Yet another road map to weight loss offers renewed hope to dieters. This time the telegenic Liz Vaccariello from Prevention magazine, told viewers of the Rachael Ray show that eating 400-calorie meals four times a day could lead to a swift drop in poundage. In fact one disciple dropped six pounds in just two days. Swell, right?
Before you make a grab for Vaccariello's book, "400 Calorie Fix," consider the results of a survey published by Consumer Reports, documenting the eating and lifestyle habits of 21,632 readers. These respondents were divided into three groups: the "successful losers," defined as those who had kept weight off for at least three years, the "failed dieters" and the "never overweight." Remarkably, more than half the successful losers reported shedding the weight solo -- without the aid of a commercial diet program, book, diet pill, or medical treatment.
This mirrors Consumer Reports' 2002 survey, which found that 83 percent of so-called superlosers did it on their own.
Obesity has been linked to countless factors, from obvious ones like our sedentary lifestyle and the ubiquity of low-cost fast-food restaurants to more controversial ones, such as pollution, air conditioning and higher incidence of older moms.
Maybe it's time to stop the navel gazing and resist the temptation to snag the latest diet fad quick fix.
Consumer Reports concluded that successful losers, like the never overweight group, shared certain lifestyle traits: they ate healthful foods and they exercised regularly. The 400-calorie fix offers the same old, same old (minus the exercise reminder). The only difference is new packaging, plus Rachael Ray's unofficial endorsement.
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