Prepared Dinners Diet

Prepared dinner diets are those diets that consist of eating only meals that are previously put together by an food expert or nutritionist. These dinner diets are often called "convenience foods" because of the limited planning and preparation by the dieter. Popular weight loss programs like Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, Lean Cuisine and the Healthy Choice diets have contributed to the rising interest in prepared dinner diets. There are many advantages to choosing a prepared dinner diet that can positively change a person's eating habits, but like any diet, they have their drawbacks that can cause setbacks to certain individuals. A nutritionist or doctor should be consulted before starting a prepared dinner diet.

Benefits

Prepared dinner diets are helpful in a number of ways. They offer a way to control portion sizes, which can prevent overeating and expanding waist lines. These meals can save you a great amount of time if you want to eat healthier but are too busy to cook yourself. The nutrients are listed on all prepared dinners and can reduce the errors that often accompany guessing calories. This is great if you are trying to balance your caloric intake with exercise. A great advantage of prepared dinner diets is their simplicity. Most of them come with very easy instructions, and some are very inexpensive.

Disadvantage/Warning

The disadvantages of prepared dinner diets should make you slow down and choose them more carefully. Many of them contain a large amount of saturated and trans fats. They are extremely high in sodium and most supply up to half or more of your daily sodium requirement. They don't provide enough vegetables, which is essential for a balanced diet. The probability of prepared dinners being contaminated is higher because of the preparation process they go through. Some prepared dinner diets are too few in calories, which can cause the metabolism to drop tremendously. These diets can also cause you to become too dependent, meaning that if the prepared dinner diets are not available you might return to old bad eating habits.

Expert Insight

In a study on the wholesomeness of ready-to-eat meat products, researchers found that 75 percent of food samples tested showed potential of food poisoning organisms developing. Their tests found that heat treatment applied during processing was not sufficient to destroy the organism. A similar study found that the mass production of large volumes of dinners during a single factory work shift has the potential to increase occurrence of food poisoning.

Nutritionist Karen Collins gives a more positive outlook on prepared dinner diets. According to her, these meals can be very beneficial even if you don't plan on eating them on a permanent basis, as they allow you to readjust your expectation of a normal portion size, which is vital in weight control.

Misconceptions

Many prepared dinners can be misleading when advertising their health advantages. Some companies try to lure in consumers by displaying extremely low fat or calorie labels such as "only 200 calories." While this might sound appealing to the person trying to lower daily calorie intake, usually the fat grams are so low simply because of the minute portion sizes. According to nutritionist Elizabeth Sommer, no diet should drop below 1,200 calories a day, which is equivalent to 400 calories per meal depending on the amount of healthy snacks eaten throughout the day. To avoid feeling hungry soon after a meal, choose prepared dinners that are low in calories but fill you up as well.

Solution

As with any diet or exercise regimen, everything must be done in moderation. It is not recommended that everything you eat be from the frozen food isle. Add items to your prepared meal that will balance out your diet. For example, you can add a piece of fresh fruit, whole wheat bread roll or yogurt to your prepared dinners to ensure that you are getting something from each of the food groups.

Be sure to read the Nutrition Facts label when deciding which prepared meal you want for dinner. This label is there to help you make your meal healthier. Based on the label, pick a dinner that is low in fat and sodium. Don't forget to round out your meal with any nutrient that you see is missing.