July 25, 2012
Sherri Meyer, MG Registered Dietitian,

A recent article about dietitian’s “forbidden foods for weight control” got me thinking about fad diets and personal dietary restrictions.  As a nutrition professional, I have heard it all, from no carbs, to no white carbs, to no carbs at night, the list is endless.  But one thing that has never changed over the years is that there is no magic bullet to weight loss (and weight maintenance which is just as challenging).  It all comes down to calories, how much you consume, or don’t consume for that matter.  But we can choose our calories wisely and get the most nutrition bang for our buck.  Some say a calorie is a calorie, but like Mark Bittman (http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/26/which-diet-works/), I disagree.  But I think one of the biggest culprit in the American diets is our (over) consumption of refined (i.e. processed) carbohydrates.  We are lovers of all things white, be it bread, rice or pasta. But, thankfully unprocessed whole grains are becoming more mainstream, which makes it easier for fellow carb lovers to enjoy the foods they crave.  Growing up in an Italian family that never met a refined carbohydrate it didn’t like; I retrained my taste buds over the years and now I actually prefer (without hesitation) non processed carbohydrates.  Rather than reinvent the wheel of explaining what a “good” carbohydrate actually is, I have provided a very informative chart that was brought to you by the nutrition experts at Appetite for Health.  So, the next time you reach for a carb check this out