5 foods to help you lose weight
I’ve found these five foods helped me when I needed to lose a few pounds. They will keep you away from the biscuit tin and keep you on track!
1. Xylitol/Erythritol
Why?
Xylitol is in unsweetened chewing gum. That’s how I discovered it as an ingredient – well, partly. I was looking for something that wasn’t Stevia, or Aspartame, as I can taste them a mile off. I wanted something that tasted like sugar but without the calories. Having examined my favourite chewing gums in great detail, xylitol kept coming up as the sugar substitute, and when I discovered it was available to buy in my local Waitrose, I decided to try it. Xylitol occurs naturally in small amounts in plums, strawberries, cauliflower, and pumpkin; humans and many other animals make trace amounts during metabolism of carbs. The way its produced means that it looks like white granulated sugar. What’s really great about it is that it is almost as sweet as sugar but not quite, and you wouldn’t know the difference if you put it on your cereals your porridge or anything that you might usually sweeten with sugar. You can even use it for baking although you would have to adjust the amount of other ingredients in your cakes or pastries. It has also been shown in studies to be beneficial for our teeth, unlike sugar, and to be helpful for diabetics who wish to sweeten food. Erythritol is similar to xylitol and in my view interchangeable with xylitol. You can bake or cook with it as you can with xylitol. I do have a sweet tooth, although it is lessening as I get older, is the answer to counter my sweet tooth. If I’m really craving something sweet, I have some frozen fruit (and more on this particular type of ingredient later) with some full fat yoghurt sprinkled with xylitol. So this is a great food for weight loss as it has no calorific downside. A couple of things to note about xylitol – one is, don’t overdo it, as it can cause unpleasant stomach side effects, if you know what I mean! Also, don’t give it to your dog! Links for further reading https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324155 https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/sugar-substitutes-xylitol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xylitol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erythritol2. Frozen Fruit
Why?
Frozen fruit as a dessert or added to muesli or just as a simple snack was a real gamechanger for me. About 15 years ago I went to see a diet specialist and she recommended snacking on frozen Medjool dates. Now I actually really dislike those kind of dates, but as she was suggesting it was ok to eat frozen fruit, I thought I’d experiment with other fruits, and OMG what a discovery! For example, frozen bananas – so yummy mixed with Greek Yoghurt (and more of that later too). Or frozen raspberries or blueberries with my muesli. Or even frozen grapes or cherries in the summer when you want a cooling snack.
Now why frozen fruit, why not just the unfrozen version? Well, for two reasons: one is because I think that fruit often tastes better when it’s frozen. For example, how many times have you bought fresh blueberries and found that there are quite a few that are tasteless or are on the turn, meaning they have lost their flavour or are soggy? And bananas – you’ve left them out for a few days and they are now starting to brown and look unappetising? If you buy fresh fruit and freeze it yourself, your fruit will last and taste so much better, in my opinion, particularly if you are using it along with other ingredients. You can also use frozen berries in your sparkling water to zhoozh it up a bit!
The other reason to use frozen fruit for weight loss is because it has texture and bite. I like food that has crunch, that I need to use my teeth for. I’m not a smoothy fan, although of course you could make delicious smoothies with frozen fruit. No, I want to feel like I’ve eaten something so I feel satisfied, and frozen fruit fits that bill perfectly. Now it has to be said, be careful with your teeth. My dentist isn’t a fan of me eating frozen fruit, so when I do, l let the fruit defrost just a tad before eating, but it still retains that texture that I love.
And of course there are very few calories in berries, in particular, so you are deriving satisfaction from eating something that will not pile on the pounds.
3. Greek Yoghurt
Why?
Greek yoghurt is the most delicious, luxurious and filling yoghurt you can buy, in my opinion. It is the crème de la crème of yoghurts, particularly when it’s 5% fat. What is different about Greek yoghurt? Well, it’s thicker than regular yoghurt, and that’s because it is strained – the whey is removed. And it contains more milk than regular yoghurt due to the way it’s made.
It’s also good for your microbiome – it is a type of probiotic, and probiotics are a combination of live beneficial bacteria and/or yeasts that naturally live in your body. Greek yoghurt is thought – and I stress thought here, as more research is needed on this – to support the good bacteria in your gut.
Now I’m talking about unsweetened Greek yoghurt here, not the flavoured kind. But what I find is that Greek yoghurt is so much more satisfying than regular yoghurt. Regular yoghurt is thinner, runnier, because it contains less fat than the Greek variety, and therefore is less tasty. Now you say well if it has more fat, why are you recommending it as a dieter’s best friend? Well, because you need less of it to feel full. I eat it every day for breakfast. It goes on top of my muesli and fruit, or on my porridge – oatmeal – and I even add it to my Christmas pudding instead of cream! It tastes luxurious, and if you are trying to cut down on your calories or eat foods that are good for your gut, this is one to try.
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/greek-yogurt-vs-yogurt
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323169
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/14598-probiotics
4. Broad Beans/Fava Beans
Why?
Oh I used to hate broad beans – aka fava beans! Tasteless, stringy – mind, it was probably due to the overcooking which was de rigueur, back in the day. But now they are my absolute go to if I’m looking for a satisfying, starchy veg to add to a stir fry or as an accompaniment to a meat or fish dish. Higher in fibre than potatoes, and with a lower glycaemic index, meaning they won’t cause a blood sugar spike, they are a great alternative. Now don’t get me wrong, I love potatoes, but if I want to keep my blood sugar stable and fill myself up with a fibre rich, filling veg, I’ll go for broad beans any time.
So how do I eat them? Well, one of my favourite lunches is to stir fry some veg, say peppers, mushrooms, maybe an aubergine or courgette, then cook some broad beans separately, then add them to the stir fry and serve with some feta cheese on top – delicious and nutritious – and most importantly, satisfying.
If you really hate broad beans, try frozen peas – sprinkle some on your stir fry, no need to cook them first, or cook some Brussel sprouts separately and add them. All these veggies are deliciously satisfying and healthy for your blood, your gut and your heart.
Links for further reading
Pasta/Rice/Potatoes – reheated
Why
Yes, why I hear you cry – what nonsense is this? Well, the research is in its early stages, but small studies have shown that cooking, cooling then re-heating pasta, rice and even bread reduces the rise in our blood glucose levels. Now why is that a good thing? Well, a spike, or a high rise, in our blood sugar levels can cause all sorts of problems for us – too much sugar in your blood thickens it, and a spike will cause a sugar rush, followed by a sugar crash, causing cravings and tiredness.
To quote from the MD Anderson Cancer Centre: In the long term, repeated spikes in your blood sugar can cause heart problems, kidney problems, problems with eyesight, and nerve issues like neuropathy, where you lose feeling in fingers and toes.
And we don’t want that, now do we.
But since most of us love potatoes, bread and rice, and we don’t want to give them up, why not eat them once cooled and reheated? This is what I do on most days. For example, if my husband and I are planning on eating a plate of pasta with, say, a tomato sauce, I’ll cook my pasta in advance, run it through cold water then pop it in the fridge to cool, then when we’re ready to eat, I’ll cook his while I reheat mine. For rice, I do the same, but it is best to cool it quickly, then reheat it later that day or the following day at most – there are some studies which seem to show you can get food poisoning from eating rice that has been left to stand and not either eaten straight away or chilled. So although the evidence is still scant on whether this is a low carb way of eating, er, carbs, it’s definitely my way!
I also do this with bread – I freeze ready sliced dark rye bread, then toast it straight from the freezer.
Here I am on YouTube discussing these five foods:
Links for further reading
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-29629761
https://joinzoe.com/learn/blood-sugar-spikes-heart-health
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