 Nature's
Way
with Alan Hayes
Fat chance
In today's society obesity has become more and more common, and it is a problem health authorities everywhere are looking to solve. Advertising promoting better and more sensible eating habits have become familiar on television, on radio and in the press.
Busy lives and a fast pace, coupled with ready-in-a-minute take-away food, have left nutritional needs wanting. Yet, of all the human diseases, obesity is the least chronic and the easiest to overcome. It's as simple as replacing 'will power' with 'won't power'.
Obesity is a precondition of the food one eats, and the nature of the food that is eaten. When the diet includes a significant amount of fresh raw fruits and vegetables, the chances of becoming overweight are rare, if not nil. If you eliminate junk food all together, do not eat more food than the body requires, and exercise regularly, obesity will not be a problem. This may seem to be an oversimplification of the solution, however, the fact remains, overweight people do eat greater volumes of food than necessary, and that this food is invariably composed of cooked and processed innutritive substances.
There are no miracle diets, or magic weight loss pills - but there is a sensible approach to eating, a positive mental attitude and pride in one's appearance. For those of you who still feel that a complete change to fresh raw fruits and vegetables becoming the mainstay (80%) of your diet is not possible, nor do you wish to give up meat or dairy-foods, the following tips may be of help.
Follow a sensible diet by including breakfast, lunch and dinner. Don't skip meals, as you will just get hungry and will more than likely eat too much at the next meal.
Base your diet on breads and grain-based foods, fruit and vegetables, lean meats, low-fat dairy foods, lean poultry, fish and legumes. If you feel you must include cheese, include only a small portion each week, and ensure that it is low-fat. Better still replace it with a cheese substitute, such as tofu. Include no more than two eggs each week, if you must have them.
Avoid too much fat (butter, margarine, oil, cream, salad dressing), sugar, salt and alcohol. Take advantage of the many low-kilojoule products now available, such as sugar-free soft drinks and cordials, low-kilojoule jellies, and oil-free salad dressings. And drink plenty of water.
Accept the fact that you may break your diet from time to time. Don't use this an excuse to binge, just get yourself back on track. Binging will only make you feel depressed and quickly lead to eating too much food again, especially sweet substances.
If you do crave sweet foods occasionally, direct these cravings to fresh fruit.
Cut back, or eliminate completely, any alcohol intake. Alcohol itself does not contain fat, but it is still a high source of kilojoules, following closely behind fat at 29 kilojoules per gram.
Be realistic about your achievements and consult with your health practitioner before embarking on any dietary changes.
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