Whether its the 5:2 or 16:8 plans, fasting diets have won celebrity fans in recent years, including Jennifer Aniston.

The Morning Show and Friends star revealed last year that she avoids solid foods for 16 hours of every day, only eating during a restricted eight-hour window to help control her weight.

The 5:2 plan, under which you eat normally for five days and then strictly control calories for two, also has its share of followers, with Phillip Schofield and model Miranda Kerr among those reported to have used it to keep in shape.

But research from the University of California, San Francisco, recently poured cold water on the idea that simply restricting your hours of eating was enough to shift the pounds.

They tasked a group of volunteers with following a 16:8 fasting diet, while others ate three meals a day whenever they wanted.

Both groups saw a modest fall in their weight, suggesting the fasting plan made virtually no difference.

The diet is based on the 8 Hour Diet book, by author David Zinczenko and editor-in-chief of Mens Health Peter Moore, who argue that a daily fasting period gives the body the time it needs to process food and burn away extra fat.

Scottish dietitian Dr Carrie Ruxton, who herself follows a 16:8 type plan, believes limiting your hours of eating can be useful but only if you are cutting out calories within that timeframe.

She said: My take on this study is its good news that you can lose weight either way. For a long time Ive believed there are many ways to lose weight and it depends on your own personal circumstances, preferences and the way you want to live your life. Too many people have been given the lie that theres a perfect diet that you have to follow if you want to lose weight or be healthy and youre made to feel guilty.

If you eat carbohydrates youre told, Oh no, you shouldnt be having that, or its the same if you eat fat, so its almost like for everything you want to eat theres somebody leaning over your shoulder telling you you cant eat it.

It comes down to calories at the end of the day so whichever method works for you to cut your calories and create a calorie deficit, that is how you will lose weight best.

Im careful with my weight because I have quite a sedentary job. Even though I exercise I spend most of my day in front of my computer. So I tend to do the 16:8. This morning I got up and made my breakfast, put it in the fridge and ate it around noon. I go and do something active in the morning and then I have a late breakfast and at eight at night I stop eating and thats it for the rest of the day. That works for me.

I dont have a lot of weight to come off, its just sometimes Ill stand on the scales and think, Oh dear, thats another couple of pounds I need to lose, so I do the 16:8 for a week or so and it gets back under control again.

Its something I do on and off. There have been studies showing that people who will manage to stay in a healthy weight range for all of their adult life, are people who are just now and again doing a little check and keeping an eye on it so that they arent going too far out of their range. Those who deny it and let the problem build up will find it harder.

Carrie believes the best way to keep your weight under control is to do frequent, but not daily, checks so that you can act quickly if you happen to have gained a couple of pounds.

She said: The better way of doing it is every week or two just have a little check, it could be by trying on the same pair of jeans or trousers, or it could be standing on the scales, and if you see your weight creeping up tackle it quickly by limiting calories.

You could eat less at mealtimes with a smaller plate of food, or follow 5:2 it doesnt work for me because I cant eat a small amount for a whole day, but some people like that or you could try 16:8, or go to a slimmers club for moral support, or see if your gym does a healthy eating plan. Even the liquid diets are worth considering. There is evidence showing this is very helpful for reversing diabetes, so there are lots of options and its about finding whats right for you.

In 2012, the BBC broadcast a Horizon episode called Eat, Fast and Live Longer, presented by Dr Michael Mosley in which the idea of intermittent fasting was first introduced on a major platform. He then published The Fast Diet book in January 2013, which was closely followed by a similar book from former BBC journalist, Kate Harrison called The 5:2 Diet Book. Their similar plans proved to be the order of the day, with both books becoming bestsellers.

Under the 5:2 diet, you eat broadly what you like five days a week within the recommended calorie range. Dieters are then recommended to eat just a quarter of their usual calorie intake so going down to 500 calories for women and 600 for men for two consecutive days.

16: 8

This diet is potentially a little easier to follow, but it is a seven-day-a-week plan which sees you only eat solids eight hours out of 24.

Generally, followers of the plan will eat between midday and 8pm and, outside of those eight hours, will stick to unsweetened liquids such as water, tea and coffee.

Could soups and shakes replacing meals help type 2 diabetes-sufferers put the disease into remission?

Read more here:
Intermittent fasting for weight loss: Does it work and what's the best plan for you? - Press and Journal

This post was first published in 2017 but has been reviewed and updated in October 2020.

Theres a lot of confusing information and advice out there around sugar.

Does it cause cancer? Does sugar feed cancer cells, making them grow more aggressively? And how does the sugar we consume through food and drink affect our health, and what can be done about this?

In this post were taking a long hard look at sugar.

Well focus specifically on sugar and cancer, busting some myths and covering what researchers are studying in the hopes of finding new ways to treat people with cancer.

And well cover why the amount of sugar in our diets is cause for concern. A high-sugar diet can be bad news when it comes to cancer risk, but not for the reasons that often appear in the headlines.

But first the basics, what our bodies need sugar for and where it comes from in our diet.

Search for sugar and cancer on the internet and it doesnt take long to find alarming warnings that sugar is the white death and cancers favourite food.

But this idea that sugar is responsible for kick-starting or fuelling a cancers growth is an over-simplification of some complicated biology. Lets start with what sugar actually is.

Sugar comes in many different forms. The simplest form is just as a single molecule, such as glucose and fructose. These molecules of simple sugars can also stick together, either in pairs or as longer chains of molecules. All of these combinations of molecules are carbohydrates, and are our bodys main source of energy.

The form of sugar most of us will be familiar with is table sugar, which is a simple sugar that dissolves in water and gives things a sweet taste. Its proper name is sucrose, and its made up of crystals of glucose and fructose. Table sugar is refined, meaning its been processed to extract it from a natural source (usually sugar beet). Unprocessed foods can be high in simple sugars too, for example honey (also made mostly of glucose and fructose) is nearly pure sugar.

As chains of sugar get longer, they lose their sweet taste and wont dissolve in water anymore. These chains are called polysaccharides and form a large component of starchy foods. Starchy foods such as rice, bread, pasta and vegetables like potatoes might not taste sweet, but they are high in carbohydrate too.

Sugar, in some form, is in many things we eat. And this is good, because our bodies rely heavily on it to work.

Nearly every single part of our body is made of living cells. And its these cells that help us see, breathe, feel, think and much more.

While their jobs in the body may differ, one thing all these cells have in common is that they need energy to survive and perform their duties.

Cells somehow need to turn nutrients in our diet into a form of energy that they can use, called ATP. It would take a long time to explain this (if youre interested you might want to read more), but simplistically the process starts with glucose.

Glucose is the basic fuel that powers every single one of our cells. If we eat or drink things that are high in glucose, such as fizzy drinks, the glucose gets absorbed straight into our blood ready for our cells to use. If a starchy food, such as pasta, is on the menu, the enzymes in our saliva and digestive juices break it down and convert it into glucose. And if for some reason theres no carbohydrate in our diet, cells can turn fat and protein into glucose as a last resort, because they need glucose to survive.

Its here that sugar and cancer start to collide, because cancer is a disease of cells.

Cancer cells usually grow quickly, multiplying at a fast rate, which takes a lot of energy. This means they need lots of glucose. Cancer cells also need lots of other nutrients too, such as amino acids and fats; its not just sugar they crave.

Heres where the myth that sugar fuels cancer was born: if cancer cells need lots of glucose, then cutting sugar out of our diet must help stop cancer growing, and could even stop it developing in the first place. Unfortunately, its not that simple. All our healthy cells need glucose too, and theres no way of telling our bodies to let healthy cells have the glucose they need, but not give it to cancer cells.

Theres no evidence that following a sugar-free diet lowers the risk of getting cancer, or boosts the chances of surviving if you are diagnosed.

And following severely restricted diets with very low amounts of carbohydrate could damage health in the long term by eliminating foods that are good sources of fibre and vitamins.

This is particularly important for cancer patients, because some treatments can result in weight loss and put the body under a lot of stress. So poor nutrition from restrictive diets could also hamper recovery, or even be life-threatening.

Although theres no evidence that cutting carbohydrates from our diet will help treat cancer, important research has shown that understanding the abnormal ways that cancer cells make energy could lead to new treatments.

Back in the 50s, a scientist called Otto Warburg noticed that cancer cells use a different chemical process from normal cells to turn glucose into energy.

Healthy cells use a series of chemical reactions in small cellular batteries called mitochondria. The Warburg Effect, as it was dubbed following Ottos discovery, describes how cancer cells bypass their batteries to generate energy more rapidly to meet demand.

This shortcut for making energy might be a weakness for some cancers that gives researchers an advantage for developing new treatments.

Firstly, it opens up the potential for developing drugs that shut down cancer cells energy-making processes but dont stop healthy cells making energy. And researchers are testing drugs that work in this way.

Secondly, the abnormal processes in cancer cells can also leave them less able to adapt when faced with a lack of other nutrients, like amino acids. These potential vulnerabilities could lead to treatments too.

But these approaches are still experimental, and we dont know yet if treatments that starve cancer cells are safe or if they work.

Its certainly not grounds for cancer patients to try and do it themselves by restricting their diet during treatment and going back to our earlier point, it could be dangerous to do so.

If cutting out sugar doesnt help treat cancer, why then do we encourage people to cut down on sugary foods in our diet advice?

Thats because there is an indirect link between cancer risk and sugar. Eating lots of sugar over time can cause you to gain weight, and robust scientific evidence shows that being overweight or obeseincreases the risk of 13 different types of cancer. In fact, obesityis the single biggest preventable cause of cancer after smoking, which weve written about many times before.

And a study published in 2019 suggested there could be something else going on. Researchers found that people who drank more sugary drinks had a slightly increased risk of cancer, regardless of body weight. The study took weight in to account, but there are still lots of answered questions. More studies will be needed to investigate this.

Its free (or added) sugar were mainly concerned with when it comes to weight gain, not sugar that is naturally found in foods like fruits and milk or healthy starchy foods like wholegrains and pulses (which people should be eating more of*).

One ofthe easiest waysto lower youradded sugaris tocut down on sugary drinks, which are the largest source of sugar in the UK diet.

Some sugary drinks, such as fizzy drinks and energy drinks, can have more than the recommended daily maximum amount offree sugar in one serving alone. And while these extra calories promote weight gain, they offer no other nutritional benefits.

Other obviously sugary foods such as sweets, chocolate, cakes and biscuits are all best kept as treats too. But some foods that have hidden high amounts of added sugar may surprise you. Some breakfast cereals,ready meals (including healthy ones), pasta sauces and yoghurts can have shocking amounts of sugar added to them. Reading nutrition information labels and checking the ingredients list can help you choose lower sugar options.

While there are steps you and your family can take to cut down on added sugar, making these changes can be easier said than done. And its here that governments need to lend a hand.

Multiple cues push us as customers to stack junk food into our shopping baskets, even if we werent planning to, says Professor Linda Bauld, our cancer prevention champion based at the University ofEdinburgh. Thats why we want the Government to help create a better food environment where the healthy choice is the easy choice for everyone.

Were delighted that thesugar tax (Soft Drinks Industry Levy), which came into effect in April 2018, has been successful in removing a huge amount of sugar from fizzy drinks and our diets. This alongside other measures announced in the UK Governments 2020 obesity strategy should help to prevent millions of cases of overweight and obesity, and cancers linked to excess weight in the future, by reducing the amount of sugar the nation consumes.

But the Government hasnt made much progress in its plan to reduce the amount of sugar in the types of foods that are very popular with children. Four years into the programme, industry has failed to meet the voluntary targets set by Government, showing that a voluntary approach just isnt effective. This is also true for front-of-pack nutrition labelling where we want to see a consistent and mandatory approach.

Its also essential that reducing free sugars in our diets alongside other public health considerations be put at the forefront of the UK Governments upcoming trade deal negotiations in 2020 and beyond.

The story about sugar and cancer is complicated.

On the one hand, sugar itself doesnt cause cancer, and theres no way (at the moment) of specifically starving cancer cells of glucose without harming healthy cells too.

Theres also no evidence that adopting a diet very low in carbohydrate will lower your cancer risk or help as a treatment. And for patients, getting adequate nutrition is important for helping their bodies cope with treatment.

But were concerned about the amount of added sugar people are consuming because its promoting weight gain. And being overweight or obese increases the risk of least 13 types of cancer.

So the take home message is that although banishing sugar wont stop cancer in its tracks, we can all reduce our risk of getting cancer by making healthy choices, and lowering the amount of added sugar in our diets is a good way to help maintain a healthy body weight.

Emma

*While foods like fruit, milk and healthy starchy foods are high in carbohydrate, they have other important nutritional benefits. We should all be eating more whole fruits, vegetables, wholegrains and pulses as these nutritious foods are also high in fibre this not only helps your body digest the natural sugar more slowly (which helps you keep a healthy weight), it also reduces the risk of bowel cancer.

More on this topic

See the rest here:
Sugar and cancer what you need to know - Cancer Research UK - Science Blog

Busy schedules and work leaves many with little time to devote to physical activity, 29-year-old Jay was in for a rude shock when he happened to check his weight- a whopping 136 kilos! This was the much-needed reality check he needed to correct his lifestyle and he spent the next six months transforming himself. His weight loss journey is an incredibly motivating example of how the right diet and workout can change your life. Read to know more!

Name: Jay Thaker

Age: 29 years

Height: 6 feet 1 inch

City: Mumbai

Highest weight recorded: 136 kilos

Weight lost: 32 kilos

Duration it took me to lose weight: 6 months and 12 days

The turning point: I have always been on the heavier side and used to weigh 120-125 kilos! I spent so much money on gym memberships, but since I have a travelling job, it was difficult to take time out for exercise. Having a 'sorted' routine was something I could just wish for. However, the day reality hit me is when I happened to weigh myself while I was working and saw my weight was 136 kilos! I just stood there in shock, it hit me so hard!

My diet: My weight loss journey started in December 2019. I started following Intermittent Fasting, with a relatively smaller fasting window (14:10). By February 2020, I was able to stretch it to 16:8. And then, the pandemic happened. While there were so many negatives to the lockdown, I got the best gift I had been wanting for long- TIME.

March was the time when I actually brought in more focus on my journey. The plan was to create a calorie deficit. I used an app, tracked my calories, and ate two meals a day (just lunch and dinner). Apart from this, I never indulged in snacking. Green tea/ coconut water were the only two things I drank. Day by day, with the help of exercise and strict diet, I managed to sustain my deficit and lose weight, the way I wanted. There were weeks I even lost more than a kilo!

My breakfast: Since I dont eat anything in the morning, I just have a cup of green tea with lemon drops (zero calories, hence its allowed in my fasting hours)

My lunch: Lunch is the best part of the day for me and I ensure that my meal has wholesome nourishment. I have a complete meal (approximately 900-1000 calories), which has 2 rotis, vegetable subzi, a bowl of dal (moong, arhar), very little rice and some curd/ chaas to finish my meal.

My dinner: While lunch is heavy, I keep my dinners light. It is usually something like a large bowl of salad (carrots, beets, tomatoes, cucumbers, apples, pomegranates) with curd. Sometimes, I have a bowl of warm tomato soup.

Pre-workout meal: I used to work out in the morning time, i.e., during my fasting window. Hence, green tea is all I had.

Post-workout meal: I have a scoop of protein shake powder with water after the 2nd round of my workout and sometimes after dinner as well (maintaining an hours gap).

I indulge in: I enjoy everything home-cooked, which is balanced with carbs, proteins and fat. I have to give all the credit to my mom, who helped me! But, if I ever want to snack on something, it would be my favourite bajra thepla or pav bhaji!

My workout: Exercise is something I never compromise on now! I have a fixed 2-hour workout session in the morning- one hour of rigorous badminton and an hour walking/jogging. I do the same in the evenings. Apart from this, I also try and take out 30 minutes during the day to indulge in ab workouts and weight training exercises at home. I use a resistance band which ensures that isn't too much muscle loss due to extensive cardio.

Low-calorie recipes I swear by: Veggies+fruit salad with curd and brown bread sandwich once in a while.

Fitness secrets I unveiled: If you want to start your weight loss journey, learn two words and implement them CALORIE DEFICIT. Intermittent fasting worked really well for me for keeping myself off snacking and ensuring that I create maximum calorie deficit! Additionally, I ensured to stay consistent with my efforts, eat healthily and stay hydrated.

How do I stay motivated? I received unconditional support from my family and friends. However, I do have to say that there is no bigger motivation than stepping on the weighing scale and seeing the reduction for yourself. I was so happy to see the number change from 131 to 98 kilos! Once I started seeing visible results, there was no looking back. Every day felt like a new learning experience for me.

How do you ensure you dont lose focus? Discipline is the key and the belief that nothing happens overnight. Even if at some point if the results arent as per what I desire, I keep on going.

What shape do you see yourself 10 years down the line? I see myself as a very healthy and active individual with a bit of muscle gain.

What are the lifestyle changes you made? I made a lot of lifestyle changes to reach my weight loss goal. Some of them included:1. Eating balanced meals2. Following the 3 Cs for weight loss lots of Cardio, consume fewer Carbs, be Consistent3. Discipline and determination. I started to enjoy my journey, rather than detesting it.

Read the original here:
Weight loss: This guy exercised for 2 hours everyday in the lockdown and lost 32 kilos! - Times of India

The sweepstakes are easy to enter. Just fill in your boss's first and last name, their email address, and 500 characters or less about why you think your boss deserves the grand prize. Then you just need to fill in your own name, email address, and date of birth, and you're good to go. Entrants have until 11:59 pm ET on November 16th, a month after National Boss Day, to submit their forms, according to theDiet Coke National Boss's Day Sweepstakes Official Rules.

You can nominate up to four times before the deadline, but each nomination has to be unique. So basically, if you work under multiple people and want to nominate a few of them, go ahead you don't have to choose. But for obvious reasons, you can't nominate any of them more than once.

Don't sweat about composing theperfect description of your boss's Diet-Coke-worthiness. The judging organization "will select the names of the potential winning Nominees in a random drawing of all eligible entries received during the Promotion Period."So go ahead, enter your boss. If they're areally good boss, maybe they'll share a couple of their 365 cans of Diet Coke with you.

Continued here:
How to win a year's worth of free Diet Coke - Mashed

Cooking with oils is a big part of meal prep, adding flavor to many dishes. But navigating which oils are best or worst for you and your food can be a challenge.

Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services.Policy

Confused about which oils are healthy and which arent? Registered dietitian Julia Zumpano, RD, explains how to choose the best oil for you and other ways to keep your oil consumption honest.

Because there are so many cooking oils available to use, its important to understand the different types of fats, both good and bad, that make up these oils. By knowing which fats provide health benefits and which fats are a detriment to your diet, your choice in cooking oils will be easier to make.

Saturated fats: The fewer you have of these fats, the better. Less than 7% of your daily fat calories should come from saturated fats. To cut back on saturated fats, limit:

Trans fats: Eliminate trans fats from your diet by staying away from foods that contain partially hydrogenated oils. Many packaged or processed foods contain these oils, so scan the ingredient list.

Monounsaturated fats: Get the benefits of these fats from olives, avocados and nuts. Use extra virgin olive oil as often as possible. For higher heat cooking or baking, consider almond, peanut oil or avocado oil for good ways to get monounsaturated fats.

Polyunsaturated fats (omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids): Focus on eating more foods packed with omega-3s. Choose oily fish (salmon, herring, mackerel) and walnuts, chia seeds and flaxseeds. The American diet tends to be omega-6 heavy, so no need to worry about adding those in.

When youre cooking with oils, you dont have to choose between taste and health. But remember that less quantity is more quality. To use the least amount of fat and get the most taste and health benefits, Zumpano recommends the following.

Oil is a fat, regardless of what kind you use. At 9 calories per gram, fats are far more calorie-dense than carbohydrates or protein which have 4 calories per gram. Even healthier oils, such as avocado and olive oil, are still fats. Keep your fat intake between 25-35% of your total daily calories.

Olive oil has been proven to lower LDL (bad cholesterol) and raise HDL (good cholesterol) levels when used to replace saturated fat such as butter. It also contains beta carotene, vitamins A, E, D and K plus many more healthful nutrients. Research shows these nutrients have beneficial effects on almost every bodily function.

Extra-virgin olive oil has the lowest oxidation rate of cooking oils. Oxidation promotes free radicals, chemicals that are highly reactive and can damage cells. Some of this damage may lead to cancer and other disease states. It is also an excellent source of antioxidants, which also protect cells from damage and oxidation.

Extra-virgin olive oil also has an amazing skin- and body-protecting polyphenol called hydroxytyrosol. Studies show that hydroxytyrosol has among the greatest free-radical absorbing capacities.

Restrictive diets that cut fat often add sugar to compensate for the loss in taste which isnt exactly a healthy alternative. Think about everything you eat and aim for a nutritionally balanced mix that includes moderate amounts of healthy fats.

Pan-frying uses a substantial amount of oil and higher heat for longer periods. Deep fat frying also uses a lot of oil at high heats but can be done for shorter periods. But frying foods in oil or any kind of fat promotes free radicals.

Sauting cooks small pieces of food in small amounts of fat for less time. Plan meals with foods that dont need frying. When you bake, grill or quickly saut your food, you reduce the amount of fat you consume. And remember: all oils that are safe to use at very high heat should be consumed in the least amount possible.

When you buy many oil varieties and store them for long periods, they eventually oxidize and develop free radicals. Instead, buy just a few kinds of oil in small amounts. Store them in a cool, dark and dry place and be sure to replace any that smell bitter or off. Check the best-by date because oils should be used within 30-60 days after opening.

Grapeseed and walnut oils are an exception: Store them in the refrigerator so they dont become rancid. The cloudiness in refrigerated oils will clear once they return to room temperature.

Many spray oils claim to have no trans-fat. Manufacturers can say this because theyre allowed to round down to zero if a serving size is less than half a gram. (Most spray oils list the serving size at a quarter-second spray.) To keep things honest, get the same results by using a towel or brush to wipe on the bottom of your pan.

You could also try PFOA-free nonstick or ceramic pans. Hand wash them with a soft, nonabrasive sponge or cloth to protect the surface and keep them in good shape.

If youre eating healthy fats by dunking your ciabatta bread in olive oil or frying foods in canola oil, you arent getting the biggest bang for your buck. Use oil instead to extract, extend and infuse flavors or create new ones.

For example, instead of dipping your bread in a few tablespoons of olive oil, use the same amount of oil in a flavorful dish that several people can share such as roasted vegetables or as a dressing for your salad. Or get a healthier, more flavorful meal by pan-searing fish with a little oil instead of frying battered fish in a pot of it.

Choose unsaturated fats as often as possible. They help round out a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds and whole grains. Limit animal fats (saturated fats) and completely avoid trans-fats when possible.

The smoke point is the temperature that causes oil to start smoking, which produces toxic fumes and free radicals. Because of their chemical makeup, different oils have different smoke points. Some oils are better suited for cooking at higher temperatures. Generally, the more refined the oil, the higher the smoke point. (Note: Smoke point relates only to fresh oil; oil thats used for cooking and then strained and reused loses its integrity.)

Oils with a high smoke point

These oils are best for searing, browning and deep frying (which you should avoid).

Oils with a medium-high smoke point

These oils are best for baking, oven cooking or stir-frying.

Oils with a medium smoke point

These oils are best for light sauting, sauces and low-heat baking.

*Virgin coconut oil contains lauric acid, a medium-chain triglyceride that raises good and bad cholesterol levels.

No-heat oils*

These oils are best for making dressings, dips or marinades.

*Toasted sesame and extra virgin olive oils also work well.

The rest is here:
How to Choose and Use Healthy Cooking Oils - Health Essentials from Cleveland Clinic

In addition to math and reading lessons, many third graders in Alabamas low-income communities learn about nutrition from animated characters like Shining Rainbow, who loves colorful vegetables, and Muscle Max, who eats plenty of lean protein. The students also take the Vow of the Warrior in their classrooms. I will enter into the quest for health, strength, and wisdom. I will try new fruits and vegetables, the vow begins.

Its all part of a state SNAP-Ed curriculum called Body Quest, which applies what Sondra Parmer, the administrator of SNAP-Ed programs for the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, calls multilevel intervention and it turns out it has had a significant impact on children and families since its launch in 2010.

Most people are familiar with SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits, which help address food insecurity among vulnerable populations. SNAP-Ed is a companion program that provides comprehensive nutrition education to many of the same families, who may be struggling to put together healthy meals on a limited budget.

When we look at the data for the program, we can say with certaintybecause were comparing a treatment and a control groupthat because of Body Quest, these kids are eating better, said Parmer.

Now, a new study has aggregated data across eight states in the Southeast to evaluate the broader impact of programs like these for the first time. Published in the Journal of Nutritional Science at the end of September, the study found adults and children in SNAP-Ed programs are more likely to make a number of positive behavior changes, including eating more fruit and vegetables.

And while the data is from 2017, the results come at a time when advocates say helping food-insecure families eat well is more important than ever. Since the pandemic began, millions of Americans have lost their jobs and joined the ranks of those struggling to feed their families, prompting various calls for an increase in SNAP benefits. One analysis found nearly a quarter of American households faced food insecurity during the pandemic, more than double the number that did before COVID-19. In households with children, food insecurity tripled.

In the face of hunger, prioritizing healthy eating is even harder, especially in low-income communities where few nutritious foods are even available. And those communities have long suffered higher rates of diet-related diseases such as diabetes.

Those statistics now also point to risk factors for COVID-19. COVID has really highlighted the impact of underlying conditions like heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity, said Tracy Fox, a nutritionist by training who has been working on federal nutrition and nutrition education policy for more than 20 years. They have such a significant impact on whether or not you get COVID and how well you handle it.

Based on the study results, then, SNAP-Ed may be one effective tool to help people in low-income communities eat more of the foods that prevent diet-related diseases and the devastating impact of COVID-19.

How Does SNAP-Ed Work?

The entire SNAP program is funded by the farm bill; about 95 percent of the money goes directly to SNAP benefits, and the small remaining slice includes funding for SNAP-Ed. While states began to operate the education program as far back as 1998, it transformed during the Obama administration to focus on evidence-based projects and emphasize community and public health approaches to nutrition education.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) distributes annual funds to states, which then administer the educational programs through cooperative extension services at land-grant universities, public health departments, and nonprofits. In 2020, the USDA distributed $441 million for the program. (Because SNAP-Ed funding is distributed entirely separately from benefits themselves, calls to raise benefits would not affect SNAP-Ed.)

The programs aim to educate SNAP recipients, but there is a lot of flexibility in terms of what each program looks like.

They include direct education programs such as lessons and cooking classes, and social marketing campaigns to disseminate messages about healthy eating. And in recent years, there has been emphasis placed on the implementation of policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) changesor long-term shifts that make healthy choices easier. For example, a school might ban soda and other sugary beverages (policy), install new water-bottle-filling fountains with promotional posters nearby (environment), and make a plan to stock vending machines with healthier alternatives (systems).

In Alabama, the Body Quest program includes direct education in the form of classroom nutrition lessons as well as many PSE changes, such as lunchroom posters with animated characters encouraging healthy choices and school wellness committees that create action plans to make school environments healthier. For example, at a school in Conecuh County, the committee identified a need for daily physical activity breaks, and the SNAP-Ed educator trained teachers in how to conduct them.

Body Quest is just one cog in the wheel when it comes to SNAP-Ed programs in the state, Parmer noted. Educators also plant and maintain teaching gardens, teach food bank clients how to cook with produce they are unfamiliar with, and more.

Evidence of Impacts

The flexibility given to each state to craft programs that meet the needs of its unique communities is one of SNAP-Eds biggest strengths, Fox said. But it also makes collecting consistent data and evaluating that data in a uniform way difficult.

To undertake the research, the Public Health Institute created a working group with representatives from SNAP-Ed agencies in eight states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

We selected the common indicators, and then we came up with a plan on how to gather that information from everyone, explained Amy DeLisio, the director of the Center for Wellness and Nutrition at the Public Health Institute and a co-author of the study. The 25 participating agencies used pre- and post-tests with SNAP-Ed participants, and then re-coded the results to match standardized indicators.

Results showed participants ate about a third of a cup of more fruit and a quarter of a cup more vegetables per day than they had before participating in the programs. And while that little bump might not sound significant, experts said its more meaningful than it may appear.

It may seem like a very small amount of fruits and vegetables on your plate, said Julia McCarthy, interim deputy director at the Laurie M. Tisch Center for Food, Education and Policy, but it is a significant increase, especially given most Americans fall far short of meeting dietary guidelines in this realm. Furthermore, behavior change is slow and hard to come by, she said.

Researchers also found that individuals in the study reported that they were more likely to increase the variety of produce in their diets, drink more water and fewer sugary beverages, and read nutrition labels while shopping.

The study was limited by the lack of a control group, DeLisio said. But in general, [the data] is showing SNAP-Ed works, she concluded.

McCarthy said she was excited to find more than 700 policy, system, and environmental changes being used within the SNAP-Ed programs they analyzed, which she thought pointed to the fact that changing peoples environments is a crucial component of nutrition education.

You cant teach people how to eat well without healthy foods, just like you cant teach people how to read without books, she added.

And the fact that the study aggregated data across states in the entire Southeast region, Fox said, made it much more impactful and interesting. You have higher numbers reporting, and therefore you have a little more confidence in the data . . . and what theyre showing, she said. I think its a really good model for other regions, hopefully, to use.

Timely Information

All the experts said the study was a starting point for more research that needs to be done across the country. But at this moment in time, the results are especially meaningful.

There are a lot of Americans who have lost their jobs and are now in poverty, and they might not know how to stretch their food dollars or select healthier foods on a budget, DeLisio said. Its relevant to that new population.

SNAP-Ed programs have also been affected by the pandemic in significant ways, since most are facilitated in person. Some programs have moved online, while some educators have had to pause their efforts entirely.

The USDA has so far denied state requests for waivers that would allow SNAP-Ed educators to temporarily participate in hunger relief efforts that dont directly include nutrition education. Fox has been working with groups who are asking Congress to step in to allow that flexibility, and while a draft of the second HEROES Act did include language to allow for that, the legislation is still a work in progress and negotiations are currently stalled.

Regardless of what the future brings, DeLisio said she believes the data supports ongoing funding for SNAP-Ed.McCarthy echoed that sentiment, emphasizing the unnecessary division that has often existed between hunger and nutrition work.

Families want to feed their members healthy, delicious food, and any sort of food insecurity efforts that dont consider nutrition are not going far enough, she said. COVID-19 has exposed just how vulnerable diet-related diseases have made us. Healthy eating has to be a top priority.

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Nutrition Education is Helping Low-Income Families Eat Healthier - Civil Eats

IF you're looking to lose weight without having to cut down your portion sizes then you might want to try Slimming World.

The popular diet lets you have the occasional treat - and doesn't promote calorie counting. So how does it work?

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The Slimming World diet is run by a Derbyshire-based weight loss company created by Margaret Miles-Bramwell in 1969.

It focuses on a diet of Food Optimising, where members are given a list of Syn Free food, that can be eaten in unlimited amounts.

Syns are short for synergy as the Free Foods, Healthy Extras and Syns all add up to effective weight loss.

The programme encourages dieters to swap high-fat foods for low-fat foods that are naturally filling.

You can get support from fellow slimmers at weekly group meetings and follow an exercise plan to become gradually more active through their Body Magic initiative.

The Slimming World diet is designed to help you lose about 1-2 pounds a week and currently has around 900,000 members attending each week.

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The Slimming World diet involves dieters choosing food from a list of low-fat foods theycall Free Foods, such as fruit, vegetables, pasta, potatoes, rice, lean meat, fish and eggs.

These foods can be eaten in unlimited amounts.

Theres no calorie counting, no foods are banned, and youre still allowed the occasional treat.

While no foods are off limits, some of the restricted, known as Syns, have values attached.

Many of the Syns (also known as synergy) items are treat items, but some can be Healthy Extras allowing you to increase portion sizes.

Users get a total number of daily Syns they can consume, which can be calculated through specific weight loss plans.

Mostly this ranges from around five to 15 a day.

Examples of Syns are a glass of wine of a piece of chocolate.

Healthy Extras include milk and cheese for calcium, wholemeal bread and breakfast cereals for fibre and other essential minerals, and nuts and seeds for healthy oils.

To join a Slimming World group, dieters have to pay.

There are special offers for new members including half price membership when you join a real-life group.

Then pay just 9.95 on week one and 4.95 per week after that.

There are also discounts for senior citizens, who pay just 4.65.

If you join a group with four of your friends or family members and you all get your first week free, then it's5 on week one and 4.95 per week after that.

Teenagers aged 11-15 also get free Slimming World membership when theyre accompanied by a fee-paying parent/guardian.

There are alternative plans available for those who wish to follow online instead of group sessions.

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The BDA says that while the meal plans may lack some flexibility, they are generally balanced.

The group meetings encourage members to share successes, ideas and recipes with each other, but they may not appeal to everyone.

However, without learning about calories and portion sizes, you may struggle to make healthy choices once youve left the programme.

No foods are banned, so meals offer balance and variety and are family-friendly.

The portion size from each food group will vary depending on which plan you follow.

The short answer is yes, but only to follow a healthy diet and to stay physically active, rather than for weight loss.

Slimming World says it doesn't advise women change their weight during pregnancy.

As part of their policy, it says that ant member who wishes to continue to follow the programme during their pregnancy is required to gain the support of their midwife.

Consultants are also asked to support pregnant members in maintaining a healthy balanced diet to manage their weight safely, as advised by her midwife.

Slimming World hasworked in collaboration with the Royal College of Midwives to develop their policy on the best way to support our members in managing their weight during pregnancy.

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Slimming World groups were forced to close in mid-March due to the coronavirus lockdown and moved to emergency virtual groups.

But the doors reopened in August and members were invited back to 'real-life groups' with extra safety measures.

A maximum of 25-30 members were allowed in each group with sessions lasting around 45 minutes.

To help maintain social distancing, members are asked to let their consultant know which sessions they will be attending.

There are also one-way systems to move around the room, hand sanitisers and wipes, as well as markers on the floor.

'Sneeze screens' were introduced to keep people at a safe distance on the scales, while seats are placed at 1m apart.

Members are also asked to wear a face covering and bring their own drink and pen.

Shoes must be kept on while at the scales, with members advised to stick to wearing the same pair for now.

Consultants and members are also asked to wipe down their own chair at the end of each meeting.

According to Slimming World, members lose eight per cent of their body weight in six months, and 13 per cent in a year.

Former Casualty actress Rebecca Wheatley was named Slimming World's Woman of the Year in 2005, after losing more than half her weight.

The 5ft 11in star lost a whopping12 stone, droppingfrom a size 32 to a size 12 in two years following being ashamed of how she looked at her wedding.

A mother of two who feared she would not live to see her children grow up because she was so heavy has lost more than half her body weight in just ten months.

Another mum, June Adams, lost 6st after a spa snap of herself reminded her of Shreks Princess Fiona.

Determined to beat the bulge, she saw an advert for Slimming World and signed up straight away and 18 months later dropped six dress sizes and lost an incredible 6st 7.5lbs.

And a size 18 woman dropped five stone in time for her wedding day, and has since shown off her dramatic transformation.

In September 2018, dieters on the Slimming World programme were left outraged after the company scrapped Muller yogurts from their list of Syn Free foods.

It's now rated as 1 Syn per pot, meaning that followers of the diet aren't able to snack on as many as they want.

In 2018, Slimming World introduced a raft of changes to its food valuing system.

Dieters were told they get an additional Healthy Extra "A" choice each day on the Extra Easy plan, as well as an increase in the amount of whole cow's milk.

But dairy-free drinks like rice and almond milk were decreased to 400ml, while reduced-fat/light soft cheese and soft goats cheese were no longer be classed as Healthy Extras.

And due to new nutritional information, a handful of Free Foods that were previously labelled as P (or protein-rich), such as baked beans, broad beans, mung beans and all varieties of peas (except split peas), were longer marked in this way.

However, these foods were still classed as Free, meaning they can be enjoyed without weighing, counting or measuring.

To further boost the weight loss of those slimmers following the Extra Easy SP plan, the maximum number of Syns was slashed from 15 a day to just ten.

Dieters were rocked by claims the popular "low fat" sausageswere nine timesworse for them than initially thought.

Slimming World said Porky Lights should be counted as 4.5 Syn points each instead of just 0.5 meaning thousands of dieters have been unknowingly breaking their strict diets.

The healthy banger was a massive hit among the900,000 members of the diet clubdue to claims they only contained 2.5g of fat.

These aren't the only Slimming World controversies to dominate the headlines.

The popular dieting brandtook legal action when Asda launched Slimzone ready meals which could be eaten "when following the Slimming World Extra Easy Plan".

The supermarket giant has since removed the meals from the shelves.

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How does Slimming World work and how much is it to join? - The Irish Sun