Eating sensibly doesn't only mean consuming the right foods, according to dietitian Darci Stapley. It also means eating the right amount of them.
"Following the guidelines of a higher-carbohydrate, low-fat diet is important," she says. But then it's important too, she said, to monitor the size of portions.Stapley, a clinical dietitian at LDS Hospital, 8th Avenue and C Street, will answer health questions posed by Deseret News readers today during the free Deseret News/Intermountain Health Care Hotline. She will be joined by Mary Young, a clinical dietitian at Cottonwood Hospital, Murray.
Anyone with a question about diet and health is invited to call Saturday, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., at 1 (800) 925-8177. The number is toll-free for anywhere in the continental United States. Callers' identities will remain confidential.
To reduce fattening material, people can limit extra fats that they eat, "such as margarines, mayonnaise, salad dressing, oils," Stapley said.
"Either limiting the portion sizes, or trying the new products such as light or fat-free products" should help, she added. Seafood often is better for the weight-conscious diet than red meat, she added.
"In general, your fish and poultry is a lower fat source for protein, and the red meat tends to be a little bit higher - although there are some lean cuts of red meat. So another guideline to decrease the fat would be to limit your portion sizes on your meat and choose the lean cuts."
Preparation of meat is important to dieters, she said. They can avoid fried and breaded meat.
"The best way is to bake or to broil, like barbecuing . . . The fat will drip through."
According to Stapley, another important aspect of keeping extra pounds away is to exercise sufficiently.
"If you just diet alone and cut back your calory intake, the overall effect of that is your metabolism slows down. Your body thinks you're starving and it goes into a starvation-type mode."
When intake drops, the body forces itself to conserve by not burning as many calories. With reduced physical effort, the body burns fewer calories. "That means it's harder to lose weight and harder to keep it off," she said.
"Exercise will offset that and keep that metabolism up, and even raise it." Exercise forces the body to burn off the extra fat.