Eat Plenty of Produce

Aim for 2½ cups of vegetables and 2 cups of fruit a day, for a 2,000-calorie diet. If you consume more calories, aim for more; if you eat fewer than 2,000 calories, you can eat less. Include green, orange, red, blue/purple and yellow produce. The nutrients, fiber and other compounds in these foods may help protect against certain types of cancer and other diseases. Legumes, rich in fiber, count as vegetables, though are moderately high in calories. Choose whole fruits over juice for more fiber. Frozen and canned fruits and vegetables are good options.

Should I take a fiber supplement?

In a word, no. Are you surprised? Many of our patients are. They stare at us with eyes the size of dinner plates when we tell them to stop using their supplemental fiber. The fiber supplement industry has done its advertising and marketing so well that nearly everyone in America is convinced they need to drop some powder in a glass of water, stir, and drink every morning. It’s just not true.

In fact, you might be surprised to learn that most fiber supplements contain very little fiber. Most foods contain more. Take a look at the nutrition facts panel on any fiber supplement. You’ll find that most supplements contain somewhere between 3 and 5 grams of fiber and 25 or so calories. You can easily get that much fiber from food. More important, the fiber in food comes in a complete package that aids digestion. A colleague of ours at Johns Hopkins Hospital tells us that nearly all of his patients who take fiber supplements experience lots of gas and bloating and little constipation relief. Real foods work better, he says, because most contain water and/or oil, two essential ingredients that help fiber do its job.

Health Benefits of Fruits and Vegetables

There is a good amount of research documenting the many benefits of fruits and vegetable intake on health. Several studies have found that eating more fruits and vegetables is associated with a decreased risk of heart disease. One study even found that eating more than three servings per day slashed the risk of heart disease by 70%. Because fruits and vegetables are low in calories but high in fiber, they could even help keep your weight under control. One study followed 133,000 people over a 24-year span. It showed that when people increased their intake of fruits and non-starchy vegetables their weight tended to decrease. Finally, fruit and vegetable intake may benefit your blood sugar. The fiber from these foods slows the absorption of sugar, which can keep blood sugar levels steady.

A low-carb diet promotes fat burning

Cells throughout your body are capable of burning a number of different fuels for energy, including carbohydrates (in the form of blood glucose or muscle glycogen), protein, fat, and ketones (by-products of fat burning). By putting yourself on a carbohydrate budget, you’ll consume fewer carbohydrates than your body uses for energy. Once your carbohydrate gas tank reads “empty,” insulin drops and stays low. Think of insulin as a switch. When it’s high, you burn carbohydrates for energy and store excess calories as fat more easily. When it’s low, your body can burn fat rather than storing it, and it will also burn triglycerides–fat in the bloodstream–lowering your risk for heart disease.

Eat your veggies daily

Are you consuming at least 3 cups of leafy and green vegetables and 2 cups of other vegetables daily? If not, make an effort to do so. Use these pointers.

• Purchase plastic food containers in various cup sizes. Fill these containers with salad greens or chopped veggies and take them with you for an easy lunch or snack. This allows you to easily know how many cups you’ve gotten in during a given day.
• Precede lunch and dinner with a salad. Starting your meal with a salad provides the side benefit of filling you up, so you are less tempted to reach for the bread or pasta.
• Buy an assortment of frozen vegetables. Many of these will steam in the bag, making them quick and easy to prepare. Serve on every night with dinner.

Try to be realistic

We all travel. We all attend dinners at friends’ homes, where choices may be tempting. Remember: It’s your choice, and you can remain in control. We all indulge from time to time. As long as you keep those indulgences to a minimum, you will be able to keep off the weight. Don’t stress about occasional luxuries. Stress is just as bad for your metabolism as poor eating habits are.

When in doubt, eat real food

If you want to indulge in something sweet, do so, but make it a small serving of a real food. Ice cream means sugar and cream, and almost nothing else. Don’t go for the low-fat or artificially sweetened varieties. These are not only less satisfying and satiating, but they also tend to cause people to lose self-control. It’s psychological. When we eat reduced calorie foods, we assume we can have more. When we eat high-calorie foods, we assume we can have less and stick to it.