Dieting - Food Is Not Your Enemy

by Mary Kearl (Subscribe to Mary Kearl's posts)
Mar 26th 2009 2:00PM

Categories: Diet & Weight Loss, Motivation, Nutrition & Supplements

Nancy Snyderman, M.D., author of "Diet Myths That Keep Us Fat"

Here, we ask Dr. Snyderman for a sneak peek at her best advice from her new book which comes out in May, 2009.

That's Fit: In your book you say that "dessert can be dinner." Under what circumstances?

Dr. Snyderman: There are times when you want the chocolate cake or crème brûlée more than anything. If that's the case and the craving needs to be satisfied, so be it. Have the chocolate cake for dinner. Count the 300 calories as your entrée and balance the rest of the calories around that. You won't take much of a ding nutritionally...but you will satisfy the urge to have your desert and by making it your entrée you make it special and can move on to a more balanced diet the next day. It's okay. You don't go to diet hell for such a transgression. I'm also a believer in writing down the foods I eat. That keeps me honest.

That's Fit: Do you recommend weighing in after a binge, or waiting a given amount of time?

Dr. Snyderman: There is no reason to weigh in after a binge. Just figure out why you ate the way you did...resolve the matter and move on. We all binge one time or another -- in front of a TV or at a football game. The goal is to keep that from becoming a habit. Start the next day anew.

That's Fit: Why did you choose to write this book?

Dr. Snyderman: I wrote this book because I, like many people, have been a life long dieter. There is nothing I haven't tried...and you know what? Only one thing works -- that age old equation -- calories in/calories out. You have to, have to, limit the amount of food you put in your mouth. I got a great lesson years ago form Julia Child. She and I worked together on "Good Morning America" and once, when the show was on the road in France, I had dinner in a restaurant with Julia. She ordered whatever she wanted. But guess what? She did not feel obliged to eat it all. Julia would have rather had real whipped cream but just a little rather than eat something fake. She loved food and made it part of her life. Food was not the enemy. There's a great lesson here.

Got someone you think we should interview or a question you're dying to have answered? Send your suggestions to threeqswith@aol.com.

Comments (2)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

JJ 3-26-2009 @ 5:40PM

I think that people just have to realize that while you should limit your caloric intake, you do have to eat a certain amount of calories or else you can slow down your metabolism, thus negating all your hard work.

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u262f 3-26-2009 @ 9:37PM

Losing weight might be about calories in vs. calories out, but being healthy is not. Maybe it's possible to lose weight by eating nothing but the exact right number of calories in refined sugar, but you'll also make yourself sick because you're not getting enough nutrition. Dessert is usually very low in nutrition. This is why it's usually a good idea to eat a good balance of lean proteins, vegetables, and whole grains first. It's possible to eat too much and still suffer from malnutrition, and taking care of the nutrients first makes sure that doesn't happen to you.

That said, I agree that the nutrition balance doesn't have to happen all in one meal. It's possible that maybe people are partly overweight because we were raised with an expectation of balancing each and every meal. Human bodies don't work that quickly, and economies of scale make this practice very inefficient. It's fine to have (for example) whole grains for the morning "meal", lean protein and vegetables at noon, and dessert in the evening. Maybe that's what Dr. Snyderman was getting at.