The Importance of Maintaining a Healthy Weight
Excess weight may increase the risk of many health conditions, including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, certain types of cancers, back and joint pains, sleep apnoea (difficulty breathing when sleeping) and depression.
Maintaining a healthy weight can help you to:
- Prevent or manage your health conditions
- Sleep better and feel more energised
Body mass index (BMI) estimates the amount of body fat, by using your weight and height to determine your weight category.
How to Lose Excess Body Fat and Weight?
To lose excess body fat and weight, your body needs to burn more energy than you eat. You can achieve this by:
- Having a healthy and balanced diet
- Engaging in physical activity
Healthy Eating Tips for Weight Loss
1. My Heathy Plate
A visual guide for creating balanced and healthy meals. Fill 1/2 your plate with vegetables, 1/4 with wholegrains and 1/4 with lean meat and others, and end with a fruit.
2. Reduce Fat Intake
Choose lean meat over fatty or processed meat. Use less fat (e.g. oil and butter) when cooking. Choose lower fat cooking methods such as grilling, baking, steaming and microwaving. - Reduce the amount of spreads (e.g. margarine and peanut butter) and salad dressings.
3. Reduce Sugar Intake
Choose diet/sugar-free/no sugar, reduced/less sugar or unsweetened/no added sugar beverages. Ask for “siu dai/kosong” or “25%/0% sugar”. Enjoy water infused with fruits (e.g. lemon), rose or mint leaves.
4. Increase Fibre Intake
Aim for two servings of vegetables and two servings of fruits daily. Choose wholegrains (e.g. brown rice, oats and wholemeal bread).
