I would like to plug (yet again) the Mediterranean way of eating. The ideal is to “go Italian”! Italian food is not only among the best in the world, but it is among the healthiest, too. Italians cook mainly in olive oil, eat plenty of high-quality vegetables and fruit, their fish is superb, and they eat meat sparingly.
Pasta is starchy rather than sugary, so that your glucose level rises slowly after a meal, if at all (starch takes longer to digest down to glucose than does sugar). That is all to the good. Even the garlic used in Italian cooking helps. Garlic contains substances that help to prevent blood clotting. Eating garlic every day may not make you popular with close friends (unless they are eating it, too!), but it may help you live longer.
The most important aspect of this change of eating habit (I deliberately do not call it a diet) is that it is a positive one. It is not a question of cutting down on food intake, but of shifting to a more varied, tastier, and healthier way of eating. You can be just as satisfied after an Italian meal than after a burger and fries.
The new tastes you encounter on the way to your new style of living will be a revelation. Experiment with spices, and use less salt, so that you can taste these new flavors. As desire for salt diminishes, your sensitivity to other tastes will be enhanced—and you will not put on weight.
• Not everyone wants to eat Italian-style all the time, though. There are alternatives, such as a baked potato instead of pasta, or onions instead of garlic. Now that you have made fish and poultry your main source of protein, grill them or shallow-fry them in oil. For extra taste and interest, try frying them in oatmeal. However, do not use the cooking oil more than three times: repeated frying can turn unsaturated oils into saturated fats.
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