The diet guidelines itself are similar to that of the Zone Diet, but with focus on the intake of fiber. Tanya Zuckerbrot, a ten year dietitian claims that this diet will help people lose weight. She also says that it will boost your energy levels during the day, improve the appearance of hair and skin, and reduce a number of health issues affecting the nation such as diabetes, colon and breast cancer, and cardiovascular disease.
The main ingredient in this diet is fiber. If you increase the amount of fiber in your diet plan, it can help reduce your appetite and help you feel full faster, drastically limiting your daily caloric intake. Fiber is also known to control your blood sugar levels, which promotes high energy.
Here are some high fiber foods recommended for the F-Factor Diet:
- Fiber Crackers
- Fruit (raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, apple, pear)
- Vegetables (greens, broccoli, sweet potato, cabbage, asparagus)
- Fiber One Cereal
- Whole Grains (brown rice, whole wheat bread)
- Nuts (peanut butter, almond, walnut, pistachio)
- Beans and Legumes (black beans, lentils, pinto beans, garbanzos)
To get full meal menu plans you can get them at www.ffactordiet.com, and all meals are approximately 1100 calories a day. If you want to know more you can purchase the F-Factor Diet Book that has 75 recipes, and guidelines to eating out at restaurants and still keeping within the diet plan. The book costs $24.95 US, and can also be found at the website.
Some pros and cons to this new celebrity diet:
The diet itself focuses on adding healthy foods on your plate, instead of taking them away. It also has a great balance of all food groups, including proteins, fats, and carbs. Its focus is on natural foods instead of process foods, which means it calls for food with high nutrient content. Finally, it benefits those that have a hard time dieting and eliminating food, because it allows for regular eating habits.
Some of the negatives for this particular diet are that the portions in the meal plans are fairly small and may need to be increased for those with greater calorie requirements. There are no alternatives for the crackers that are introduced in the meal plans which are required to eat for the first two weeks. There is no guidance for monitoring the fat intake in this diet, and finally those who are allergic to fiber and wheat products will have a hard time making suitable adjustments.
