Dieting made easy

When deciding on a weight loss program, it is essential to try to restrict your intake of salt, fat and refined carbohydrate.

Some low carb diet pointers:
* Know what is in your food Be sceptical of the food label that claims 'low carb' - check the nutritional information figures on the rear of the can or package. Many are only slightly reduced and in some cases still greater than a competitors normal brand. Also, beware of 'low sugar' and 'low fat' labels - 'low sugar' doesn't always mean 'low carb' - often the carbs are identical.

* Dietary fiber is important Cutting the carbs in your meals usually leads to reduction in fiber also. Look at low carbohydrate recipes that are high in fiber to redress this.

Lycopene rich foods
(includes grapefruit, red bell peppers and baby jackfruit)

Lycopene is a naturally occurring coloring agent and part of the same family of phytochemicals as carotene. Lycopene is the agent responsible for the deep red colour of a good number of natural foods.

Usefully, unlike numerous vitamins, lycopene is not damaged during the cooking process, but is observably made more effective by going through the cooking process.

. Its most valuable advantage is that it serves as an antioxidant and appears to be of use in the battle to reduce the probabilty of contracting cancer.

This useful phytochemical is the most efficacious eliminator of singlet oxygen, which is connected with aging of the skin. It's also thought by many researchers to prevent the development of diseases affecting arterial blood vessels.