I grew up with knowing for certain fat was the enemy, in the bad old days of counting the calories in everything that passed my lips. It took over 30 years of dieting misery to finally find a book which made sense … by which time I was a UK size 22 ... And I hated myself!

Learning that fat is actually good for me (the good fats of course!) radically changed all the wrong information and bad habits I'd absorbed for years (along with all those extra pounds!).

This book isn't a fad, or a quick fix - it's full of scientifically proven, thoroughly researched methods that work - I know. I went down to a size 10 without feeling hungry for a second - and I was eating more than ever before. Honestly - you have to eat regularly - no starving involved!

Even when I was at my slimmest (without ever recognising I was slim) ... I was a size 14. This healthy way to eat changed my body shape - I'd never been a size 10 before - I thought I had to live with the fact my bottom really was big in everything!

I started without any intention of losing weight. I was crashing rapidly towards the big 50, and years of neglect had indeed taken their toll. I realised that I wasn't ready to grow old yet. I found 'Dr Nicholas Perricone's Programme' which said I could 'Grow young' - I liked the sound of that!

I don't agree with any book that makes revolutionary assertions that you'll have dramatic weight loss in days. That's been the basis of so many diet failures. When we don't look like catwalk models overnight, as promised, we give up. Then we pile on even more pounds comfort eating to console ourselves, because we feel hopeless and helpless … it has to be our fault it didn't work - right? No - wrong!

I especially liked this book because it makes us look at what food is all about. It gets back to basics, and focuses on what's really important - what we put in our mouths. We have to learn to care about what we eat, and understand the way it works to fuel our body.

Would you fill your Ferrari up with sticky, sugary cream buns? Well, you have to start with knowing you're worth treating well - like a prized sports car - and you have to give yourself only the best.

You'll start thinking this diet is expensive. Not when you're replacing a fortune spent on snacks and 'empty' calories. If you don't have them in the house then you can't eat them (I've hidden your car keys!). Only joking … because feeling deprived is the cause of most diets never making it past the first day of PMS, the boss being particularly sadistic, a friend letting us down, a partner being selfish etc etc … you know the list can go on for ever.

 

Seeds and  unsalted nuts are  easy to carry with  you, so you never  need to feel  hungry between  meals.

 

Now you've thrown out the junk 'food' (it's not food as in fuel for a well run body - it's poison!) … now you have to throw out all those years of false information. 

Start with a clean slate and an open mind. I've since found Paul McKenna's book and hypnosis CD 'I Can Make You Thin', which is the best way to get down to the reasons why we overeat - complete with simple solutions.

Learn to care about yourself. This is the most important thing - for everyone to feel worthwhile and valued. Women especially put everyone else first - but we're no use to anyone if we're not looking after ourselves. When you feel fit and healthy you have more energy to care for others - and you'll do it happily, not grudgingly because inside we feel miserable, and every little thing feels like such an effort …

• Just focus on being healthy - that's the main priority. Forget the weight issue.
  

• Stop putting pressure on yourself today. You're great exactly as you are now.

• Don't think about how much you have to lose, numbers don't matter - how you feel does.
  

• There's no timescale to becoming healthy, gradual loss is best.
  

 

Follow the simple principle of eating protein first, then complex carbohydrates, and end with fruit.  You'll learn that even healthy fruit can cause you to gain weight. You do need to read the book thoroughly to understand how different food groups work and interact.

 

Don't weigh yourself - I don't own any scales, because I've seen how others torment themselves considering every pound so vital - to the detriment of their health. It's really silly because we fluctuate all the time, so why go through agony because we've gained a pound - it will go again!

I've heard of women who have gone over their calorie allowance for the day, and they've gone to bed to stop themselves eating any more!

We're here to live, love and be happy - not to punish ourselves … no wonder so many fail if we treat ourselves like that.

You know you've lost weight because your clothes will become looser … and this is the best bit - you'll have to go shopping for new ones!

I know I hid underneath men's baggy sweatshirts - never again! Don't think to yourself 'I'll wait until I'm a size whatever' - care about how you look today. Clothes are cheap, and you could become an eBay addict like me … It's exciting finding a bargain, and even more exciting when you find that size was too big, and you're ready for the next size down.

Having fun with fashion, which I hadn't done since my      20s, was one of the biggest motivators for me to keep      eating healthily.       I love how stylist Gok Wan has taught women of      whatever size to really love themselves, and make the      most of their individual shapes - watch his programmes      as inspiration.

Here are his naughty bits from YouTube - he really is as funny as he seems on TV! 

 

 

Now for some good news! If you've reached this far I'm sure you're thinking I must have lived at the gym to lose all my weight (how much I still don't know or care!) … But I didn't do ANY exercise! I've had a long existing back problem which means I can't exercise.

Also, I live with chronic pain daily, so the temptation to comfort eat was very strong. That's why I was so happy to find the diet that suited me for life - it removed all my cravings, and finally kept me satisfied.

I hope that proves that anyone can lose weight - if they really want to.

'Dr Nicholas Perricone's Programme' will be the start of you feeling better 2day! (And that's not a mad, extravagant claim!) You've taken the first step towards caring about YOU.

Feel really good that you're taking action against the increased risk of diabetes, cancer and heart disease … calling junk food 'poison' is sadly true.

 

More information will be added regularly … this site is where you'll find help to care about yourself. Keep checking the Science Sense page for the latest studies and research.

 

Paul McKenna is well known for his techniques to retrain our minds to help us lose bad habits. 'I Can Make You Thin' is both a book and a CD, and is the best method to get behind the reasons we comfort eat, and find it difficult to lose weight. It's both simple and effective. You learn how to make peace with food - it's not something we can live without, so we need to incorporate healthy attitudes into our daily lives.   One to one hypnotherapy is extremely helpful in achieving a permanent solution to battling with diets. Central Hypnosis UK provide experienced therapists in a town near you, and you're fully protected with a money back guarantee. Not that you're likely to need it because they have a 92% success rate!

 

Olive Oil and Cholesterol

Researchers at the University of Minnesota, for one, have discovered that while Greek, Cretan and other Mediterranean men consumed almost as much dietary fat as Americans, they had much lower rates of heart disease. The difference was attributed to the Mediterranean's consumption of extra virgin olive oil, which is largely monounsaturated fat.

Researchers at the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid in Spain found in a study that a diet rich in extra virgin olive oil helped to lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and, perhaps more importantly, stimulated an increase in HDL (good) cholesterol.

Researchers at the University of Nijmegen in the Netherlands discovered that simply following a low fat diet reduced total cholesterol but HDL cholesterol also declined; in contrast, a high fat diet based on extra virgin olive oil also reduced total cholesterol but HDL cholesterol actually increased.

This is all very good for those concerned about their cholesterol levels, especially the good HDL cholesterol, and the effects on the human circulatory system.

 

 

About Cholesterol

Cholesterol is not a water-soluble substance: it floats around in our bodies, attaching itself to proteins and making them lipoproteins.

Two types of cholesterol are formed. LDL or low density lipoproteins, is the so-called "bad" cholesterol; it accumulates in bodily tissues and sticks to artery walls as plaque, causing arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) if left unchecked.

The other type is HDL or high density lipoproteins, the "good" cholesterol, which helps prevent artery-clogging deposits.

The levels of these two cholesterols are affected by the types of fat that we take in daily. The structures of different fats are described as saturated, mono-unsaturated, and poly-unsaturated.

Saturated fats come primarily from animal meats. They are thought the greatest damage to our health, because they increase levels of LDL resulting in arteriosclerosis.

Poly-unsaturated fats come mainly from vegetables, seeds, nuts, and grains. They lower the body's overall cholesterol level, but to do so they reduce both LDL and HDL. You may want LDL lowered, but you would want HDL increased.

Monounsaturated fats are found in varying amounts in all fats. They lower LDL but promote increases in HDL. Thus, the best oil you can use is that has little saturated and polyunsaturated fats content but has plenty of monounsaturated fats.

Fortunately, such an oil exists: olive oil. In olive oil you find some of the lowest levels of saturated and polyunsaturated fats, averaging only 10 to 15% for saturated and 8 to 9% for polyunsaturated. More significantly, olive oil has by far the highest level of monounsaturated fat among all oils, about 75% to 80%.

Olive Oil and Rheumatoid Arthritis

A study in Greece showed that people who had the lowest lifetime consumption of extra virgin olive oil had two and a half times greater probability of developing rheumatoid arthritis than those with the highest lifetime consumption. If you know somebody who suffers from rheumatoid arthritis, you must be familiar with the pain and inconvenience it can cause.

A rheumatologist of the Arthritis Foundation, which did the research, cites that adding olive oil to your diet could help you protect yourself against rheumatoid arthritis. And, the spokesperson added, since the type of oil consumed in Greece is extra virgin olive oil, that offers additional protection.

Olive Oil and Antioxidants

Among the major components of extra virgin olive oil are antioxidants. Olive oil provides beta carotene (pro-vitamin A) and tocopherol (vitamin E) which are excellent buffers of acids produced in the gastrointestinal tract and those resulting from body metabolism.

Extra virgin olive oil contains 88% of its vitamin E in the form of alpha-tocopherol, which is easily synthesised by the body. These are very important antioxidants that prevent the oxidation of LDLs. Such oxidation can cause damage to ordinary cells, nerve cells and arteries and lead to arteriosclerosis, coronary heart disease, or even cancer.

Olive Oil and Aging

Medical studies have indicated that diets which are deficient in vitamin E accelerate the breakdown of certain fatty acids, a process which invariably leads to aging. The vitamin E content in olive oil is thought to provide a defence against such effects, and thus help maintain mental faculties and muscular control longer and better.

Among other benefits, the vitamin A helps prevent and minimise the development of skin wrinkles.

As we get older, our digestive capacity becomes markedly reduced resulting in more difficulty to absorb nutrients from food, especially vitamins and minerals. Olive oil is very digestible and its nutrients are easier to digest. It also has beneficent effects in aiding digestion and stimulating the appetite.

Another problem associated with aging - bone calcification - can be rectified by olive oil consumption. Studies have shown that a diet containing enough oleates as well as a moderate supply of essential fatty acids is needed for healthy bone mineralisation - a process that aids the developing bones in children and prevents calcium loss in adults.

Olive oil is nature's storehouse of many healthful nutrients like vitamins A, E, D and K.

Other nutrients found in olive oil are:

• Magnesium-rich chlorophyll encourages formation of healthy red blood cells.

• Squalene, a precursor to phytoesterols, helps reduce acidity.

• Phytoesterols (in the form of beta-sitosterol) assists in preventing cholesterol absorption.

• Caffeic and gallic nutrients stimulate the flow of bile which helps alkalise food coming out of the stomach, reducing stress on the pancreas.

• Phenolic compounds protect against fermentation of fats and cholesterol, and may promote higher production of fat-digesting enzymes in the pancreas.

• Cycloartenol lowers the amount of cholesterol in free circulation and increases excretion of bile to mop up excess acidity and increase alkalinity of the food coming out of the stomach.

Olive oil has been shown to have beneficial effects on virtually every aspect of body function, development and maintenance, including brain development, bone structure, digestion, aging process, the condition of skin and hair, metabolism, and on plaque formation in the blood vessels.

There is so much scientific evidence now that establishes the health benefits of olive oil. You will be hard put to find any other food that has so many positive effects on so many different parts of the body and their functions.

These health benefits can be derived from all forms of olive oil; however, refined oils undergo a lot of high temperatures during processing which destroys or alters the antioxidants, and thus have very little, if any, vitamins left. In order to gain the maximum medicinal benefit, you should use only extra virgin olive oil.

See this link for a full description of different types of olive oils.

Studies on the benefits of good fats in the diet can be found on the Science Sense page.