Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day

Roses are red;

Violets are blue.

Sugar is sweet;

Watch how much you eat.

When I think of Valentine’s Day, I think of chocolate. Maybe because I am a fan of it. As a professional loser, a person who helps people lose weight, I say that no foods should be excluded from the diet.

For many people, when you tell them that they can’t eat chocolate or pizza or pasta, it’s all they want. And feeling deprived often leads to overeating, even bingeing. This leads to frustration and a reason to quit a "diet".

So how much is just right?  - Not too little and not too much.

The new USDA Dietary Guidelines take out the guesswork. They recommend limiting calories from added sugars to 10% of the total calories. The average person consumes 2,000 calories a day. Therefore, a sugary treat of 200 calories is reasonable. It’s enough to be satisfying. The festive mini cupcake in the picture is about 200 calories. Let's just say, the picture below is sugar on steroids.

Limit calories from Added Sugars to 200 calories a day

Tip: If a serving of food contains 5 grams of "added sugars", multiply 5x4. There are 20 calories from sugar.

It‘s very easy to eat too much, especially when there’s lots of temptations on holidays. For help, check out Day 22 - Rethinking Special Occasions in The Food Is My Friend Diet.