Comfort Food Diet

Comfort Food Diet
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The Comfort Food Diet is an eating plan that is intended to allow you to consume some of your favorite foods without the extra fat, calories, and sugar. The term comfort food is typically applied to meals that are consumed to provide emotional comfort. Some examples of comfort foods are pizza, macaroni and cheese, chocolate desserts, hearty soups, and casseroles.

Features

To follow the comfort food diet, you'll need to follow three simple rules. Reduce ingredients in recipes that are high in sugar, fat and calories. Replace the ingredients with lower sugar and fat substitutes. The last rule suggests that you remove unnecessary foods from meals that are high in fat and sugar.

Types

Switch out the unhealthy portions of comfort foods to follow the diet. For instance, when following the eating plan, you should add more vegetables in place of meat. For instance, vegetarian chili can be consumed in place of chili using red meat. In soups, sauces and stews, use nonfat milk to prepare instead of heavy cream.

Prevention/Solution

Reduce the amount of sugar in your baked recipes if you wish to follow the comfort food diet. Cut the amount called for in half or use a no calorie sweetener like aspartame. Use the package of the sweetener to determine equivalent measurements. Use natural sweeteners as well for your recipes like juices and fruits.

Benefits

Adjust the way that you cook dishes when you are following the comfort food diet. Avoid using oils, butter and other saturated fats. Instead prepare foods by grilling, baking and broiling. Use non-fat cooking sprays if you are sautéing food items. Preparing foods in this manner helps you lose weight by reducing fat intake.

Considerations

Choose low fat or fat free dairy items when following the comfort food diet. Skim milk, low fat cheese and fat free yogurt are examples of ingredients that should be part of your diet. For instance, macaroni and cheese can be prepared in a healthier manner with whole grain noodles, reduced fat cheddar and skim milk.

References

Article reviewed by demand241 Last updated on: Mar 23, 2010

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