The Hay Diet

The premise behind the Hay diet is that the body can heal itself if given time and the raw materials it needs. In the case of obesity, the Hay diet’s premise is that by eating the right foods in the right combinations and eliminating the foods that hinder your natural defences, your body will be able to operate more efficiently and eliminate excess fat stores with relative ease. It is a natural approach, using neither supplements nor special foods – in fact, the Hay diet stresses the principle of eating whole, unprocessed foods. The cornerstones of the Hay diet programme are that fresh fruits and vegetables should make up at least fifty per cent of the foods consumed and that dieters should not mix protein and starch in the same meal.

The Hay diet was developed following the first-hand experience of Dr William Hay. Dr Hay’s experience with severe high blood pressure, heart and kidney disease led him to explore alternative treatments after traditional medical professionals basically told him he was living on borrowed time. Dr Hay’s chance meeting with a naturopath provided him with the tools to reverse his fate, simply by following a healthy, balanced diet composed of natural foods.

Hay dieters follow a meal plan that is often described as confusing, but with the publication of a number of clearer books, including ‘Get Well with the Hay Diet’ and ‘The Hay Diet Made Easy’ by Jackie Habgood, the average person hoping to lose weight with the Hay diet will have little difficulty adhering to the plan. Basically, the Hay diet is a ‘food combining diet’ – this means that carbohydrates (starchy foods, like potatoes and bread) and concentrated proteins (such as meats and cheeses) should be taken at separate meals.
   
The basic rules of the Hay diet are:

1. Don’t eat proteins and acid fruits with carbohydrates in the same meal.

2. Eat vegetables, salads and fruits as the key parts of your diet.

3. Proteins, starches and fats should be consumed in small quantities.

4. Exclude refined and processed foods, such as white flour, white sugar and margarine – instead choose whole grains, unprocessed starches and other ‘whole’ foods.

5. Leave at least 4.5 hours between meals based on different food groups.

The Hay diet rules are based on the principle that digestion is aided by separating proteins, which require a more acid environment to digest, from starches, which digest most effectively in an alkaline situation. The theory is that when starches and proteins are mixed in the same meal, the acids required to digest the protein effectively inhibit the alkaline reduction of starch. This conflict may be responsible for a wide range of health problems.

In addition to being a successful weight loss programme, the Hay diet is celebrated as providing relief for people suffering from high blood pressure, arthritis, indegestion, asthma, diabetes, allergies, skin problems, migraine, fatigue and some mental illnesses. Hay diet followers, despite their initial circumstance, tend to report an increase in energy, vitality and quality of life.

The GI Diet - A Guide To Weight Loss With The GI Diet

The GI Diet is based on the glycemic index (GI), a device developed by Dr David Jenkins, a nutrition professor at the University of Toronto. The GI essentially ranks all foods by the amount of time it takes your body to convert the food into fuel (glucose). The faster the body generates glucose from the food, the higher the GI.

The faster your body converts food to energy, the sooner you’re likely to need a pick-me-up snack to get more energy. Many leading nutrition experts agree, peaks and troughs in blood sugar levels are one of the key reasons people fail when dieting. Using the glycemic index diet, people are encouraged to consume foods with a lower GI number, which take longer to break down and convert to fuel for the body – this provides a sustained level of energy, and leads to less impulse or binge eating.

To succeed at the GI Diet, one only needs to consume foods with a lower GI number – the GI Diet book by Rick Gallop categorises foods into a traffic light-style system where red foods should be avoided, yellow foods should be consumed only occasionally and green foods are to be eaten liberally.
   
Additionally, the GI diet is convenient. As it doesn’t restrict food types or groups, the GI diet is suitable for all the family. Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding can also follow the GI diet without worrying about missing vital nutrients. This means dieters don’t have to make one meal for the rest of the family and one meal for themselves. Because the GI diet doesn’t require you to count calories, fat or carbohydrate grams, or “points”, it is easy to follow both at home and when dining out.

Diets based on the glycemic index are celebrated as easy to follow, realistic and beneficial to dieters seeking a long-term solution to managing their weight and gaining a healthier lifestyle. The GI Diet offers a unique approach, enabling participants to change their eating habits for a lifetime. What’s more, dieters who suffer from hypertension, high cholesterol or type-two diabetes stand a reasonable chance of improving their overall health, and in some cases people are able to reduce their dependency on medication. As the GI diet is fairly flexible, even those with allergies to wheat, gluten or dairy intolerances are able to reap the rewards of following the programme.

Leading supermarket chains are beginning to list the GI rating of their own-brand foods and ready meals on packaging so that customers following the GI diet can quickly and easily determine whether a food or meal is acceptable for their eating plan. Tesco in particular offers an exceptionally wide range of ready meals and own-brand foods which are specifically targeted at GI dieters.

F2 Diet - A Guide To the F2 Diet

The F2 diet follows on from the initial F-Plan Diet by Audrey Eyton. In the new-and-improved F2, dieters are encouraged to swap their lifetime of bad eating habits for good, healthy ones. The F2 diet proclaims that its followers will never go hungry, benefit from improved digestive health, lowered cholesterol and stable blood sugar levels, and most of all, F2 dieters can expect to shed fat faster than dieters on any other programme out there sehatip.blogspot.com.

The original, F-Plan diet focused largely on a high fibre eating plan. The F2 plan concentrates on getting the ‘right type’ of fibre, which is what stimulates the rapid fat reduction and other digestive benefits. The F2 diet’s author has incorporated a great deal of recent research from dieticians and nutritional scientists to enable dieters considering the F2 diet to see the benefits and practice the programme with ease.

Eyton’s F2 Diet book comes with simple recipes, easy to follow menus and a host of practical ideas to make it easy for dieters to adapt to the F2 plan. The F2 diet relies on dieters using the glycemic index, in conjunction with fat and calorie information to establish healthy habits and a varied, balanced diet.

The F2 eating plan recommends a minimum fibre intake and a maximum fat intake each day. F2 dieters are encouraged to consume the ‘right’ kinds of both fat and fibre to get the most from the diet. To achieve those recommendations, there are 10 straight-forward rules for the F2 diet:

1. At breakfast, have half a grapefruit for its GI-lowering impact and vitamin C. Pink grapefruits are sweeter, so they help you resist adding sugar. You may also have a bowl of a high fibre cereal – the higher the wheat fibre in your cereal, the quicker the food will pass through your digestive system. Slice a just ripe greenish banana into your cereal.

2. Have a low-fat probiotic drink or yoghurt each day. The word 'probiotic' means they contain live bacteria capable of surviving the journey through your digestive system to supplement the good bacteria in your gut.

3. Eat one or two servings of an F2 soup or salad each day. Red lentil and tomato soup or carrot, almond and raisin salad are excellent.

4. Eat large quantities of vegetables and pulses. Beans, parsnips, chickpeas, broccoli and spinach are beneficial.

5. In addition to a banana and grapefruit, eat at least two pieces of fruit every day.

6. Eat two slices of fibre rich wholemeal bread each day.

7. Enjoy grain-based foods like whole wheat pasta, brown basmati rice, couscous, noodles, barley and bulgur wheat.

8. Ration the fat containing foods that are making you overweight.

9. Choose fish in preference to meat or follow a vegetarian menu. Limit red or processed meat to no more than two portions a week and select only organic or free range animal products.

10. Drink water, teas and most low calorie drinks freely and coffee in moderation. Avoid alcohol and fruit juices.

Like many other popular diet programmes, the F2 diet sings the praises of organic, free-range, fresh foods as these are easier on the digestive system and typically havea positive impact on a person’s health. The F2 diet also encourages dieters to avoid processed foods, ready meals and refined carbohydrates as these have hidden costs to both digestive and overall health.