Tag Archives: Fat facts

Sugar and fat: beware low-fat foods and natural fruit drinks

Posted on April 8, 2011 by Susie Stevens| Leave a comment
Spoonful of strawberry and yoghurt

Fruit and low-fat yoghurt may have more carbs than you think

It seems simple enough. You need to reduce your fat intake so low-fat foods are a no brainer, right? Well, don’t be so sure.

When choosing low-fat dairy, it’s important to look at the dietary labels because many low-fat products have added sugar to compensate for the flavour. For example, some low-fat yoghurts have quite high carbs so look for ones with ‘no added sugar’ or ‘less than 1% added sugar’. Even this is no guarantee, so always check the dietary nutrition information on the label.

Another example of low-fat or no-fat advertised foods is salad dressings. These often have quite high levels of sugar – I’m yet to find one that doesn’t have high sugar so it’s best to make your own low-fat dressings with balsamic vinegar and/or lemon juice.

Facts about sugar

  • One glass of apple juice has as much sugar as a glass of Coca Cola (about 10 teaspoons).
  • Tomato sauce (commercial from supermarkets) has around 40 to 50 per cent sugar and massive amounts of salt. If at all possible, try to kick the tomato sauce habit and start making your own low-fat, low sugar tomato sauce at home. Barbeque sauce is also off the list!
  • Many low-fat foods have added sugar to compensate for taste.

The Stabilisation phase of the Dukan Diet

You’ve reached your goal weight or need a break half way to your goal weight. Now it’s time to stabilise and prevent weight going back on.

Because fruit is naturally high in sugar content, fruit is introduced in the Dukan Diet after you have reached a weight that you are comfortable with. This stage called Stabilisation is the period where you train your body to become attuned to your new reduced weight so that it doesn’t immediately start storing every ounce of energy from the foods you eat. Introducing fruit gradually during stabilisation helps your body to become used to added sugar in your diet.

Once at your goal weight, add one piece of fruit a day (not bananas, grapes or cherries). During stabilisation, you can also introduce pasta or rice for one meal a week and two slices of bread each day (without butter or margarine or 1 teaspoon at the most). Lean lamb such as a leg of lamb is also back on the menu. Oh yes, and you can have one celebration meal a week (increasing to two in the second half of the stabilisation phase).

 

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Fat Facts

Posted on March 17, 2011 by Susie Stevens| Leave a comment

Fact

Tape measure as a symbol for the growing problem of obesity

Fat is a growing concern

Women are more often obese than men, but male obesity rates have been growing faster than female rates in most OECD countries.

According to the OECD’s website, a person is considered obese when he or she’s body mass index (BMI) is 30 or above. The BMI is calculated by dividing a person’s weight by the square of one’s height. There are many body mass indicator applications on the Internet. You can find in the right-hand column of this page. Or go to another at  work out your BMI.

Fact

In Australia in 2008, 61 per cent of the adult Australian population was classified as overweight or obese. Worse, a quarter of children and adolescents between five and 17 were either overweight or obese.

Fact

In 2008 in the United States, nearly three in four women and two in three men were overweight, and about one-third of all adults were obese.

Fact

Health expenditure in the United States for obesity accounts for between 5 and 10 percent of the total health bill compared to 1 to 3 percent in most other countries.

Conclusion

Fat is a growing problem!

Solution?

According to the OECD, an obesity-reduction program would likely prevent 155,000 deaths from chronic diseases in Japan every year, 75,000 in Italy, 70,000 in Britain and 40,000 in Canada. God only knows how many deaths would be prevented in the ‘land of the full pair of trousers’, the US!

Losing Fat

The Dukan Diet is a fat reduction program that Susie Stevens is testing to see how effective it is at reducing fat and keeping it off permanently.

 

 

 

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Why is it important to regain control over our weight?

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Susie Stevens| 1 Comment

Fit or fat?

Bathroom scales are a good guide to obesity as is looking in the mirror

Bathroom scales are a good guide to obesity as is looking in the mirror

Collectively, industrialized nations have an obesity problem that is getting progressively worse. Around the world, first world countries (OECD member nations) are getting fatter by the minute. A report, ‘Obesity and the Economics of Prevention: Fit not Fat’, released by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on 23 September 2010 addresses this serious epidemic.

Before 1980, obesity rates were well below 10 per cent of the population in OECD nations. Since that time, obesity rates have doubled and sometimes tripled in some countries according to a report released by the OECD in September 2010. In some countries, 50 per cent of the population is considered obese. Australia is one of these countries.

The OECD report states:
Obesity rates are high in Australia, relative to most OECD countries, and they have been increasing faster than in any other OECD country in the last 20 years. One in two people is overweight in Australia. The proportion of people overweight is projected by the OECD to rise a further 15% during the next 10 years.

… unless we decide to do something about losing the fat

The Assistant Director-General of the World Health Organization, Ala Alwan says that ‘a strategy on diet, physical activity and health provide a road map for effective action’. You don’t say!

But it is difficult to lose those extra kilos that have seemingly (apparently permanently) attached themselves to one’s body. That’s why the Dukan Diet with its four-step approach (and a giant boost at the beginning with the first Attack phase) is something this writer is keen to pursue.

Some stats on losing weight on the Dukan Diet

My goal: to lose about 12 kilograms

Result after initial Attack phase: 2.5 kilos.
Currently in Cruise control phase, now 7 kilograms lighter (and looking a whole lot better)

Five more kilograms to lose before moving to the Consolidation phase and finally the Stabilization phase that will (if I continue to follow the principles) keep me slim for the rest of my life.

Friend’s goal: to lose 30 kilograms

Results after a modified Dukan Diet for three weeks: 10 kilograms lighter.
Now after a boost Attack phase of five days and renewed Cruise phase: 14 kilograms lighter.

Getting results quickly is a big motivation to lose fat

The immediacy of results on the Dukan Diet is a great motivation. However, don’t take my word for it. Buy and read the book, The Dukan Diet. It’s written by Dr Pierre Dukan and is full of medical and dietary information to show that the program is safe and that it gets results.

 

 

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