French Secrets to Staying Slim

I have friends that spent some time in France. One of the many things they noticed was the lack of obesity even though the French food was full of luscious croissants, cheeses, pastries and rich sauces … hardly low fat food. How do they do it? Are they more active than Americans? Do they have a well guarded secret that we know nothing about? Is it something in the water?

A recent study explains two very important points that lead to the "French paradox" of eating such rich food and keeping the weight off. First, portion sizes in France run around 25% smaller than American. Even Chinese restaurants in America serve meals that are 72% larger than in America. Food in the supermarket are considerably larger as well. A similar candy bar in America is 41% larger than the one in France. Soft drinks are 52% larger; hot dogs 63% larger. A carton of yogurt is as much as 82% larger. Even the recipes in cookbooks suggest much larger portions (especially meat and soup, but not vegetables!).

Second, our priorities differ. The French tend to take longer to eat their food than Americans. The French savor their food; the Americans go for the 'big' value for their money and tend to be in more of a hurry when eating. The result: consuming much more in less amount of time (sometimes not even knowing what goes in the mouth). When is the last time you sat down to a meal and you savored every bite?

Lesson here? Slow down. Savor your food (and the company of others). Cook at home so you can control your portions more reasonably. If you eat out, ask for a doggy bag and put away half before you even start to eat (that's two meals for the price of one … that ought to make sense to us value conscious Americans). When eating at home, use a salad plate instead of a full dinner plate… That will fool the eye into believing you are getting more.

You'd never dream of over-filling the gas tank of your car … doesn't your body deserve the same consideration?