Low-Calorie Diet Keeps Heart Young. It’s not just calories, although they try to simplify it to that at one point: “For the general public, the researchers recommend a moderate reduction in calories, combined with moderate, regular exercise.” The 25 people studied ate “1,400 to 2,000 nutritionally balanced calories per day,” while a “control group” of 25 people ate “a typical Western diet, consuming 2,000 to 3,000 daily calories on average.”
I think they know it’s not just the calories. It’s the fact that the Calorie-Restricted people focus “on vegetables, olive oil, beans, whole grains, fish and fruit. They avoid refined and processed foods, soft drinks, desserts, white bread and other sources of “empty” calories.” 1400 calories of junk is still junk… and I can tell you it’s pretty tough to eat 3,000 calories of healthy, high-fiber food.
I hate it when researchers and reporters try to simplify this kind of information. It’s not doing us any favors. In fact, it’s a kind of enabling of an extremely unhealthy lifestyle. A modest cut in calories combined with a modest amount of exercise is probably a good thing, but it’s even better if that modest cut in calories comes from replacing a hamburger with a lentil casserole, or french fries with a baked potato.
This is right in line with my current nutritional goals, which are to stay within my allotted WeightWatchers POINTS without being hungry. That can only be done if I choose the highest-quality foods available. This is why I have started to look for vegetarian and vegan cookbooks (without soy or milk, since I’m sensitive to both.) The WeightWatchers vegetarian meal ideas all include too much milk and cheese, so I’m still looking for easy, quick, healthy options.