"F" is for Fiber

After reading Sugar Blues by William Duffy, I firmly believed that Twinkies were bad for you because they were loaded with sugar.  Then, after I started to get headaches from eating preservatives (with a 48 hour time lag—my husband figured that one out for me!), I said, "Of course!  Twinkies are loaded with preservatives!  The preservatives are what make them so bad for you!"  Seems like a no-brainer.  Then I thought, calories.  Too many calories.  I don't have enough room in my diet for those calories.  But I don't count calories any more...  

Next came the fake fat scare (Bans have begun in a lot of places here and abroad) and my husband said, "No more trans fat in the house!"  So, I decided, all that hydrogenated glop that passes undigested through your digestive track, possibly lodging in your arteries and giving you a heart attack, that's definitely the worst thing about Twinkies!  

Get this, I was wrong again!  But, I was close:

The clue was in something I heard a long time ago from a health food addict. This person called all junk food, "Fiberless fast food."  I didn't really understand the implications of that at the time, but, in retrospect, I believe they hit the nail on the head.

First of all, what is fiber?  It's anything bulky (think fruit, vegetables, nuts, grains, etc.) that helps push food through your digestive tract.  (Remember the last lesson on digestion and elimination?  How's that gonna happen if nothing is moving?  And how's it gonna move if it's like goo?  [Try the "Twinkie in the glass of water" experiment.]) 

 

So you see, I'm not pushing health food.  And I'm not pushing "diet" food (iceberg lettuce and celery, yuck!)  I'm pushing the, well, "pushing" foods.  I'm just saying, if you want to be healthy and lose weight, fiber is your friend. 

 

So, go ahead and eat that Twinkie if you really want to.  

Just make sure you roll it in sesame seeds first.

A Sticky Wicket: The Problem with Sugar

It's time to talk about sugar.  

I've heard some overweight women say, "I've never had a problem with sugar, but give me a loaf of garlic bread and I can't resist" or some such nonsense.  I think that is pure subterfuge, which means, when we are addicted we try to divert attention away from our addiction.  I know this.

So.  Let's get real.

I think if we do, we will admit that most of us have a sugar problem.  But why?  Because it's addictive.  (Think "white powder.")

If you really enjoy eating refined white sugar now and then, and you are really able to control yourself, go ahead (you're the boss), but your body is not going to get any nutrients from it.  (To quote the apostle Paul, "All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable" 1 Corinthians 10:23 :))  And sugar frequently comes in a lethal mix with trans fat and chemicals.  What it comes down to is this:  You want to be thin and you want to be healthy.  

So try this experiment.  

Go without sugar for one day.  Just 24 hours.  By the next day you will be amazed how sweet everything tastes without it.  And when you eat it, it will taste too sweet.  It will have lost its hold on you.

This is your mission.  Should you choose to accept it.

Oh, by the way, your tummy will go away, and you'll start sculpting your waist.  But you think I'm kidding...