Weight Loss Glossary

A listing of words and terms related to weight loss and dieting. Click on the letter to go to that part of the alphabet and then select the diet or weight loss term that you are interested in.
Adequate Intake - AI

A recommended daily intake based on observed or experimentally determined approximations of nutrient intake by a group (or groups) of healthy people. It is used when the RDA cannot be determined. AIs are established for nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D, and fluoride.
Adipose Tissue

Fat tissue in the body.
Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia Nervosa is a serious, potentially life-threatening eating disorder characterized by self-starvation and excessive weight loss.
Bariatric Surgery

Surgery on the stomach and/or intestines to help patients with extreme obesity to lose weight. Bariatric surgery is a weight-loss method used for people who have a body mass index (BMI) above 40. Surgery may also be an option for people with a BMI between 35 and 40 who have health problems like heart disease or type 2 diabetes.
Binge Eating

Binge eating is one of the most common eating disorders. It involves the consumption of very large amounts of food in a short period of time.
Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis

A way to estimate the amount of body weight that is fat and nonfat. Nonfat weight comes from bone, muscle, body water, organs, and other body tissues. BIA works by measuring how difficult it is for a harmless electrical current to move through the body. The more fat a person has, the harder it is for electricity to flow through the body. The less fat a person has, the easier it is for electricity to flow through the body. By measuring the flow of electricity, one can estimate body fat percent.
Body Mass Index

A measure of body weight relative to height. BMI is a tool that is often used to determine if a person is at a healthy weight, overweight, or obese, and whether a person’s health is at risk due to his or her weight.
Bulimia Nervosa

Bulimia Nervosa is a serious, potentially life-threatening eating disorder characterized by a cycle of bingeing and compensatory behaviors such as self-induced vomiting designed to undo or compensate for the effects of binge eating.
Calorie

A unit of energy in food. Foods have carbohydrates, proteins, and/or fats. Some beverages have alcohol. Carbohydrates and proteins have 4 calories per gram. Fat has 9 calories per gram. Alcohol has 7 calories per gram. You want to avoid food that are calorie dense.
Calorie Free

Food that contain less than five calories per serving.