Before you’re put off by the name of the book, consider the fact that The Flavor Point Diet: The Delicious, Breakthrough Plan to Turn Off Your Hunger and Lose the Weight for Good written by David Katz, Associate Professor of Public Health and Director of the Yale Prevention Research Center.
Quite an eyeful but the pedigree is impressive and the contents of the book are just as impressive!
The flavor point diet: an overview
Ever considered the fact that people eat too much because of the diverse varieties of flavor in each meal? For instance, think back to the large buffet you had last week. Did you not go about tasting as many items as you could, unbuttoning your pants to make way for more food?
This is the basic premise of the flavor point diet. A variety of flavors piques the appetite centers in the brain making you eat more food. Conversely, repeating the same flavors soothes these centers, thus restricting food intake. Thus, to lose weight permanently and safely, the book recommends arranging your daily diet around particular flavors. This does not mean that any one flavor has to be abdicated. It only means that daily meals must be centered on one flavor so that the brain’s appetite center experiences a feeling of fullness.
The flavor point book then goes on to provide a meal plan that lasts for 6 weeks. At the end of 6 weeks, followers will have the know-how to implement the plan in their regular meals on a daily basis.
The first phase of the diet (week 1-4) focuses on curbing food cravings which have been formulated by a lifetime of wrong eating practices. A specific flavor is used each day. Flavors may include lemon, thyme, mint, basil or cranberry. For example, on the lemon flavor day, you will eat foods like lemon poppy seed muffins, lemon yoghurt, lemon tabbouleh salad, lemon smoothie and asparagus with lemon peel.
In the second phase (week 5 and week 6), you are allowed to increase the variety of flavors per day. Each meal, and not each day, revolves around a particular flavor.
In the last phase, followers can design their own meals.
Two versions are provided for each meal plan: regular and weight loss express. Regular meal plans total 1,500 calories a day while the weight loss meal plan cuts this quota by 200-300 calories.
The Flavor Point meal: a review
Sensory specific satiety, or eating to satisfy the senses, is a rather path-breaking finding. However, several studies show that there is a lot of meat in the finding. If you were to eat the same flavor for the entire day, chances are you get bored with the flavor and you want it less and less. In this way, the amount of food going in is naturally curbed. Fewer calories going in means less fat in the body.
Flavor Point Diet Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Written by an expert
- Based on scientific research
- Delicious meals that are easy to make
- Eliminates processed foods
- Detailed meal plans
- Includes a wholesome variety of foods
- Easy to follow
Cons:
- Some of the food items are difficult to procure
- Difficult to sustain as it is unnatural
- Cannot eat out
- Need time to plan and cook
- Cannot be followed long term
In conclusion:
Although the diet plan may sound a little whacky, it makes sense to try it out. If you are eating to appease your senses, you could find yourself dropping pounds easily. The diet propagates sound eating principles and is therefore in itself a healthy way of eating.
