Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
The Skinny on Diets
Aired January 01, 2003 - 09:41 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Millions of Americans thinking are about that on this New Year's day: Atkins, the Zone, Sugar Busters. Anybody who has ever made that resolution to lose weight knows the names of all the diets. Americans are spending more than $23 million a year on diet programs and diet products. Do any of them really work?
Heidi Skolnik is here from "Men's Health" magazine to give us the skinny on weight loss.
Happy new year to you.
HEIDI SKOLNIK, "MEN'S HEALTH": Happy new year.
KAGAN: Bottom line, what really does work here? There's kind of no big shortcut, is there?
SKOLNIK: Right.
The thing that is so confusing is, if you look at the list of diets that we're talking about here, there is high carb, low carb, high fat, low fat. It's so confusing. One day, you hear carbohydrates will make you fat. Then it will make you thin. If you eat too much fat, you're going to die. If you don't eat enough fat, you're going to -- it's so confusing.
KAGAN: Let's go ahead and put a list of some of the hot diets up there. And we just kind of run it.
The Atkins diet, let's talk about this.
SKOLNIK: Right.
The Atkins diet is the high-protein diet. It's so high in fat that really you really cut out carbohydrates, less than 40 grams a day, no fruits, no vegetables, none of that good stuff that really helps keeps us healthy, our immune system healthy.
KAGAN: Right. But why does it work?
SKOLNIK: Well, all of these diets, we're going to find, is that it comes down to eating less calories. And there is some efficacy to having more protein that makes you feel full, and so you don't tend to want some of those other foods.
KAGAN: There is an idea. Can we put that list back up on the screen, so we can go back to it?
OK, the Zone diet.
SKOLNIK: The Zone diet. That one isn't quite as popular. It's still around.
And that is based on a principle of very specific ratios of what you are eating every day. And the thing that I find kind of funny about this is, yes, we all know that Twinkies isn't as good as brown rice. But they have foods on that list that...
KAGAN: This just in.
(LAUGHTER)
SKOLNIK: Yes, exactly. I needed two masters to tell you that.
But they actually say things like sweet potatoes are bad for you. And I've never, in 20 years, had a client come in and say: You know what? At nighttime, it's 10:00, I go to that fridge. I just have to have one more sweet potato.
That's not why people are getting overweight.
KAGAN: That's not it.
And we go back to the list. Sugar Busters, Pritikin. And what's this raw paleo? Or how do you even say that?
SKOLNIK: That has to do with eating raw food, including like raw meat, raw eggs.
KAGAN: Oh, you're kidding.
SKOLNIK: That's a trend coming up. Look for it this year. I'm not suggesting it. I'm telling you what's out there.
KAGAN: No wonder you lose weight, because you look at it and go, eww.
SKOLNIK: So, we've learned a few things about food safety since the prehistoric times.
KAGAN: Absolutely.
SKOLNIK: It's really called the caveman's diet.
And, again, no one would argue that eating more whole foods, more fruits, vegetables, better-quality carbohydrates will be helpful. But raw food, I think, is going a little over the line.
KAGAN: OK. And for folks who don't want to be that extreme, let's put up some practical to-do, how you can do it to, stick to that resolution, and things -- first of all, cut the calories. OK.
SKOLNIK: And it doesn't matter what diet you're talking about. It's not revolutionary, but it is true. You have to eat less calories than you are burning off. And that's gets into -- it's a lifestyle issue. You need to add exercise.
KAGAN: Food with fiber goes farther?
SKOLNIK: Right.
KAGAN: I like that.
(LAUGHTER)
SKOLNIK: Say that three times fast, right, with a hangover.
Fiber really helps you to feel full. And, usually, it's a nutrient-dense food, so it's helpful. It also is nutrient-rich food. Double for your calorie money.
KAGAN: I was surprised to see the tip about calcium. What does calcium have to do with losing weight?
SKOLNIK: There's some new research that's showing that calcium in and of itself may be beneficial and affect some of the fat-receptor sites and help with weight loss.
KAGAN: So, should you eat more food with calcium in it, like dairy products, or you should actually take those calcium supplements?
SKOLNIK: It's better to have it from food. It does seem to make a difference. And it can be low fat. It can be more like the low-fat yogurts and low-fat milk. It doesn't have to be full-fat milk. It doesn't have to chocolate milk.
KAGAN: That works for me.
(LAUGHTER)
SKOLNIK: Right. I'm not taking it off the list either.
KAGAN: I'm doing it for calcium. Chocolate milk. OK.
And our final few tips here: Include protein. We talked about that. And make a plan. That's really going to help you out the most.
SKOLNIK: That's crucial. Every day at 4:00, if you find that you are sneaking M&Ms from your colleague's desk...
KAGAN: Guilty.
SKOLNIK: OK. Right. Raise your hand.
(LAUGHTER)
SKOLNIK: But what happens is, you are hungry every day at 4:00. So, plan on having a snack. Eat more frequently. Have foods available that will support your goals, as opposed to sabotaging them. And that, really, in the end, makes the biggest difference. KAGAN: And one thing I didn't see anywhere on that list is exercise.
SKOLNIK: Because people have think of diet -- they go on a diet, which implies on going off a diet -- and they really don't take a look at their whole lifestyle. And we've heard it so many times. But, right, exercise is going to key, also, because of stress reduction.
Sleep makes a big difference in how people eat. It's really a whole program and it's not just specific to the food.
KAGAN: It really does all go together. You kind of find you're either exercising, eating right, or you count out the whole thing. You just let it go.
I have to say, I'm off to a bad start. New Year's Day, I've had bacon and cake so far.
SKOLNIK: You'll make up for it later.
(LAUGHTER)
KAGAN: There's always January 2, Heidi.
SKOLNIK: Dinner is going to cereal and milk.
KAGAN: It could be.
Heidi, a happy and a healthy new year to you. Thanks for your tips this morning. Appreciate it.
SKOLNIK: My pleasure.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired January 1, 2003 - 09:41 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Millions of Americans thinking are about that on this New Year's day: Atkins, the Zone, Sugar Busters. Anybody who has ever made that resolution to lose weight knows the names of all the diets. Americans are spending more than $23 million a year on diet programs and diet products. Do any of them really work?
Heidi Skolnik is here from "Men's Health" magazine to give us the skinny on weight loss.
Happy new year to you.
HEIDI SKOLNIK, "MEN'S HEALTH": Happy new year.
KAGAN: Bottom line, what really does work here? There's kind of no big shortcut, is there?
SKOLNIK: Right.
The thing that is so confusing is, if you look at the list of diets that we're talking about here, there is high carb, low carb, high fat, low fat. It's so confusing. One day, you hear carbohydrates will make you fat. Then it will make you thin. If you eat too much fat, you're going to die. If you don't eat enough fat, you're going to -- it's so confusing.
KAGAN: Let's go ahead and put a list of some of the hot diets up there. And we just kind of run it.
The Atkins diet, let's talk about this.
SKOLNIK: Right.
The Atkins diet is the high-protein diet. It's so high in fat that really you really cut out carbohydrates, less than 40 grams a day, no fruits, no vegetables, none of that good stuff that really helps keeps us healthy, our immune system healthy.
KAGAN: Right. But why does it work?
SKOLNIK: Well, all of these diets, we're going to find, is that it comes down to eating less calories. And there is some efficacy to having more protein that makes you feel full, and so you don't tend to want some of those other foods.
KAGAN: There is an idea. Can we put that list back up on the screen, so we can go back to it?
OK, the Zone diet.
SKOLNIK: The Zone diet. That one isn't quite as popular. It's still around.
And that is based on a principle of very specific ratios of what you are eating every day. And the thing that I find kind of funny about this is, yes, we all know that Twinkies isn't as good as brown rice. But they have foods on that list that...
KAGAN: This just in.
(LAUGHTER)
SKOLNIK: Yes, exactly. I needed two masters to tell you that.
But they actually say things like sweet potatoes are bad for you. And I've never, in 20 years, had a client come in and say: You know what? At nighttime, it's 10:00, I go to that fridge. I just have to have one more sweet potato.
That's not why people are getting overweight.
KAGAN: That's not it.
And we go back to the list. Sugar Busters, Pritikin. And what's this raw paleo? Or how do you even say that?
SKOLNIK: That has to do with eating raw food, including like raw meat, raw eggs.
KAGAN: Oh, you're kidding.
SKOLNIK: That's a trend coming up. Look for it this year. I'm not suggesting it. I'm telling you what's out there.
KAGAN: No wonder you lose weight, because you look at it and go, eww.
SKOLNIK: So, we've learned a few things about food safety since the prehistoric times.
KAGAN: Absolutely.
SKOLNIK: It's really called the caveman's diet.
And, again, no one would argue that eating more whole foods, more fruits, vegetables, better-quality carbohydrates will be helpful. But raw food, I think, is going a little over the line.
KAGAN: OK. And for folks who don't want to be that extreme, let's put up some practical to-do, how you can do it to, stick to that resolution, and things -- first of all, cut the calories. OK.
SKOLNIK: And it doesn't matter what diet you're talking about. It's not revolutionary, but it is true. You have to eat less calories than you are burning off. And that's gets into -- it's a lifestyle issue. You need to add exercise.
KAGAN: Food with fiber goes farther?
SKOLNIK: Right.
KAGAN: I like that.
(LAUGHTER)
SKOLNIK: Say that three times fast, right, with a hangover.
Fiber really helps you to feel full. And, usually, it's a nutrient-dense food, so it's helpful. It also is nutrient-rich food. Double for your calorie money.
KAGAN: I was surprised to see the tip about calcium. What does calcium have to do with losing weight?
SKOLNIK: There's some new research that's showing that calcium in and of itself may be beneficial and affect some of the fat-receptor sites and help with weight loss.
KAGAN: So, should you eat more food with calcium in it, like dairy products, or you should actually take those calcium supplements?
SKOLNIK: It's better to have it from food. It does seem to make a difference. And it can be low fat. It can be more like the low-fat yogurts and low-fat milk. It doesn't have to be full-fat milk. It doesn't have to chocolate milk.
KAGAN: That works for me.
(LAUGHTER)
SKOLNIK: Right. I'm not taking it off the list either.
KAGAN: I'm doing it for calcium. Chocolate milk. OK.
And our final few tips here: Include protein. We talked about that. And make a plan. That's really going to help you out the most.
SKOLNIK: That's crucial. Every day at 4:00, if you find that you are sneaking M&Ms from your colleague's desk...
KAGAN: Guilty.
SKOLNIK: OK. Right. Raise your hand.
(LAUGHTER)
SKOLNIK: But what happens is, you are hungry every day at 4:00. So, plan on having a snack. Eat more frequently. Have foods available that will support your goals, as opposed to sabotaging them. And that, really, in the end, makes the biggest difference. KAGAN: And one thing I didn't see anywhere on that list is exercise.
SKOLNIK: Because people have think of diet -- they go on a diet, which implies on going off a diet -- and they really don't take a look at their whole lifestyle. And we've heard it so many times. But, right, exercise is going to key, also, because of stress reduction.
Sleep makes a big difference in how people eat. It's really a whole program and it's not just specific to the food.
KAGAN: It really does all go together. You kind of find you're either exercising, eating right, or you count out the whole thing. You just let it go.
I have to say, I'm off to a bad start. New Year's Day, I've had bacon and cake so far.
SKOLNIK: You'll make up for it later.
(LAUGHTER)
KAGAN: There's always January 2, Heidi.
SKOLNIK: Dinner is going to cereal and milk.
KAGAN: It could be.
Heidi, a happy and a healthy new year to you. Thanks for your tips this morning. Appreciate it.
SKOLNIK: My pleasure.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
