What are people's thoughts on diet products? I don't mean like the shakes and cereal bar meal replacements, I mean lower calorie versions of regular products. I think some are ok but generally they're overated and it's best to eat as naturally as possible. I love diet coke but it's supposed to be just as bad for you as ordinary, which I'd never drink because of the sugar content. The artificial sweeteners have been claimed to be linked to all sorts of health problems. So I tend to drink fizzy spring water with the tiniest bit of high juice added to taste. Many diet products have alot of artifical ingredients, like salad dressings. Also those products which claim to be low fat tend to have more sugar added to make up for it and vice versa. I think items like bread is overrated, the slices seem smaller, thinner and less dense.

Many items are the same only smaller. There's not much difference caloriewise between low fat and regular digestive biscuits. I buy low fat spread but tend to be choosy as they can contain alot of additives. I think Lurpak Lighter is just Lurpak with water added. There's even lower calorie orange juice in cartons but again if you check the ingerdients label, they just add water. I buy things like reduced sugar jam as it has more fruit. It's been a long time in coming, but tomato sauce with less sugar and salt is now widely available. I suppose we know more about our food than ever before with nutritional information printed on the label, but this just seems to add to the confusion. There's more products to aid weight loss and more choice than ever before. But maybe that's the problem, there's too much choice !!!! So I'd like to know are there any diet products that you would avoid buying or any that you would recommend?

Personally i can't stand Weightwatchers cakes and biscuits, they have so many articificial sweetners in they taste nasty, and instead of feeling virtuous you just feel cheated, had a cake but it was horrible, should have just had something lovely and enjoyed it

I would advise people to avoid ready made meals, even the low fat, low calorie versions, unless they really really have to. I have them occasionally but I always wish I'd spent 20 mins doing a stir fry rather than heating the meal up in the microwave!

For a start not all that low calorie, I'm sure there must be a lot of salt or something in them because I always feel very thirsty after eating them. They tend to be small portions and just not all that tasty!

One thing I would recommend which I've just started buying is sugar free jelly. You buy them premade in pots with 10 calories or a sachet to make your own (far cheaper). I find these make good pick me ups and puddings for those times when you're not all that hungry just need something sweet!

I used to get some WW meals because I didn't have to count the points, but I think they are a con, expensive for a tiny piece of protein covered in something manufactured in a laboratoy - how healthy is that. And there's enough recipes that don't take a lot of prep - you just need to get yourself organised and buy in advance. Lately I've been cooking in bulk for the freezer.

I also find no/low cal jelly good - although i buy the sachets because they yield more(!). A sweet hit (can be a bit synthetic though) without the guilt and they're veggie too!!

Emm

Yep, I'm into the sugar free jelly too. Although you can't get jelly in france so I have to get my friends to bring them over to me!

I'm also into fat free/artificially sweetened yoghurts, when I'm not making my own. I do eat the full fat unsweetened greek ones occassionally for a treat, but I get through so many yoghurts that I have to have a stock of fat free ones in the fridge as well. I'm obsessed with yoghurt. I think if I was stuck in a room for a month and was only allowed one thing to eat, it would be yoghurt.

I quite like those sachets of three fruit slice biscuit things, they're called Fruit n Form in France, can;t remember thier british name. They are good for keeping in some of the million pockets in my ski jackets for a ski-lift munch.

Other than that I pretty much avoid anything else specifically labelled diet food.

I also try to avoid slimmers product as I find the fat is replaced with sugar, the portions made smaller and the price increased. I'd rather make the effort to cook something from scratch where I know what the ingredients are and I can decrease the fat to suit me. Yes this does take a bit or planning but I'm happy to bulk cook for the freezer.

As for reduced fat cheese - yuk - it just doesn't melt properly - I'd rather have a smaller portion of the real stuff. If anyones thinking of trying the r/f feta - don't - polystyrenes better.

When I think about I'd rather have smaller amounts of the real stuff than the slimmers version olive oil/ fat free dressing, homemade bread/ slimmers bread, homemade ice cream / skinny cow icecreams.

I find anything with the label 'diet' or 'low fat' a real turn off. I agree with what you are all saying, they are usually really poor nutritionally and not pleasant to eat, full of additives etc.

The way I look at it is that just because I am trying to lose weight it doesn't mean that I have to eat poor food. Eating nice food is more likely to keep me on the straight and narrow.

I try not to have any kind of spread on my bread but if I want it I will have just a little butter; I have cheese but a little and not often. I find this much better.

Have you tried St Dalfour jam, Andrew; there is no added sugar at all.

Jean

I actually buy the slimfast meal replacement bars- they are tasty, very filling (chewy and satisfying), chocolate coated on one side, around 200cals -or 3.5 WW points, full of fibre, and when you often work through your lunch and do not have time to make a sandwich or buy one a really good substitute to pop in your bag, stops you raiding the biscuit tin --at £1 a bar thats good value for lunch with a piece of fruit.

Marcia

I prefer the musli bars from lidl or aldi, the chocolate coated ones are lovely. 109 cals a bar and they only cost around £1.30 for 8. I keep a box at work as I work through lunch every day and don't have time for much else.

Liv have you tried Rachel's organic low fat yogurt? It's delicious!

I've a nasty stomach bug and haven't eaten much since Tuesday. I decided to treat myself to a tub of Rachel's strawberry yogurt today - delicious and hasn't upset my tum. I believe the "bio-live" bit also means it's good for my gut - let's hope so as I'm fed up being sick!

Agree. I hate WW and other processed products like them. By eating 'substitutes' you don't re-educate your taste buds to do without sugar/fat etc.
The best thing is to wean yourself off processed food and switch (gradually) to whole, pure foods like fruit and veg (zhizh them up with dressings) and plain old tap water (a slice of lime is nice.