Turn vegetarian to lose weight

Switching to meat free vegetarian diet might be helpful in losing weight. Researchers from the University of Oxford, UK studied the eating habits of 22,000 people over five years, including meat eaters and vegetarians. They found that everyone put on a few kilos but meat eaters who changed to a vegetarian diet gained the least. Contrary to current popular views that a diet low in carbohydrates and high in protein keeps weight down, it was found that the lowest weight gain came in people with high intake of carbohydrates and low intake of protein. The research compared weight gain among meat eaters, fish eaters, vegetarians and vegans - who eat no animal products. It showed that on an average people gained 2 kilos (4.4 lb) over five years. None of the volunteers were overweight. The weight gain was less in the vegans than in the meat-eaters and somewhere in between in the other groups. The lowest weight gain was in people who changed their diet to eat fewer animal products. Exercise was another important factor in controlling weight. The findings suggest that people who became more physically active during the five-year period gained less weight than people who did very little exercise.