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Low-Fat Letdown
Seems counter intuitive, but foods labeled "low-fat" may help you pack on the pounds.
That's because people aren't good at estimating serving sizes of low-fat foods, so they eat up to 50 percent more calories than they would with the "full-fat" version. But there are ways to protect your waistline. (see below ↓)
Fat-Free, Not Home Free
To boost the flavor factor, food makers often replace the fat in snack foods with extra sugar, flour, and other waist-busting ingredients. The result: low-fat foods with the same number of calories as the regular versions.
Follow these rules to help make low-fat foods work for your diet, not against it:
1. Check calories. Stick with the low-fat version if it's lower in calories. But if it's not, the full-fat version may do a better job of satisfying you -- as long as it's got mostly healthful unsaturated fats.
2. Check ingredients. Is white flour or sugar a main ingredient in the low-fat version? Opt for a low-fat product made with whole grains instead. And pass up anything that has more than 4 grams of sugar per serving. Learn how to read nutrition labels.
3. Check portions. Eating twice as much of the low-fat version doesn't do your waist any favors. If you feel satisfied after eating the full-fat version -- and you end up eating less of it -- revisit rule #1.
Low-Fat Letdown
Seems counter intuitive, but foods labeled "low-fat" may help you pack on the pounds.
That's because people aren't good at estimating serving sizes of low-fat foods, so they eat up to 50 percent more calories than they would with the "full-fat" version. But there are ways to protect your waistline. (see below ↓)
Fat-Free, Not Home Free
To boost the flavor factor, food makers often replace the fat in snack foods with extra sugar, flour, and other waist-busting ingredients. The result: low-fat foods with the same number of calories as the regular versions.
Follow these rules to help make low-fat foods work for your diet, not against it:
1. Check calories. Stick with the low-fat version if it's lower in calories. But if it's not, the full-fat version may do a better job of satisfying you -- as long as it's got mostly healthful unsaturated fats.
2. Check ingredients. Is white flour or sugar a main ingredient in the low-fat version? Opt for a low-fat product made with whole grains instead. And pass up anything that has more than 4 grams of sugar per serving. Learn how to read nutrition labels.
3. Check portions. Eating twice as much of the low-fat version doesn't do your waist any favors. If you feel satisfied after eating the full-fat version -- and you end up eating less of it -- revisit rule #1.
(Note from Kim: I remember when the low-fat craze first hit. My husband and I joked about how certain people would get all excited about the low-fat foods. I knew someone that would run out and buy ice cream and say "it's low fat" in a way that let you know she planned on eating it all! We knew that, low-fat or not, you couldn't sit down and eat an entire box of ice cream and still lose weight. I could see right away it was being used as an excuse to binge all the while the person felt justified. Not a good plan.)
1 comment:
I am totally not a low-fat type person. Besides, I think that I need to learn to eat "real" food and still control myself. Otherwise when will I be ready for the "real" world? Thanks for the article, Kim!
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