LOW FAT FOOD: COULD IT BE MAKING YOU FAT?

Discover the hidden perils of a low fat diet

Do you try to eat low fat foods to stay healthy?

In our attempt to fight the battle of the bulge, who hasn't gone for the low fat version of yogurts, margarines, milk, etc? Surely this must be good for us?

As I worked with more and more overweight clients who were eating these foods, I started to wonder if it was really working. Often, once I got them off these foods, they started losing weight!

I've learnt that eating reduced fat foods backfires, for quite a few reasons:

1. Reduced fat foods make you eat more

A Cornell University study found that people eat 28 percent more food (up to 45 percent more for the obese) when they know that what they are eating is "low-fat".

2. "Snack size" products make you eat more

Overweight people eat more in total when they are given "snack size" chocolate bars than when confronted with the normal ones. The manufacturers love these products!

3. Reduced fat foods are more highly processed and contain more sugar and chemicals

The fat in these foods is usually replaced with sugar and various unpronounceable ingredients. These are far worse for us (and more fattening because of their effect on insulin and appetite) than the fat they replace. They usually contain artificial sweeteners, which have actually been linked to weight gain and metabolic disorders. People who use sweeteners eat more sugar and put on more weight than people of the same size who don't!

4. Reduced fat foods taste mediocre and don't fill you up

Reduced fat foods taste bad and don't feel nourishing or filling so they don't "hit the spot". Hence, as well as eating more of them, people tend to mooch around the kitchen afterwards opening and closing cupboards looking for some real food to eat. They end up eating more than they would have done if they'd eaten proper food in the first place.

5. A low fat diet is associated with depression and anxiety.

This is now well established - it's not just the misery of dieting! People who consume a diet low in fat are at increased risk for depression and suicide. The level of fat consumption recommended by many established diet plans put you at risk.

6. A low fat diet doesn't work for long term weight loss

Low fat diets don't work long term because of their effect on appetite, mood and metabolism. They often don't work for short term weight loss either!

It is common for our clients to eat more fat when they start eating what they like, in accordance with this programme. They are usually terrified when they start using butter and full fat milk, and amazed when their weight actually goes down.

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