Food for thought

Dieting, they say, is the nation’s favorite obsession. Certainly many women seem to be on an almost permanent diet. It’s hardly surprising that diets have become such big business.

Tabloids feed the dream that there is a quick miracle cure to weight loss. And so often we are preoccupied with wanting to have the body of a model or our favorite celebrity. I, in my teens, wanted to be as thin as Farrah Fawcett.

Wanting or obsessing with certain body images can result in an unhealthy war with our bodies.

Is there a way to enjoy food, get on with our lives and still be slim? Yes. There is. Food was never meant to be a punishment, or a sin, but a source of enjoyment and nourishment.

I’ve recently come across a book, The Thing about Calories by Liz Babbs. Here are some of its healthy living tips, together with celebrity wisdom from Rosemary Conley, Delia Smith, Nigella Lawson and others.

Delia Smith says:

•All food, if it is pure and natural, is good for you. It provides pleasure, comfort, community – all that’s important in life.

•Government research has shown that children are only eating half the recommended daily amount of fruits and vegetables.

•Cravings are rooted in emotions, whereas hunger is rooted in biology, so don’t let your cravings sabotage your diet.

•People often turn to food to satisfy emotional or spiritual hunger.

•How is it that when you’re on a diet, the foods you’re not allowed to eat become the very foods you most crave for.

•Eat to live, don’t live to eat.

•Self-esteem could be the key to your relationship with food.

•The more food you eat, the more your body expects. It is important to control your appetite before it controls you.

The Bible says:

•Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty that depends on jewelry, or beautiful clothes, or hair arrangement. Be beautiful inside.

•We live in a society that applauds the skinny and condemns the plump. Unhealthy attitudes towards body shape are likely to prevail.

•Watch that you’re not basing your self-esteem on your body shape.

Ann Widdecombe says:

•The only good reason for losing weight is for health. Really we shouldn’t be bothered about perfection of form.

•Following a celebrity diet doesn’t guarantee you a celebrity body shape or lifestyle. So question your motives for buying the latest celebrity book or DVD.

Nigelia Lawson says:

•I said in some interviews that I had sticky-out bosoms and a sticky-out bottom and they were taken to be disparaging, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with those shapes.

•A diet is not the same as a fast. You’re not meant to starve yourself!

•Don’t let your diet take all the fun out of your life, or you won’t stick to it.

•Dieting is not so much about all the foods you shouldn’t eat, but about finding the right balance between all the foods you should.

•Watch that you don’t skip meals or your body will go into starvation mode and burn off muscle instead of fat.

•A little of what you fancy is okay, as long as it doesn’t lead to binging. Recognize your danger zones.

•Generally, fresh is best. So don’t get caught up in convenience foods.

•Beware, fat-free can mean sugar-rich.

•Treat yourself to porridge for a healthy breakfast. Studies show that oats reduce your cholesterol even more than a low-fat diet.

•Drink plenty of water. It keeps you healthy, fills you up and is a great natural moisturizer.

Rosemary Conley says:

•If you want to lose weight, all you need to do is reduce your calories, increase your amount of exercise and live a normal life.

•Learn from your failures rather than being discouraged by them. One "bad" day or week doesn’t have to sabotage your weight loss regimen.

•Great expectations can lead to great disappointments, so be realistic about what you want to achieve.

•Living a healthy lifestyle is something that you cannot buy, no one can give to you and no one can take away.

Is there a way to enjoy our food and get on with our lives? YES! Food is a source of enjoyment and nourishment. Our bodies need food to function. Just remember that for us to lose weight permanently and live healthy, we need to make long-term lifestyle changes that will focus on eating the right balance of the right foods.

So, enjoy your food and your LIFE!

E-mail me at babyjackster@yahoo.com