Top 3 Superfoods You Should Eat Every Day to Lose Weight, According to Doctor

Do you want to eat your way to weight loss? According to Dr. Steven Gundry, MD, medical director at The International Heart and Lung Institute Center for Restorative Medicine and the New York Times best-seller The Plant Paradox and The Plant Paradox Cookbook, losing weight isn’t just about eating less, but about eating the right kind of superfoods. In one of his viral YouTube videos, he reveals the “top three foods for weight loss.”

Dr. Gundry Struggled to Love 70 Pounds, But These 3 Foods Helped

“Still struggling to lose weight, I get it. I was 70 pounds overweight for years, and no amount of exercise or healthy eating helped until I discovered that weight loss comes down to what you eat and what you don't eat,” Dr. Gundry reveals. “So today I'm sharing my top three foods you should be eating to help you shed the pounds and live your happiest, healthiest life.”

1. Prebiotic Rich Foods

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“Number one, and I can't say this enough: Prebiotic rich foods,” Gundry reveals. “Now there's always some confusion about a probiotic, a prebiotic, and now a post-biotic.”

Probiotics Eat Prebiotics

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“So real quick, probiotics are friendly bacteria, and probiotics have to eat something, and the foods that they have to eat are called prebiotics,” he says.

Polyphenols Are Great Prebiotics

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“Now, most of us associate prebiotics with fiber, but a lot of prebiotics really aren't fibers. For instance, in my new book, unlocking the Keto Code, I introduced you to the fact that polyphenols, which are plant compounds that give plants their color, are actually prebiotics for the bacteria in our gut. And with each passing year, evidence is accumulating that these polyphenols may, in fact, be the most important part of prebiotics that we've neglected over fiber per se,” he says.

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Gut Bacteria Then Makes Postbiotics

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“Now, don't get me wrong, fiber that is edible by our gut bacteria is equally important because gut bacteria use fiber, use prebiotic fiber, and use prebiotics to make chemicals called postbiotics. And this is where it gets really confusing. Postbiotics simplistically are the byproducts of bacteria, probiotics, eating prebiotics, and these postbiotics are signaling compounds,” he continues.

A Calorie In Does Not Equal a Calorie Out, He Says

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“Signaling compounds tell our mitochondria what to do, tell our genes what to do, tell our cells what to do. The exciting thing about these signaling molecules in terms of weight loss is they actually promote weight loss by having your mitochondria literally waste calories to do a caloric bypass on the food you eat. And that's actually exciting news because it means that a calorie in equals a calorie out is not true,” he says.

Prebiotics Will Help You Lose Weight

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“Many of the calories that you eat, which are prebiotics, whether they're fiber, whether they're polyphenols, will actually make you lose weight more than the amount of food that you are eating, which is really, really exciting,” he says.

He Says to Use More Spices

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“The more fiber-rich foods you get in your diet, the more polyphenols you get in your diet by eating brightly dark colored vegetables by using spices. Spices are dense in polyphenols, and so anytime you can add fiber and polyphenols, you are going to have a weight loss benefit. You can use spices in everything,” he says.

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Make Smoothies

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“One of the easy ways to get these compounds into your diet is to make a smoothie. It's really easy to get fiber in smoothies, and it's tasty. Now, there are a lot of fiber supplements out there, but beware, a number of fiber supplements like Metamucil, for instance, are loaded with sugar or if they're low calorie or no sugar added, they use sucralose, which is Splenda or any of the other artificial sweeteners, which believe it or not, kill off your friendly bacteria,” he says.

Or Get Inulin Powder

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“It's much easier to add fiber to your diet. One of the easiest fibers to add to your diet is inulin. And inulin is present as a powder. It has a slightly sweet taste. You can put it in your smoothies, or you can add it to your vegetables. There are inulin-rich vegetables, asparagus, Jerusalem artichokes, sometimes called sunchokes, and the chicory family, like radicchio and Belgian endive,” he says. “So the more of these sorts of vegetables you get in your diet, the easier it is to do this.”

2. Avocados

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The second best food to add to your diet is avocados. “I can't say this enough. Do not be afraid of fat. Contrary to popular belief, eating an avocado a day does not make you fat. In fact, avocados do exactly the opposite,” Dr. Gundry says.

Avocados Help You Absorb Nutrients in Food

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“Avocados help you absorb the nutrients in food. In fact, there's a very famous study of having people eat salads with and without avocado, and it was found that the addition of the avocado made people absorb the nutrients, vitamins, and minerals in that salad much better than if the avocado wasn't there in the first place,” he says.

They Are Also a Great Source of Monounsaturated Fat

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“Avocados have great monounsaturated fat. It's called oleic acid. It's the same fat in olive oil. And avocados are rich in prebiotic fiber. And so these compounds actually help you lose weight,” he says.

Eat One a Day

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How many should you eat a day? “Well, there is a human study that shows the addition of one avocado a day actually improved weight loss over not having the avocado a day. So what the heck? Have an avocado a day, have some guacamole,” he says.

RELATED: Top 15 Morning Foods You Should Eat Every Day

Cook an Egg in an Avocado

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His go-to recipe? “Half an avocado. Take the pit out, put an egg yolk in each hole, and put it in the broiler. It's a phenomenal breakfast. It's a phenomenal snack,” he explains.

Or, Another Source of Fiber

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“What can you substitute if you're sensitive to avocado? Well, we have a few people who do react to avocados. It's unusual, but it does happen. In that case, don't have an avocado. Instead, use other sources of fiber rather than an avocado,” he says.

3. MCT Rich Foods

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“The number three thing that you should add to your diet to help you lose weight is MCT-rich foods,” he says. “Now, most people have heard of MCT oil, medium chain triglycerides. It's becoming easy to find Costco, even as MCT oil.”

Coconut Oil Does Not Have the Same Benefits

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“Coconut oil does not have the same benefits as MCT oil,” he says. “Studies that I talk about in unlocking the Keto code Show that people who are asked to have MCT oil as part of their diet versus people who did not have MCT oil as part of their diet lost three to five kilograms of weight in six weeks just by adding MCT oil to their diet. And we're not talking about a lot. Probably three tablespoons a day will do it for most people.”

Goat and Sheep Products Also Have MCT Oil

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“Now, the other great news is that MCT oil is present in goat and sheep products. So goat yogurt, sheep yogurt, goat kefir, sheep kefir, goat cheese, sheep cheese. 30% of the fats in these products are medium chain triglycerides,” he says.

If You Eat the Right Fats and Avoid Refined Carbs, You Will Lose Weight

The bottom line? “If you eat the right kinds of fat and if you eat them during the right times and you don't eat fats with refined carbohydrates, fats can actually help you lose weight,” he reveals. And if you enjoyed this article, take advantage of these 20 Superfoods for People Over 50.

Is losing weight fast unhealthy? Not according to endocrinologist Ken Fujioka, MD, who says speedy weight loss is nothing to worry about. “We used to think it was bad and it turns out it doesn't matter—just lose the weight,” he says. Shedding even a few pounds is beneficial for health, experts say. “Even losing a modest amount – just 5-10 percent of your total body weight – can result in almost immediate health benefits and reduce your risk for a wide variety of health conditions and diseases,” says University Hospitals. “In fact, almost every aspect of your health improves when you lose weight.” Here are Dr. Fujioka’s top tips for losing weight fast, and keeping it off.

Restrict Calories

Dr. Fujioka’s first tip for speedy weight loss is to restrict calories. Weight loss comes down to burning off more calories than you’re taking in. “No matter what type of diet you follow, to lose weight you need to burn more calories than you take in each day,” says MedLine Plus. “For most people who are overweight, cutting about 500 calories a day is a good place to start. If you can eat 500 fewer calories every day, you should lose about a pound (450 g) a week.”

Exercise

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Dr. Fujioka says exercise is beneficial if speedy weight loss is the goal. “Being active is vital to losing weight and keeping it off,” says the Mayo Clinic. “When active, the body uses more energy in the form of calories. And burning more calories than you take in leads to weight loss.”

intermittent Fasting

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Dr. Fujioka recommends intermittent fasting—at least 16 hours a day of fasting, and allowing an eight hour window for eating. “When your body doesn’t have the glucose it needs for energy, it taps into your body’s fat for energy,” according to Family Doctor. “When this happens, the fatty acids in your body are absorbed into your blood. They produce a chemical called ketones. Your body then uses the ketones as its energy source. This is called a metabolic switch. Your body is switching from glucose to ketones. When your body uses ketones instead of fat, you may lose weight. But, behind the scenes, the ketones also may be having a positive effect on your body’s organs and cells.”

Use Protein Shakes/Bars

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Dr. Fujioka recommends using protein bars and shakes for smaller meals, and eating one normal meal a day. “If you find yourself yo-yo dieting, or losing and then regaining weight, getting more protein into your diet may reduce the amount of weight you regain in the future,” Frances Largeman-Roth, RDN tells TODAY. “So, it's fair to say that protein shakes may help with weight loss by increasing your protein shake.”

Use a Scale

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Dr. Fujioka says people who weigh themselves every day are more likely to lose weight and keep it off than people who don’t. "Our philosophy here is that no one size fits all," dietitian, nutritionist and wellness coach Meridan Zerner tells the American Heart Association. "The majority of research would say weigh daily. But if there's any negative fallout from weighing every day in terms of outlook, self-esteem or your positive momentum, I would say we can check in once or twice a week."

Get Enough Sleep

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Dr. Fujioka stresses how important sleep is for weight loss and overall health, something echoed by many other medical professionals. “It’s also important to note that getting 7-8 hours of good, quality sleep each night can help reduce weight,” says Babak Moini, MD, internal medicine specialist at University Hospitals. “Too little sleep, coupled with stress, causes the body to release cortisol – a potent steroid that raises your blood pressure and blood sugar and causes weight gain.”

Eat Whole Foods

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Dr. Fujioka recommends eating foods in their whole form rather than juicing or taking a pill. “Whole plant foods contain the extracts in addition to other vital nutrients that are lost with juicing,” according to Kendall Reagan Nutrition Center. “Plant foods contain different varieties of phytonutrients and antioxidants that protect our bodies against inflammation and disease. For these reasons, it is recommended to include a variety of whole plant foods in meals and snacks to expose your body to a wide spectrum of health-promoting nutrients.”

Avoid Processed Foods

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Avoid ultra-processed foods, Dr. Fujioka stresses. “According to research, a high intake of processed and fast foods has been linked to overeating,” Rebecca Crumb-Johnson, MA, RD, CDCES, tells Northlakes Community Clinic. “Whole food doesn’t contain the sugars. salt and flavorings added to processed foods which can lead to eating more food than is needed.”

Eat Your Vegetables

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Dr. Fujioka recommends eating a variety of vegetables. “Almost all vegetables really are quite good,” he says. “Beans, peas, corn. They’re fine! But also jicama, celery, tomatoes. All that stuff is good to eat.”

Eat Lean Proteins

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Dr. Fujioka emphasizes the importance of lean proteins for weight loss and health. “Protein is the building block for your organs, bones, muscles and hair,” family medicine physician Dr. Sharon Browning tells Atrium Health. “When you have a strong foundation with protein, you have a healthy foundation for your body and life.” And if you enjoyed this article, take advantage of these 15 Quick Ways to Lose Body Fat Percentage in a Week.

Are you trying to lose weight, but everything you read about weight loss just seems too complicated? According to one doctor, getting in shape and burning fat doesn’t have to be hard or involve taking any drastic measures, including going on crash diets or exercising until you drop. Brandon Fadner, MD, is a bariatric expert and gastric bypass surgeon from St. Luke’s Health in Texas. In a viral YouTube video, he breaks down weight loss into a few simple and easy tips.

These 4 Tips Will Help You Lose Weight the “Health” and “Sustainable” Way

Dr. Fadner explains that weight loss all comes down to a few “simple things that patients can do every day.” The following tips help “support healthy, sustainable weight loss,” he adds. “I tell all my patients this because I get this question a lot, whether it's a New Year's resolution or not. And that's start with these simple things.”

1. Stick to Minimally Processed Food

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The first tip has to do with your diet. “Whatever you put in your body, make sure that it's as minimally as processed as possible,” he says. “A simple way to conceptualize this is to avoid the centers of grocery stores. That tends to be where the boxed-up processed products are that are going to last longer in a bag or a box.”

Shop the Outside Aisles at the Grocery Store

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An easy way to do this? “If you stick to the periphery of the grocery store, that's where you're going to find your fresh fruits and vegetables. That's where if you choose to eat meat, you're gonna find your fresh poultry. You're gonna find your fresh beef, your fresh fish, and things like that,” he says.

2. Don’t Drink Your Calories

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“The second thing I tell people, and this is easy to apply, is to not drink your calories. So what does that mean? Things like cokes, soft drinks, and a lot of even sports drinks are full of sugar that you, quite frankly, just don't need. And our pancreas doesn't really like it when we get calories in bulk liquid form,” he says.

Instead Drink Water, Unsweetened Ice Tea and Black Coffee

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“Ideally, what you drink every day is gonna be water, unsweetened iced tea, and black coffee. Of course, allowing for living a little bit here and there. It's simply saying that the majority of what I drink is gonna be not calorie-dense. It's gonna be water, black coffee, unsweetened iced tea.”

3. Balance Your Plate

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“Next thing I tell my patients to balance out their plate in the following way. The vast majority of what you put in your body should be plants and vegetables. If you want to eat meat, that is wonderful. There are ways to go about it,” he says.

Eat More Fruits and Veggies Than Meat

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“For whatever reason, our typical American diet here, we've kind of got it flipped. We put our meat and our main course as the biggest portion on our plate when actually the healthiest thing, the best thing for us and a way to begin to lose weight and sustain that weight is to bulk up on fresh fiber and the fresh nutrients that come out of leafy greens and fruits as well.”

4. Devote 30 Minutes Per Day to Movement

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“Finally, find 30 minutes a day to be physically active. Turn it into a mental health exercise as well. It's your time for a time out from the stresses of your job, from the demands of family and other things that tend to pull us away from our self-care activities during our daily lives,” he recommends. “I think that most people when they really put themselves to this task, they can find that they've got 30 extra minutes to go just walk around the block. We're not talking about doing CrossFit, not yet, but get out there, walk around the block, take a time out for yourself, come back and you'd be surprised at how simply moving for 30 minutes a day is gonna begin to actually bury your results.”

And, “Kick It Up From There”

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“Of course, kick it up from there, right? That 30-minute activity may start with a walk around the block. Turn into a jog around the block that turns into you completing your first 5K. But take it in stride, take it in steps, and these are some of the really easy ways to start achieving some of your weight loss goals,” he concludes. And if you enjoyed this article, take advantage of these 15 Quick Ways to Lose Body Fat Percentage in a Week.