Ayurveda (a new take on the ancient classical system of health from India) much depends upon your body type. Body types in Maharishi Ayurveda fall into three broad categories, known as Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Vata types are naturally slim, Pitta are of medium build, while those who are of Kapha type are of naturally bigger build.  Vata Pitta and Kapha are known as the three doshas.  Doshas can be thought of as physiological principles that together make up the human body.  Vata is the principle of movement, Pitta the principle of energy and Kapha the principle of structure. We all have all three and our body type is determined by the proportion of each.  Those of bigger build have a preponderance of the Kapha dosha. More Kapha means more structure which means more weight.  People whose body type is Kapha are said to carry their weight gracefully and feel quite comfortable and at home with being of bigger build.

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It is a little more complicated than that though, because when the Vata dosha is present in excess, it is said move around the body and alter the other two doshas. A situation commonly recognised by Vaidyas, or ayurvedic doctors, occurs when Vata interferes with Kapha. The result is that a person who is naturally of slim build becomes overweight or even obese.

This is not a healthy situation. These people do not feel comfortable with their weight. They feel constrained by it and their movements tend to feel awkward or clumsy.  They are the ones who suffer from the illnesses commonly associated with obesity.

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So perhaps one of the best guides to your ideal body weight is whether you feel physically comfortable with your weight as it is right now.  And the best way to achieve your ideal body weight is to become as healthy as you can. This is where the DigestionReady programme comes in. 

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The DigestionReady programme works by adjusting your pattern of eating during the day according to your body’s internal cues.  We focus on how and when to eat rather than what. We help you bring the timing of your food intake into line with the needs of your body.  Because your body will get nutrition just at the time it is ready to make best use of it, better health naturally follows as indicated by the Randomised Controlled trials (RCTs) and case studies to be found on this website.  With better health comes your particular ideal body weight which might be lower if you were initially overweight (see the RCT on overweight people who lost weight) or higher if you were initially underweight (see the case study on the young man with Crohn’s disease).

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To put it in ayurvedic terms, those who are of Vata constitution but overweight and whose health would benefit from losing weight will do so. Those who are of Kapha constitution and for whom it is not a health issue to carry greater weight, will remain at their comfortable ideal weight.

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So it seems the best idea is first get healthy and then worry about your weight.