Nutrition Know-How
First for Women
By: Ann Louise Gittleman
September 22 , 2008

How can I reverse fast-food damage?

Ever since I was a kid, dinner has come from a drive-through window. Mom even joked that fries were a veggie. Now that I’m in my thirties, I’m 65 pounds overweight, I have high cholesterol and I’m tired all the time. I recently started cooking my own low-calorie meals, but it hasn’t helped my waistline a hole lot. Am I too far gone to lose weight?

You can slim down.  But your liver is surely stressed from years of trying to process fatty foods. As a result, it can’t adequately flush fatigue-inducing toxins, regulate cholesterol levels or burn fat. An easy way to cleanse the organ: Eat at least 1 tsp. of fresh or dried sage daily (or drink sage tea, like Alvita Sage Tea, $3 for 24 bags, at amazon.com and health-food stores).  This herb stimulates bile production so fat can be broken down and burned for energy.  Your liver cells will begin to regenerate right away and you should see weight starting to fall off in about two weeks.

My new diet makes me sugar-crazy.

I started working with a nutritionist to shed 40 pounds. She said that to dodge diet boredom, I should eat a variety of foods. Now I find that I want to eat all the sweets I can get my hands on. Why can’t I muster up more willpower?

There’s nothing wrong with your willpower. Instead, you mix-it-up food strategy may be working against you. While eating produce, whole grains, and protein does help prevent the boredom and deprivation that sabotage weight-loss efforts, variety has been proven to backfire when it comes to dessert.  Women in one study who ate an assortment of treats with different textures (such as gooey and crunchy) and flavors (like fruity and chocolaty) felt their desire for sweets intensify.  It seems that in women, dessert variety triggers cravings for different mouthfeels. So stay loyal to one favorite treat.  When deviating, opt for the dessert that is closest in texture and flavor to your “usual.”

Is the food pyramid making me fat?

There’s an ongoing thread of discussion on my favorite weight-loss website about how the standard food pyramid is all wrong. I totally agree: For years I’ve felt that the more I follow its guidelines, the harder it is to lose weight. But my doctor says that’s nonsensw—the pyramid is designed to achieve optimal health. Who’s right?

  You are! People who use the traditional food pyramid as a dieting guide often fail to lose pounds, or worse, they gain weight. Some reasons: The diagram allows too much room for misinterpretation when it comes to food choices and serving sizes. Plus, it ignores the role of fat-blasting nutrients like those from healthy fats and probiotics. To lose weight, I propose adhering to my Fat-Flushing Food Pyramid.