4 Important Tips for Choosing a Diet Meal Plan

If youre searching for a diet meal plan that you can live with, follow the four important tips below before heading to the bookstore. A well-written and well-researched book can help you make a lifelong change in your eating habits. And if you choose the right diet plan, you'll enjoy your meals even more than you did before, so you won't even remember that you're "dieting."

Since there are hundreds of diet, weight loss and nutrition books on the shelves at your local bookstore, how do you choose the right one for you?

If you want to make a permanent change in your eating habits, I suggest you make your choice very carefully. This is especially important since many overweight people also have significant health issues that need to be taken into account before making any drastic dietary changes. For that reason, it just makes good sense to discuss any eating plan with your doctor before beginning your program, and then choose a meal plan that is based on solid science.

1. When choosing a diet book, be sure to pick one that is based on real nutritional research. It wont be quite as easy to read as the latest fad, but you should be making plans for long-term health, not just weight loss.

2. If there is a lot of controversy surrounding the diet book, like there was when the Atkins diet was so popular, you would be better off choosing a different book. It may be emotionally exciting to be part of the in crowd that knows the scientists are all conspiring against you, but you could end up damaging your health. On the other hand, dont dismiss well-researched books, like The China Study by T. Colin Campbell, just because you dont see anyone else reading it.

3. Dont choose a diet book that will make you feel punished or deprived. Who need that? Sooner of later youll rebel, anyway, so go ahead and put it back on the shelf and pick another book that is more enticing. You dont need to eat less food to lose weight you just need to eat the right food with more nutrients and fewer calories. A good book will show you which foods you can include in your diet meal plans, and which ones are best to avoid.

4. Choose a plan that fits your own learning style and personality. Some people like to have a full month of specific menus laid out, along with ingredients and recipes. Other people just want the basics, with enough guidelines so they can build a new healthy diet program for themselves. Some folks cant imagine themselves living without meat, while others are on the verge of becoming a vegetarian, and just need a little nudge from the right author. Just make sure you arent trying to shoehorn yourself into a diet plan just because you think you should.

The best diet books dont actually have much to do with dieting. The same nutritious eating plan that helps you lose weight will also improve your immune system, make you feel more energetic and alive, and may even help you manage some chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease. In fact, a diet meal plan that helps overweight people slim down can also help underweight people gain a few pounds. Nutritious food is good for you, all the time. A book that talks only about weight loss will be too narrow in scope for a lifetime of healthy eating.

Obesity Surgery Can Lead To Memory Loss, Other Problems
Weight loss surgery, such as gastric bypass surgery, can lead to a vitamin deficiency that can cause memory loss and confusion, inability to coordinate movement, and other problems, according to a study published in the March 13, 2007, issue of Neurology®, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The syndrome, called Wernicke encephalopathy, affects the brain and nervous system when the body doesn't get enough vitamin B1, or thiamine. [click link for full article]

Is Subway Better Than McDonald's?
Subway have taken aim at McDonald's with their new "Fresh Fit" meals. The combo meals are compared side-by-side against a Big Mac meal. Subway's meal comes out at 265 calories, while the Big Mac meal hits a gluttonous 1230 calories. But there's more to it than that......

News Roundup and Quick Links
The Carrot Diet A woman eats carrots every 15 minutes for 3 months in order to cure her infertility. The solution seemed to work as she became pregnant. A tabloid special Active kids say slim "Children who did 15 minutes a day of moderate exercise -- equivalent to a brisk walk -- were 50 percent less likely than inactive...

In Obesity, Brain Becomes 'Unaware' Of Fat
Critical portions of the brain in those who are obese don't really know they are overweight, researchers have reported in the March issue of the journal Cell Metabolism, published by Cell Press. These findings in obese mice show that a sensor in the brain that normally detects a critical fat hormone - causing a cascade of events that keeps energy balance in check - fails to engage. Meanwhile, the rest of the metabolic pathway remains ready to respond. [click link for full article]

Plagued By Diet Disasters? A Visit To A Registered Dietician Could Help
Studies indicate more than one-third of adults are trying to lose weight, but few have long-term success. Many can't stick to diets and exercise routines and struggle to stay afloat in a sea of popular diets, fitness programs and foods with "healthy" claims.But weight-loss seekers have someone to turn to. [click link for full article]

Obesity At The Time Of Prostate-Cancer Diagnosis Dramatically Increases The Risk Of Dying From The Disease
Obese men who are diagnosed with prostate cancer have more than two-and-a-half times the risk of dying from the disease as compared to men of normal weight at the time of diagnosis, according to a study by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The findings by senior author Alan Kristal, Dr.P.H., and colleagues appear online and will be published in the March 15 print edition of the journal Cancer. [click link for full article]