Читать книгу The alli Diet Plan: Your Essential Guide to Success with alli - Литагент HarperCollins USD, F. M. L. Thompson - Страница 40

These are, for most of us, our favourite foods – but these really are the ones we need the least, nutritionally. These foods include cakes, pastries, fried foods, chocolates, confectionery, biscuits, ice cream, mayonnaises, sauces and dressings. Drinks such as squashes, carbonated sweetened drinks and hot chocolate are high in sugars.

Butter and creams, oils and fat spreads of all types are included in this group because of their fat content. Fat contains more than twice the calories per gram compared with carbohydrates or protein. That is, they are very energy-dense, so by reducing the amount of fat in your diet you will decrease calories fast. However, some oils and vegetable fats contain beneficial unsaturated oils and vitamin E, so can be eaten in small quantities if you carefully measure them out.

The diet doesn’t ban foods high in fat and sugar from your diet, as they do add variety and enjoyment. Banning something only makes it more attractive. There are some considerations you must bear in mind, however.

• Only eat fatty and sugary foods once you have had a balanced meal so are feeling fairly full.

• Ask yourself why you want to eat this food – see Chapter 2 for some help.

• Make sure you know how many calories and grams of fat a portion contains. If it fits in your plan, then stick to the one item.

• Measure or weigh everything.

More on Fats

When you are on the diet you will be focusing on a total number of grams of fat you can eat. However, it is also important to consider what sort of fats you are eating.

Fat is found in many foods, and we tend to classify them into those that are said to be saturated and those that are unsaturated.

Put very simply, saturated fats increase your blood cholesterol levels, which can lead to your arteries becoming blocked. This increases your risk of developing heart disease. Saturated fats are found mostly in animal foods such as butter, ghee, lard, cream, cheese and meat, though certain plant foods such as coconut are also high in saturates.

Unsaturated fats can have a beneficial effect on your blood cholesterol and don’t increase your risk of heart disease. There are many different types of unsaturated fats, from monounsaturates, which are found in olive and rapeseed oils and spreads made from them, to polyunsaturates, which are found in sunflower, nut, seed and fish oils. Omega-3 fatty acids are part of the group of polyunsaturates and are known to be beneficial for heart health as well as having other important health benefits.

Hydrogenated fats (or trans fats) are made when liquid oils are made into solid fats. Trans fats have been found to have a damaging effect on the body. In the UK, food manufacturers have removed almost all hydrogenated fats from foods, and foods must be labelled if they contain them.