Diet Math

Reaction to An article written by Ron Caryn Rabin, entitled" In New Diet Math, Subtracting Is Hard." NY Times Health section Feb. 7th.

As a family psychotherapist and an eating disorder specialist I believe in the anti-dieting approach. In my 30 plus years of experience, for the majority of folks, diets just doesn't work, even though every day there's a new fangled way to lose weight! Yes one can lose weight, it's keeping it off that's the major challenge and not putting it all back on, plus more. A person has to work so hard, cut an additional 300 calories to maintain a new set point weight and work out.

So here I am reading about Weight Watchers new Points Plus system. Dieters who have had success with WW before are now struggling. What's different here? Fruits now count for 0 (zero) points. An AHA moment!

Let me share the following true and very recent personal adventure. My husband and I decided to become "juicers" fruit juicers to be exact. So we put in 2 bananas, lots of apples, pears, carrots, blueberries, strawberries and more. It started out as one drink a day (20 oz.) which soon became two drinks. We found a lovely spot in Nyack N.Y. for a wonderful fruit shake and thought we were so smart by eliminating the protein powder and the soy milk. We eat plenty of protein.

We happen to go for blood tests before our visit with Dr. Suzanne Salzman, MD and homeopath. She looks at our read outs. Everything looks fine, then all of a sudden. Wow, she says. What are you doing Arden? I felt like I was being scolded by a school marm. Nothing I say, Why? Your blood sugar is in a dangerous range in the diabetic zone, here look at the numbers. What, I say? She looks at Larry's numbers, You too? What are you eating? What are you doing differently? Arden does anyone in your family have diabetes. Yes, I reply, my grandmother had it, but that was type 2 and all about how she ate. Gram had a sweet tooth.

We search our brains and tell her about the fruit shakes. She literally raised her voice and said, "STOP DOING THAT. THAT'S WHAT GETTING YOUR NUMBERS UP!!!" Oh, I felt so sad. You are getting addicted to it, right, she says. We nod affirmatively.

So it's really not that difficult with the new WW Points Plus system to realize that fruits have to be subjected to points. They are not vegetables. There's lots of sugar let's say in a banana, and sugar turns into. Well you know.

Some WW devotees have cut their allowable points on their own. The old adage so holds true, "Eat in moderation." That includes everything, but especially fruit. Oh well back to my apple a day, blueberries and some banana in my oatmeal!