10 Guilt-Free Ways to Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth

Many of us work very hard to eat healthy meals, but struggle with the urge for candy, cookies, cakes, ice cream and anything else full of sugar and sweetness! If you're trying to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight, this can be a problem. Denying oneself all things sweet can turn into a disaster when willpower runs out.

As is true in most things in life, moderation is the key. There are plenty of options out there that, when eaten in sensible portions will satisfy your sweet tooth and help to avoid dessert binges when you have a weak moment. You'll get an added bonus when you eat some of the fruit desserts - vitamins and fiber!

Try substituting these 'mini-desserts' for full-blown desserts and you'll see your cravings leveling off, you'll start feeling satisfied on less, and even better, you might just drop a few pounds:

* 3 regular Hershey's kisses
* 1 'snack-size' cup of fat-free pudding (even add a dollop of light whipped topping)
* A slice of angel food cake with sliced fresh berries and light whipped topping
* 2 vanilla sandwich cookies
* 1 frozen all fruit juice bar
* 1 reduced fat fudgesicle
* 1 frozen orange-cream bar
* Fresh berries with a pinch of sugar and low-fat nondairy creamer
* 1 cup of reduced fat vanilla ice cream with sliced fresh peaches
* Fruit parfait: Layer fresh berries, a light drizzle of chocolate syrup, and light whipped topping. (Optional: add chunks of angel food cake, gingersnaps, graham crackers or animal crackers)

Eat slowly, savor each bite and I think you'll find that these small portion, healthier alternatives will surprise you with their ability to tame the cravings and help you stay on a healthy eating program.

Negative Calorie Diet

Fibrous complex carbohydrates are generally good for us. The American Heart Association recommends that 55% of our daily calories should come from complex carbohydrates. Fiber (in the correct amounts) is good for the digestive process, helping food to be processed and eliminated efficiently (it keeps us running smoothly!) - and can prevent gastro-intestinal ailments.

What is a fibrous complex carbohydrate? Answer is Green Vegetables.

Green vegetables are low in calories. You can eat a lot of them without getting fat - yet at the same time the fibrous content can 'fill you up'. There are some green vegetables in particular that are very low in calories.

Every food requires some energy in order to digest it (called the thermic effect of food). Some green vegetables may actually have some of their calories burnt up just to digest them. This is the "negative calorie" process.

Example Green Vegetables
- Asparagus
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Cauliflower
- Celery
- Zucchini

Proponents of the Negative Calorie Diet suggest that eating a stick of celery (5 calories) will burn up 95 calories. This is pure speculation and lacks scientific basis.

Weight Loss from Negative Calorie Diet

It is likely that all weight loss on the Negative Calorie Diet comes simply from consuming low calories. It is very unlikely that any diet consisting of a certain group of foods will have any 'magical' properties.

Fibrous vegetables are filling, very nutritious yet low in calories - any diet consisting of large portions of vegetables will aid in weight loss.


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Neanderthin Diet Plan

The simple explanation of the diet, is that only raw food should be eaten, - and only those foods that were eaten in the Paleolithic age.

Neanderthin has been called a low-carb diet by some. Grains (oats, barley, wheat, rye, etc) are completely out - as are all refined carbohydrates and sugars. This is a big list of 'forbidden' food and includes breads, pasta, rice, and even beans. Dairy is also not allowed (obviously a product of agricultural society). Fruit and vegetables are allowed, along with honey (in small amounts).

It is essentially a similar diet to what the hunter-gatherer would eat. Nuts, eggs, fish, and seafood, along with a high amount of meat. Obviously the meat must be cooked for health purposes.

There is no calorie counting or portion control here - you eat as much as you want.

Paleolithic Diets

There has been considerable amount of research and study into eating habits in relation to disease. History shows an interesting record of this, and many conclusions have been drawn. The success of the Neanderthin diet and other Paleo-diets may have more to do with removing refined foods from the diet - rather than a premise of "eating what the caveman ate".
There are a number of idiosyncrasies in Neanderthin - such as forbidding peanuts - which completely qualify as a raw food.

The sad thing is, is that in modern society healthy (fruits and vegetables) are so expensive compared to their processed counterparts. Nutritionally-challenged breads are so cheap to buy that it's no surprise that it is a staple of our modern diet.


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Mayo Clinic Plan

The Mayo Clinic Plan is a great diet, designed by medical professionals from a reputable health institute. The Mayo Clinic Plan promotes a nutritious diet of fruit and vegetables with starchy carbs and then proteins and dairy, and is based on the Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight Pyramid.

With the Mayo Clinic plan you eat practically unlimited amounts of vegetables and fruit, plus whole-grain foods, lean protein and heart-healthy fats. The objective is to eat foods containing a small number of calories in large amounts, such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, poultry, fish and whole grains. Also on the menu are low-fat dairy and unsaturated fats (especially from nuts and olive and canola oils). This is not a restrictive diet plan, so carries its own incentive to stick with it long-term.

The result is a balanced, nutritious diet to achieve a healthy weight. The Mayo Clinic claims that the plan can help reduce your risk for heart disease (by lowering high blood pressure and cholesterol), cancer and Type 2 diabetes.

Sample Meals

A sample meal might include:
- Pancakes with syrup and strawberries
- Dilled Pasta Salad with Spring Vegetables
- Rosemary Lemon Chicken
- Fresh Apricots

3 day sample meal plan:

Day 1

Breakfast
Oatmeal
1 cup nonfat, skim milk
1 slice whole wheat bread
1 1/4 cups sliced fresh strawberries

Lunch
Salad
1/2 whole-wheat, approximately 6” (2 oz.) pita bread
1 cup nonfat, skim milk

Dinner
Spaghetti with Marinara Sauce
1 slice whole wheat bread
5 baby carrots
1 cup nonfat, skim milk
1 cup cantaloupe

Snack
7 whole almonds
1 cup red or green grapes

Day 2

Breakfast
2 pancakes, from mix (4” diameter)
1 1/2 tbsp. maple syrup
1 tsp margarine
1 cup nonfat, skim milk
3/4 cup fresh blueberries
1 cup honeydew melon

Lunch
Dilled Pasta Salad with Spring Vegetables
1 small apple
1 cup nonfat, skim milk

Dinner
Rosemary Lemon Chicken with Sweet Green Beans and Brown Rice with Green Onions
1 cup nonfat, skim milk
6 tomato slices
1 tsp. balsamic vinegar
1 cup cantaloupe

Snack1
small pear
3/4 cup fresh blueberries

Day 3

Breakfast
Poached Egg with toast and orange juice
2 slices whole wheat bread
1 tsp margarine
1 cup orange juice, calcium-fortified

Lunch
Tuna Salad
1 bell pepper
1 small apple

Dinner
Tomato-Basil Pita Pizza with salad and cantaloupe
2 cups lettuce, romaine or lettuce of choice
1 cup chopped or sliced cucumber
2 Tbsp. dressing, Italian low fat
1 cup cantaloupe
1 cup nonfat, skim milk

Snack
Vegetable juice
1 medium banana
1/2 cup canned vegetable juice
6 Whole Wheat crackers

Summary

The program altogether appears to be comprehensive and effective in its goals. It should appeal to many looking for a long-term lifestyle in which a healthy weight can be achieved and maintained without causing undue stress - in fact, it promotes a healthier life overall.

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Hilton Head Metabolism Diet

The Hilton Head Metabolism Diet derives from observation, and evidence from subsequent study, that a person's metabolism burns 70% of all daily calories - the remainder is burned through physical activity. So the main problem in people who are overweight is their body's failure to burn calories efficiently through metabolism. Metabolism is the action or the result of chemical processes occurring in living organisms and cells that are necessary to maintain life, breaking down some substances to yield energy for vital processes, and synthesizing other substances.

This program works by changing your body chemistry to burn fat naturally, so that even though you eat five times a day the weight will drop off. The program is in two (repeated) stages. The first stage comprises six weeks of weight reduction, and in the second two-week stage you follow a weight maintenance diet. This cycle is repeated until the ideal weight is achieved. In other words, 6 weeks to drop off pounds, 2 weeks to maintain that weight, then repeat this dietary 'stairstepping' as long as necessary.

How the Hilton Head Diet operates

The weight reduction or low-calorie stage involves eating three meals a day plus two snacks (equivalent to no more than about 1,000 calories a day), in a well-structured, low-fat, high-carbohydrate plan. Weight loss through metabolic activity is quicker on several 'minimeals' a day than on one or two large meals. On weekends the metabolism can be boosted (and the diet varied) by adding 200 to 250 calories each day.

The maintenance stage (also low-fat, high-carb) bases calorie intake on individual needs as determined by the plan.

In the meal plans, all portions must be measured and nothing skipped, no salt is permitted, and multivitamin/mineral and calcium supplements may be recommended. Daily meal plans restrict calories from fat to under 20% of total, and fat consumption is no more than 15 to 20 g. Drink daily at least five 8-ounce or 250-ml glasses of water (or other no-caloric and no-caffeinated beverages).

Daily exercise is required (two 20-minute walks or equivalent, substituted two/three times a week by a 20-minute session of muscle-firming exercises).


Sample plan for weekday low-calorie meal

Breakfast
1 oat bran English muffin with 1 tbspn low-sugar jam or jelly
¾ cup skim milk or 1% fat
1 banana
coffee or tea with sugar substitute

Lunch
Tuna salad sandwich (¼ cup tuna salad on 2 slices of low-calorie whole wheat bread, with lettuce and 2 slices of tomato)
6 raw baby carrot sticks
choice of any no-caloric or low-calorie beverage

Snack
1 apple

Dinner
Pasta (1¼ cups of cooked pasta with ½ cup tomato sauce)
Salad (small dinner salad with lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and 1 tbspn low-fat dressing of choice)
any no-caloric or low-calorie beverage

Snack
4 cups air-popped popcorn (no butter or salt)


Conclusion

The structured plan of the Hilton Head Metabolism Diet suits many people, but may be too rigid or demanding for you personally, especially for a larger-framed man. If so, the daily calorie intake may be increased (use the boosted weekend plan all week, or increase portion sizes), requiring more weight-loss/maintenance cycles to achieve the objective.

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Glycemic Impact Diet

The Glycemic Impact Diet is one of more popular diets to appear in the US. The diet is based in the Glycemic Index - which has been around for some time. However only recently have GI based diets become popular with both doctors, nutritionists, and the public.

The Glycemic Index (GI) was originally devised to help diabetics. The index is a ranking of carbohydrate foods which measures the rate at which the blood glucose (or blood sugar) levels rise when a particular food is eaten.

Pure glucose has a rating of 100 - so there nearer a food is to 100, the higher its GI rating is. This indicates how quickly the food is converted to blood sugar, and, how quickly the blood sugar levels will drop. Foods with a low GI rating will be absorbed more slowly, helping to keep blood sugar levels constant.

The Glycemic Impact Diet delves even further into the glycemic index, by taking into account Glycemic Load. This is a combination of the glycemic index of a food and the amount of carbohydrate the food has. A food such as a carrot is a common example: Carrots have a high GI - but a very low amount of carb per volume. The glycemic load of the carrot, in the end, is quite low - and is a great food to eat. You would have to eat a considerable amount of carrots in order to experience any large insulin response.

Glycemic Impact Meal Plans

All meal plans on the Glycemic Impact Diet are made up from the following principles:


- Approximately 40% of calories are from unrefined, complex carbohydrates, including whole grains and whole grain breads and cereals, and whole pieces of fruit instead of juice.
- About 30% of calories are from lean protein (fish, chicken and the occasional beef and pork) with vegetarian options that include soy protein, tofu and textured vegetable protein.
- About 30% of calories are from healthy fats, including nuts, fatty fish, avocado and olive oil.

Sample Meal Plan 1

Breakfast
Vegetable omelet with wheat bread and strawberries

Lunch
Grilled cheese and tomato sandwich with salad and milk

Afternoon Snack
Roast beef roll-ups with flatbread

Dinner
Chicken Florentine with brown rice and fruit

Late Night Snack
Yogurt with raspberries and almonds

Sample Meal Plan 2

Breakfast
Oat bran cereal with blackberries and milk

Lunch
Spicy chicken strips with fresh salad and yogurt

Afternoon Snack
Crunchy crabmeat salad mini pocket with strawberries

Dinner
Oriental pasta and beef stir-fry

Late Night Snack
Cottage cheese with fruit cocktail and peanuts

A Good Diet
The Glycemic Impact Diet is one of the few popular diets to come along that is truly sensible and possible to follow for one's entire life. It also lacks many of the excessive "foods to avoid" that so many diets have.

At the very least the Glycemic Impact Diet will assist those with hypoglycemic problems immediately. At best it will bring about steady weight loss over a long period of time.

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