On the TLC (Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes) diet, lean meats, bread, fruit, and vegetables should all be consumed in large quantities. You will have a lot of flexibility with your diet because the recommendations are so open-ended.
What is the TLC diet?
Also read-MIND Diet-Mediterranean-DASH Intervention For Neurodegenerative Delay
The National Cholesterol Education Program of the National Institutes of Health developed the Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes (TLC) diet with the intention of lowering cholesterol as part of a heart-healthy diet.
Eating plenty of vegetables, fruits, bread, cereal, pasta, and lean meats is all part of the three-part regimen. You will have a lot of flexibility with your diet because the recommendations are so open-ended.
“TLC is a non-pharmacologic strategy for reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and, therefore, does not require dependence on prescription medications for most people, nor does it require making separate meals for you and the rest of your family,” claims Luis Rustveld, a registered dietitian and assistant professor in the department of family and community medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. “Furthermore, following the TLC diet doesn’t necessitate buying special meals or giving up your favorite foods. The focus is on comparing products, reading food labels, and selecting healthier alternatives of your favorite foods.
Based on the idea that dietary cholesterol can affect blood cholesterol and the risk of cardiovascular disease, the TLC diet was developed. According to Julia Zumpano, a registered dietitian with Cleveland Clinic’s Center for Human Nutrition, dietary cholesterol has a modest influence on low-density lipoprotein (“bad”) cholesterol and very little impact on CVD risk. However, more recent studies and analyses of earlier studies have shown the opposite.
“Current diet recommendations focus heavily on limiting saturated fats,” according to her.
How does the TLC diet work?
Limit your daily meat intake to 5 ounces or less. Stay with fish and skinless chicken or turkey.
Consume two to three servings of low-fat or nonfat dairy products daily.
Eat three to five servings of veggies and as many as four servings of fruit each day.
Consume 11 servings of bread, cereal, pasta, rice, or other grains per day. Put whole grains first.
You can begin the TLC diet by deciding on your desired calorie intake. The target is 2,500 calories per day for men and 1,800 calories per day for women if decreasing LDL cholesterol levels is your sole priority.
Need to lose weight? Men should aim for 1,200 to 1,600 calories per day, while women should aim for 1,000 to 1,200 calories. Then, reduce saturated fat to less than 7% of daily calories, which entails consuming fewer foods rich in fat (like butter) and fewer foods low in fat (like salami). Limit your daily intake of dietary cholesterol to 200 milligrams, or about 2 ounces of cheese.
Add two grams of plant stanols or sterols, which are naturally occurring cholesterol-like chemicals present in food, along with 10 to 25 grams of soluble fiber daily if your LDL cholesterol hasn’t decreased by 8% to 10% after six weeks.To decrease LDL, soluble fiber, plant stanols, and sterols work to prevent the digestion of cholesterol. Vegetable oils, some varieties of margarine, and dietary supplements all include stanols and sterols.
“The diet should emphasize a variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole-grain products,” explains Rustveld. Intake of total carbohydrates, mostly from whole grains, should account for 50% to 60% of total calories. Limit your daily calorie intake of total fat to 25% to 34%.
People should eat fish, lentils, skinless chicken, lean meats, and low-fat or fat-free dairy products to round out their diets.
Although there are sample meal plans accessible, it is up to you how exactly you adhere to these rules.
It’s crucial to exercise in addition to following the nutrition recommendations.
“Exercise is a key component of the TLC diet,” Zumpano says. “Thirty minutes of moderate-intensity exercise is advised most or all days of the week.”
Can I lose weight on the TLC diet?
It’s uncertain whether the TLC diet can help you lose weight because it was created to lower cholesterol levels rather than encourage weight loss. Research, however, indicates that low-fat diets generally tend to encourage weight loss.
The NIH estimates that if you lose 10 pounds, your LDL will drop by 5% to 8%, giving your efforts a double boost.
Who Should Not Try the TLC Diet?
If you’re solely interested in quick weight loss rather than cutting cholesterol or reducing disease risk, TLC might not be the ideal diet choice for you.
Pros
- Nutritionally sound.
- Filling: it’s rich in high-fiber foods.
- Has proven health benefits.
- Diverse foods and flavors
Cons
- Recipes and resources are lacking.
- There are lots of rules to remember.
Also read-Flexitarian Diet: What To Know About The No. 2 Diet
Images source-google
