21 weight loss secrets from around the world that are totally worth stealing

Any culture that sips tea all day and always offers a hot cup to guests has a lot to teach the rest of us about health. Tea is an amazing source of healthy antioxidants, and the caffeine in green and black tea can boost your mood and may even help you lose a few kilos. But Taub-Dix notes it’s also a great weight loss crutch: “When I want a break but it’s not time for a meal I will always get tea,” she says. “I feel like a steamy mug of tea is a great alternative to an unnecessary snack.”

This spice, a key ingredient in curries, grows wild in Malaysian jungles. One of its chief components is a substance called curcumin, which may turn out to be a potent fat fighter. A recent review in the journal Foods found that curcumin is linked to a variety of health benefits, and may reduce cholesterol and the risk of metabolic syndrome. Try some in your next stir-fry or curry.

Discover 10 things that could happen when you eat more turmeric.

Enjoyed throughout the country, rooibos tea is more robust than green tea, and because it’s naturally sweet, it needs no sugar. Ditching your daily latte for a cup of rooibos could save you thousands of kilojoules per month. “Tea-drinking cultures generally have lower rates of obesity,” says Dr Fred Pescatore, a natural medicine physician. “That may be from special compounds, such as catechins, that certain teas contain, or it may simply be that we often think we’re hungry when we’re really dehydrated.”

This is what happens to your body when you drink tea every day.

Hungarians like things pickled: not just cucumbers but bell peppers, cabbage and tomatoes. These tart treats can help maintain your weight, probably because of the vinegar that pickles them. Growing evidence suggests that acetic acid, the main component of vinegar, helps reduce inflammation, blood pressure, blood sugar levels, and the formation of fat.

It’s a deeply rooted Norwegian habit: On Sunday, everyone from toddlers to grandparents heads out to hike (in summer) or cross-country ski (in winter). Start a Nordic tradition in your house.

Most of us respect yoga’s stress-busting and flexibility-enhancing power, but not many realise it facilitates weight loss. In fact, a recent study found that yoga devotees have a lower body mass index (BMI) than other exercisers do. There are probably multiple reasons. Yoga is best done on an empty stomach and can build muscle (depending on your preferred poses), which boosts your metabolism. And it encourages mindfulness, which includes paying attention to whether you feel full.

In this on-the-go country, many people take time for a daily 20- to 30-minute nap, says Dr James Maas, a sleep researcher and author of Power Sleep. There’s increasing evidence that chronic sleep deprivation raises the risk of weight gain. Dr Maas blames two hormones: leptin, which helps the brain sense when you’re full, and ghrelin, which triggers hunger. The less sleep you get, the lower your leptin levels, and the higher your ghrelin. “Many people think they’re hungry when they’re actually sleepy,” Dr Maas says. “Instead of a snack, they need some shut-eye.”

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Instead of ingesting the bulk of the day’s kilojoules in the evening, as most of us do, Mexicans traditionally eat their biggest meal between 2 and 4pm. If you eat less at night, you’ll wake up hungrier and eat a bigger breakfast, which facilitates weight control. As a general fat-fighting rule, try to get the bulk of your daily kilojoules at breakfast and lunch.

The French excel at the leisurely family meal. On average, 92 percent of French families dine together nightly. “For the French, eating is the event of the day,” says Dr Pescatore. Lengthy meals actually encourage less eating, Dr Pescatore says. Conversation slows down the fork and gives you time to realise you’re full.

Discover 11 surprising reasons French children are so well-behaved.

This is one of the Finns’ favourite outdoor activities. It’s not as exotic as it sounds: All that’s required is a pair of inexpensive, lightweight walking poles. Holding these in your hands aids balance, which is great if you’re older or if you’re on slippery terrain. Even better: Because they make you use muscles in your shoulders, arms and torso, the poles transform walking into a total-body workout that burns 20 percent more kilojoules, according to a study at the Cooper Institute in Dallas. Winter or summer, it’s a simple way to derive more fat-reducing benefit from your regular walk.

Discover 16 easy ways you can lose weight walking.