Several twists and turns to this. Recently it was discovered that if you eat just raw foods, you have to eat much more, and will still likely suffer some degree of malnutrition after a while.
Cooking radically increases food nutritional value, to the point that when people innovated cooking, within a few generations it likely resulted in an evolutionary leap.
It was also recently noted that while typically, an adult has about 30-40 primary types of gut bacteria that take up most of the space, people who are severely obese have just one genus of bacteria, enterobacter, occupying a third of the space in the gut. And enterobacter release a waste product that makes people gain weight, even independent of the bacteria.
Those who were put on an anti-enterobacter diet dropped about 1/3rd of their excess weight with no exercise at all.
It takes about one month of effort to change the colony of gut flora, but that may be the optimal first step to weight loss.
I got deployed to Kuwait while in the Air National Guard for four months 2007-2008. My eating habits hardly changed except I ate a bigger breakfast on average. No alcohol, walking 15 minutes to and from work, and running (airborne shuffle, I’m old) twice a week for 30 minutes average. I lost 24 pounds off my beginning 190 pound self.
Low glycemic and/or parts of Atkins works. The Mediterranean diet works through healthy fats, complex carbos, and lots of greens and veggies.
It’s not rocket science.
Don’t eat hydrogynated fats. Stick to olive oil, peanut oil, or grapeseed oil.
Don’t use hydrogynated vegetable shortening. Instead use homemade lard. Yes I just said lard. Non-hydrogynated lard is lower in the bad fats that cause cholesterol.
Don’t use margarine, it’s hydrogynated vegetable oils. Use real butter.
Don’t consume high fructose corn syrup. In fact, don’t drink sugary drinks period. Drink lots of water, one (1!) glass of red wine a night, or one hard alcohol drink a night without a sweet mixer.
Eat salad and eat vegatables.
Eat fresh fruit.
Take a good long walk every day.
You do those things and you won’t be obese unless your portion sizes are astronomical.