August 18, 2005

To lose weight and feel full one should eat foods loaded with water, fibre and air such as fruits, vegetables, low-fat milk, cooked grains, lean meats, poultry, fish and beans, writes Lovely Ranganath

Weight loss is easy –– if one loves small meals and enjoys the hunger pangs that follow them. Fortunately, there’s a better way. One can lose weight by eating more. The key is to eat the right foods -–– these right foods are the ones with a low calorie density and a high volume.

The first group consists of foods loaded with water, fibre, and air and these have the lowest calorie density. The second group consists of dry foods and high-fat foods, which have the highest calorie density.

To lose weight and feel full there is a need to eat more of the first group, and less of the second group. The benefits of choosing such foods are that one feels fuller and not fatter on fewer calories. It also allows to enjoy more food and more taste, but not more fat and calories.

Foods that are high in water content include fruits, vegetables, low-fat milk, cooked grains, lean meats, poultry, fish and beans. Other high-water foods are soups, stews, casseroles, pasta with vegetables, and fruit-based desserts. The ‘not-so-magical’ foods are the ones high in fat content like butter, whole milk, full-fat salad dressings and sweets.

The more water content a particular food has, one can eat a bigger portion of that particular food for fewer calories. The same cannot be said for the fat content because one gets more calories in a smaller portion.

We all like a little sweetness on the cereal, but consider a new approach. Leave the honey with the bees and top your cereal with fruits. Honey and sugar are dense sweeteners, while strawberries come full of fiber, nutrients, and water, so you can eat more of them –– two and a half cups of strawberries will provide 100 calories and two tablespoons of honey will give you 120 calories!

A simple, healthy trick is to add some fresh, chopped vegetables to your favourite recipe, and instantly boost the meal’s volume while reducing the calorie density.

Here are some examples of foods that range from very low on the calorie-density scale, to very high.

Very low density: (less than 0.6 calories per gram)
• Most fruits and vegetables
• Broth-based soups

Low density: (0.6 to 1.5 calories per gram)
• Most cooked grains
• Cereals with reduced-fat milk
• Low-fat meats

Medium density: (1.5 to 4 calories per gram)
• Meats
• Cheeses
• Salad dressings
• Pastries and cookies
• Chocolate
• Butter
• Nuts

You can use the following guidelines to estimate where a food falls:

• Things that lower calories are water (think fruit and vegetables), air (rice cakes, popcorn), fibre (whole grains).

• Things that raise calories are fat (cream, butter, cheese, added fats), and dehydration (dried fruits).

The healthy eating habit is getting the right amount of calories each day and getting the ideal amount of nutrients at the right time. By using the above concept, you end up eating more food and still consuming fewer calories, which makes weight loss really easy –– you can have large meals and need not suffer the hunger pangs! –– Dawn/Khaleej Times Service

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