everybody wants it but very few of us ever achieve it in spite of the plethora of "scientifically proven" diet plans promulgated by the popular media. According to many authors, if you eat lots of meat (but no bread) or achieve the perfect magical combination of fat to carbs to protein, or if only you'd eat just those foods suited to your blood type, hair color, or musical preference, all would be well. But are any of these diets really supported by the scientific literature? Have any of them been shown in multiple medical studies over decades to reduce heart disease, cancer risk, and diabetes while promoting permanent weight loss?
The answer, of course, is an emphatic "No!" In fact, research has shown that people following an Atkins-type high-animal-protein and fat diet may lose weight (in the short-term) but are at increased risk of sudden cardiac death. Yikes! And focusing on the perfect macronutrient combination takes our attention away from the most scientifically verified way to achieve permanent weight loss healthfully--and that's to eat healthy foods. (Moving your body a lot helps, too.)
I wish the scientific literature showed otherwise. I mean, I'd really like to eat chocolate cake for breakfast every day and still be thin and healthy, but chances are, if my genetic makeup is even remotely comparable to most other humanoids, my chocodiet would result in weight gain, lethargy, and eventually diabetes, at best.
So we've removed chocolate cake from the list of healthy foods (damn). What other foods qualify? Well, do you know what one food has the strongest association with low body weight and decreased disease risk? That would be leafy green vegetables--you know, the stuff the largest land mammals eat. Green leaves like kale, collards, bok choy, and spinach are overflowing with amazing chemicals increasingly notorious for interfering in the processes of cancer cell initiation, reproduction, and cross linking. These phytochemicals (plant-derived nutrients) even kill off cells whose DNA has been damaged, and they inactivate free radicals--those nasty die-hards that disease and age us. If you want to eat healthy foods, leafy green vegetables are your ticket to permanent weight loss and lowered disease risk.
That's because every time you eat something (from French fries to arugula), waste products are produced in and by your cells. Allow me to compare those cells to an internal combustion engine that burns fuel and spews out carbon monoxide as a hazardous waste product that wreaks havoc on the ecosystem. Well, that's what happens when you eat French fries (or cheese or cookies or a hot dog or cereal)--waste products like advanced glycation end products (AGEs) result, which are super damaging to our cells. Over time this damage builds up and manifests as arterioschlerosis, cancer, diabetes, wrinkles. But leafy green vegetables (and other vegetables, fruits, beans, and seeds) have tons of phytonutrients which act as mini catalytic converters for our cells, inactivating and even destroying the dangerous chemical byproducts of cellular metabolism that would otherwise lead to disease and senescence. Not too shabby, huh, for a bunch of green leaves?!
So the first thing for you to do is go shopping. Make sure you pick up lettuce and at least one cruciferous veggie (broccoli, cauliflower, kale, cabbage, etc.), and then grab a colorful array of raw salad vegetables. Also get some raw nuts or seeds and dried beans. When you get back home, soak at least 8 ounces of beans overnight, preferably in a crockpot. When you get up in the morning, turn on the beans and allow them to slow cook for at least five hours. You can add some salt-free herbs and spices for flavor. When you return home in the evening, find a HUGE bowl for your salad, and spoon in ½ to 1 cup of beans. Next, cut and chop away at your veggies and toss them on top of the beans. Add a splash of vinegar and two or three tablespoons of nuts or seeds, et voila!
Mylea Caroline Israel is a certified Nutrition Education Trainer. Her passion is showing folks the science behind high-nutrient eating--what it is and why it's mandatory for excellent health. After that, the real work begins with training in the psychology of permanent weight loss. To learn more about permanent weight loss, check out her website at http://www.CrashYourDiet.com.