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Weight loss is a concern for many people. They've heard about the need to lose weight to prevent heart disease, cancer, arthritis and diabetes. The struggle to shed pounds is giving away to feelings of guilt and anxiety when that plan simply doesn't work.

But much of what we know about weight loss is composed of myths. Because we don't understand what weight loss really is, we keep going on an endless cycle of fad diets, clinics, pills and surgery and never go anywhere on the weigh scales.

Here are five of those myths and tips to help you stay healthy:

Cut Out Calories. It's the first thing everyone thinks about. It's true that the fewer calories you take in than are burned off, the more likely you are to lose weight. The focus should be on those added calories most of us consume on a regular basis. Most of what we eat are empty calories, devoid of nutrition. Those sweets we enjoy so much cause us to gain weight. If counting calories are the only focus, than any weight loss program will fail. There's a lot more to losing weight than counting calories.

Eat Less to Lose Weight: It's in the same myth than cutting calories. Eating less triggers the body to store more fat. You can lose weight by eating more high fiber foods that keep you full longer and supply your body with essential vitamins and minerals. Eating less is not as important as what you put into your body on a regular basis.

Cut Out All Junk Food: Who doesn't love a delicious hamburger with all the fixings? Chocolate fudge angel food cake and Ben and Jerry's ice cream are hard to resist. But you don't need to abandon all that in favor of chewing broccoli. Being the way we are, no one is ever going to abandon their favorite foods. There's nothing wrong in treating yourself now and then, you just need to compensate for the added calories they add to your diet. You'll need to remove some carbohydrates from your regular meals. Or you can burn off those extra calories by doing some exercise. It's difficult for many to just cut out all burgers and fries that they've become accustomed to over the years.

Don't Eat at Night. Many people believe this will add to weight gain. But eating late at night won't add pounds if you are actively burning off those calories. While most of us have day jobs, there is a point in the late evening when we should stop eating. If you eat shortly before retiring, you don't have the chance to burn off calories and you are more likely to suffer from stomach and colon related problems.

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