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South Beach Under the Spotlight
By WLR Dietitian
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South Beach is the latest diet craze to come out of the
States, this time from the sun-kissed bays of Florida rather
than the glitz and glamour of Hollywood. So far, more than
five million copies of the book have been sold and, with a
place in the New York Times bestseller list for more than a
year, it's popularity seems set to stay.
So just what is all the buzz about?
Quite simply, this diet is top of the popularity stakes
because it promises great things. As well as claiming you can
lose up to a staggering 13lb in just two weeks, it suggests
you can also expect to lose most of that weight from your
tummy. And who could resist a promise like that?
What sort of diet is it?
Dr Agatston, a leading American cardiologist, originally
created the South Beach diet for his heart patients. While his
main aim was to improve their heart health, he discovered that
as a side effect of the diet they also lost significant
amounts of weight. He claims this isn't a
low-carb
or low-fat diet - instead it focuses on eating the 'right' carbs and the 'right' fats. In fact, the South Beach Diet is
based on the GI Diet. In practice,
the diet severely restricts carbohydrates in the first two
weeks, before gradually re-introducing those with a low
glycaemic index.
Plus it recommends swapping saturates for unsaturates.
What's the theory?
The South Beach Diet follows the same principles of other
diets based on the Glycaemic Index. When we've eaten, the
carbohydrates in food get broken down into sugars, which are
then absorbed into the blood causing a rise in blood sugar. In
response, the hormone insulin is released from the pancreas to
remove the sugar from the blood.
Carbohydrate-rich foods with a high glycaemic index, like
bagels, cornflakes, white bread and jacket potatoes cause a
rapid rise in blood sugar, resulting in the release of a large
amount of insulin to deal with this. This causes blood sugar
levels to drop rapidly, leaving you lacking in energy, craving
more carbs and quickly feeling hungry so that you eat again.
If this pattern is frequently repeated, you're likely to gain
weight as a result a constantly overeating. But on top of
this, over time the body becomes resistant to the action of
insulin and when this happens, the body becomes more effective
at storing fat - especially around our middle! No surprises
then that to lose weight, foods with a high GI are out!
In contrast, carbs with low glycaemic index such as pasta,
pulses and porridge slowly release sugar into the blood,
providing a steady supply of energy and leaving you feeling
satisfied for longer. This means you get fewer carb cravings,
don't constantly feel hungry and so are less likely to
overeat. Plus there's less chance that your body will become
resistant to the effects of insulin with the result that it
continues to burn fat efficiently. Foods with a low GI are
therefore recommended if you want to lose weight.
What's the story with fat?
As you might expect from a cardiologist, the South Beach
Diet certainly includes mention of fat. In fact, it recommends
avoiding foods rich in saturates and and instead replacing
them with heart-healthy monounsaturates like olive oil and
nuts.
So how do I follow it?
Like many diets, the South Beach is divided into three
phases. In Phase One, most carbohydrates are banned to give
your body a complete rest from fluctuating blood sugar and
insulin levels. The theory is this will help to resolve
insulin resistance.
During Phase One, the banned foods list
includes bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, fruit, milk, sweets,
cake, biscuits, ice cream, sugar and alcohol. A few low GI veg
such as broccoli and cabbage are allowed, but the focus is on
eating lean meat, chicken, fish, eggs, low-fat cheese, some
nuts and olive oil. You follow this phase for 14 days.
In Phase Two, low GI carbs including most fruits, Granary
bread, wholegrain cereals and pasta and low-fat milk are
reintroduced. The idea is to stay with this phase until you've
reached your target weight.
Finally, in Phase Three you introduce an even wider variety
of foods. This phase is aimed at keeping your weight steady
and the diet recommends you stay on this for life.
For each phase, there are no limits on portion sizes - you
simply eat enough to satisfy your appetite - and you're
encouraged to eat three meals and snacks each day.
Remind me how much weight I can expect to lose...
The South Beach Diet claims you can lose 8-13lb in the
first two weeks. Once you enter Phase Two, you can expect a
more reasonable loss of 1-2lb a week.
What are the pros to the South Beach Diet?
In today's dieting world where low-carb, high-fat diets are
in vogue, it's good to see a diet that recommends eating fewer
foods packed with saturates and replacing some of these foods
with heart-healthy monounsaturates. Diets based on eating low
GI foods are also becoming increasingly popular and in
general, encourage you to 'de-junk' your diet and cut down on
carb-rich foods that are packed with few other nutrients such
as white bread, sugary cereals and sweets.
And the cons?
The extreme carbohydrate restriction in the first two weeks
requires serious willpower and may leave you feeling weak and
wobbly. Meanwhile, you won't be getting your five fruit and veg each day during Phase One, which may leave you missing out
on some vitamins and minerals. Eliminating all
carbohydrate-rich foods during this phase also means you'll be
cutting out some other good sources of fibre, vitamins and
minerals. For example, wholegrain breads and cereals are
packed with fibre, B vitamins and iron, while milk is an
excellent source of calcium and zinc.
What do the experts think?
Nutrition experts and dietitians are generally in favour of
diets based on the Glycaemic Index, but while most believe in
eating more foods with a low GI value, they don't necessarily
think all high GI foods should be banned. This is because the
GI value of a meal changes considerably when foods are eaten
together. That said, few experts would argue with a diet that
recommends cutting down on processed carbs and swapping foods
rich in saturates for those containing monounsaturates.
Most nutrition experts are less happy with the recommended
weight loss. General guidelines recommend losing no more than
2lb a week for good health and so experts are concerned that
this diet promotes such a large weight loss in the first two
weeks. They say this is unhealthy and is simply the result of
a severe calorie restriction caused by cutting out all carbs.
As for losing weight specifically from your midriff, most
nutrition and fitness experts believe it's impossible to lose
fat from just one part of your body. Nevertheless, losing
weight will almost certainly result in a reduction in waist
size - and this is linked with a lower risk of heart disease
and diabetes.
How does it differ from the Atkins Diet?
The main difference is in the amount and type of fatty
foods recommended. While the
Atkins Diet advocates unlimited
amounts of foods high in saturates such as cheese, butter and
cream, the South Beach Diet recommends a diet that's low in
saturates. This means lean red meat, skinless chicken and
reduced-fat cheeses are still on the menu, but foods like
cream and butter are off limits. The South Beach Diet also
places far more emphasis on monounsaturates such as olive oil.
The Atkins Diet is also stricter in terms of its
carbohydrate restriction, which even extends to limiting fruit
and vegetables. In contrast, South Beach encourages a diet
that includes fruit, vegetables and other low GI carbohydrates
once you enter Phase Two.
Juliette's verdict
In general, the South Beach Diet only requires serious
willpower for the first two weeks during Phase One.
Nevertheless, this phase is extremely restrictive and the
recommended weight loss of up to 13lb worries me. While most
of us would love to lose almost a stone in a fortnight, it's
not a healthy way to lose weight and unfortunately, it's
likely to go straight back on once you return to less
restricted eating habits. And that's not just bad for your
waistline - but also for your moral!
Once you get past the initial phase, however, there are
fewer dietary restrictions than some other diet plans. No
major food groups are eliminated, plenty of fruit and veg are
recommended and generally the diet follows the
basic
principles of healthy eating with the result that it should
provide plenty of the nutrients you need to stay healthy.
I like diets based on the principles of the Glycaemic Index
and South Beach certainly fits in with this (although I'm less
keen on Phase One, which eliminates all carbs). Meanwhile,
there's no starving or fasting involved and it takes heart
health into consideration.
In the long term, this is one of the better
diets - especially if you avoid Phase One and start on Phase
Two. Nevertheless, it's guaranteed to be a hit this summer
with all the wannabe beach babes!
Further information
- The South Beach Diet by Dr A Agatston (Headline, £10.99)
- If you would like to access the dieting tools in Weight
Loss Resources you can try
them free for 24 hours.
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