Words : Vijayalekshmi S

Fatty food doesn’t mean flesh bags!?
       Food lovers of the world unite;
                  you’ve nothing to loose but WEIGHT!

It’s a very grave problem. The platter is full. And the call of the delectable dishes before you is more than irresistible. The hoteliers take pride to fill the tables with their best and all the magazines and TV shows compete among themselves to present ‘the gourmet’s delight’ on every episode. The aroma, the sight, the variety… everything is inviting. The epicurean in you is excited. But are they good for your health? The health gurus are wary of gourmet food and there is a word of caution in the air. A war is on with in.

“Cut fat or perish” is perhaps the most dreaded threat in any language. And that means the end of the world for the victim. Out go the crunchy snacks, fantastic fries, creamy curries, delicious puddings and everything you love to eat. A blanket ban on oil, butter and ghee casts a gloomy shadow over our happy moments at the table. If you are a meat addict, you are done forever!

This is a dilemma faced by most foodies: to find a way to combine good taste and good health. Fitness clinics have sprung up everywhere and we see ‘health-friendly’ recipes at every turn of page in lifestyle mags. Market is flooded with fitness products, health foods and diet counsels. We get all the possible advice and tips on healthy food and dieting. All the diet ideologies, practices and programmes are almost unanimous in preaching the NO FAT philosophy.

But the Antichrist of this diet despotism is born. The new diet sensation dares to question the very basics of fat-free-and-meatless-diet dogma and encourages you to take fatty foods to reduce fat! The dictate seems to go against everything we’ve learned so far. The advice has been tried out by many celebrities and they are all praise for the new philosophy of going light. The way of cutting fat without cutting on a cherished 'meaty' diet will definitely have lot of devotees in this big meaty world. It seems that meat eaters of the world have nothing to loose but weight!

Ever since Dr. Robert C Atkins * introduced his new diet revolution in 1970’s, millions have been attracted towards his ‘low carbohydrate diet.’ By limiting the intake of carbohydrates, the body is forced to turn the stored fat into energy entering a fat burning state called ketosis. But this dieting programme doesn’t allow you to take fruits and vegetables that are of ‘high carb’ value. Detractors are wary of this proposal saying that you are purchasing fatal diseases at the cost of obesity.

The logic behind this ‘high on meat’ diet is simple. We need fat to regulate our hormones. We need cholesterol to make oestrogen, progesterone and testosterone. Egg yolk contains more protein than the white, as well as lecithin and choline, which help the liver break down and metabolize cholesterol. Saturated fats support bones, protect the liver, enhance the immune system, and absorb omega-3s. In short, we need good fats to live a healthy life. Besides, fatty foods can mislead the body into feeling full even when it is not (best done by butter and egg yolk) as opposed to fat-free foods, says Esther Blum,* the author of Eat, Drink, and Be Gorgeous.

Since the publication of her ‘sensual diet book for real people’, Blum has rarely been off daytime television and the front pages of America's most glamorous women's magazines. A reputed New York based nutritionist by profession, Esther Blum says that she was ‘moved to write her book by the pressure put on women by the diet industry’. “In moderation, they(fatty foods) don't cause heart disease but slow down the absorption of foods in your stomach, making you feel fuller for longer,” says Blum. According to her, fat-free foods can actually make us gain extra weight because they register in the body as carbohydrates and have less vitamin D. Blum summarises her new age Epicureanism in to EDG - Eat, Drink, and be Gorgeous. The EDG maxim, she says, is about ‘having your cake and eating it too.’

No wonder that the new diet sensation is sweeping the whole world. For it sure breaks “the bonds of diet despotism”, while still enabling the people to lose weight. And also to remain healthy, youthful, and of course, beautiful!

It is all a matter of maintaining a balance and learning how to eat and drink what we love!!!

* Esther Blum can be contacted at www.livinggorgeous.com

* Dr. Robert C Atkins’s New Diet Revolution: www.atkins.com

Vanishing Seafood

Next time you take a fish from the market, spare some time to stop and ponder. You might be buying the last one of a dying down species. Only 10% of the top species that enriched our oceans when industrial fishing began 70 years ago are left. Of that, a quarter is endangered due to over fishing, half are fished to sustainable limits and only less than a quarter are considered suitable for further exploitation.

Americans have already been exhorted to eat ‘ethically’. The government is trying to encourage people to adopt a more environment-friendly diet. Organizations such as the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), Marine Conservation Society and the Blue Ocean Institute advise consumers on the sustainability of stocks.

Britons are following suit. Fish eaters there are encouraged to turn to species which are not at risk from over fishing. Some less familiar species from around the UK have started appearing on the market labeled not only as environmentally "safe" but tasting good too.

Is the world listening?

Tackling over population, the Australian way

Australia is facing a curious case of overpopulation. The increase in the population of camels in the country has reached ‘epidemic proportions’ and pose a big threat to the environment in Australia. Finally, the government has decided to go for the easiest solution: eat ‘em up! People are encouraged to include camel meat in their diet. In many parts of Saharan Africa and the Middle East, camel meat is part of the local diet, but the Australians are yet to come to terms with it. The camel meat has been found to have an added advantage of being low in saturated fat.

The fat-rich and protein-rich camel milk is also worth trying.

© travelbird