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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 11, 2005)
Weight Watchers, Slim-Fast tip the scales in diet review THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Meetings and shakes trump count ing carbs when it comes to long-term weight loss, according to a recent analysis of diets by Consumer Reports magazine. The publication, best known for rat ing cars and electronics, put Weight Watchers, with its support group meet ings, and Slim-Fast, whose shakes let you opt out of cooking, at the top of the heap. The ratings were based on pounds lost, nutrition, how easy the diet was to follow and dropout rates after six months and a year. Though low-carb diets have domi nated headlines, the highest marks went to Weight Watchers, which uses weekly meetings to reinforce its decid edly simple philosophy — eat less and exercise more. After a year, its follow ers were far more likely to stick with the plan. Weight Watchers did not, however, earn the strongest scores on weight loss, a distinction that went to second ranked Slim-Fast, which replaces parts of two meals a day with shakes and bars. Atkins, which has led the low-carb charge, got good scores for short-term weight loss, but landed at the bottom of the ratings because of poor marks on retention and nutrition. The report, released in the maga zine’s June issue, said the Atkins diet calls for too much fat and saturated fat, too few fruits, too little fiber and “might have a negative effect on some dieters’ health.” Colette Heimowitz, vice president of education and research at Atkins Nu tritionals, criticized the study, saying it focused only on Atkins’ weight-loss components, ignoring its more flexible weight maintenance stages. The magazine’s conclusions are based on a review of published clin ical research on each diet and a nu rient and calorie analysis of a week’s worth of menus, including low closely they follow federal di etary guidelines. Heimowitz took issue with the use if the dietary guidelines as the nutri ;ional bar, saying those standards are intended for maintaining a healthy weight, not losing fat. All of the diets reviewed are low enough in calories to produce results, but success relies on sticking to the plan, said Nancy Metcalf, a senior edi tor at Consumer Reports. That accounts for the strong showing by Weight Watchers, which backs up a flexible, low-calo rie, low-fat approach with weekly motivational meetings, Metcalf said. “We are not necessarily the fastest kids in town, but we’re liv able and sustainable, and we feel that’s very important,” said Karen Miller-Kovach, chief scientist at Weight Watchers. Weight Watchers and Slim-Fast top diets According to a recent analysis of diets by Consumer Reports magazine, Weight Watchers and Slim-Fast are the most effective diets. AVERAGE DAILY DIETS CALORIES Fruits and veggies* Grams of fiber* % OF CALORIES Protein Carbohydrates \ Saturated fat \ Fat.\ | ZZX-JU-L Weight Watchers Slim-Fast Zone (men’s menu) Ornish (Eat More, Weigh Less) Atkins (Ongoing weight loss) Atkins (Induction) eDiets Jenny Craig South Beach (Phase One) South Beach (Phase Two) Volumetries 1,450 1,540 1,660 1,520 1,520 1,640 1,450 1,520 1,530 1,340 1,500 24: 7j 56 j 20 22| 6i57 | 21 27 !7 | 42|30 6 j 1 |77 |16 60 j 20111 ! 29 61119 j 8 | 31 23 j 5:53 | 24 18i 7;52 j20 51 114M5 j 34 39I 9138 | 22 20 i 11 21 | 12 21 | 17 31 f 17 12 | 6 8 | 6 19 j 12 16 j 6 9 112 19 i 13 23: 7!55 ! 22 20 i 14 ‘Per 1.000 calories **Daily servings IN BRIEF Senate OKs bill to develop wellness policies in schools SALEM — The Senate on Tliesday passed what some called a watered down version of a bill that would have banned junk food in schools but now directs school districts to develop wellness policies. The bill’s transformation drew harsh criticism from student advo cates and some lawmakers, who said the bill was gutted to appease interest groups and school districts, which get money from vending machine sales. But supporters said the bill, which reinforces a similar federal law, is a necessary step in getting parents and school officials involved in student eating habits. The bill passed 20-9 and was sent to the House. “I think that this bill would have been a feel-good bill if all we would have done is ban certain foods,” said Sen. Vicki Walker, D-Eugene, who in troduced the bill to the Senate. Under the bill, school districts would need to form wellness policy councils, consisting of parents and school officials, who would decide districtwide standards on nutrition in the school. The districts would then submit reports to the state be fore the 2006-07 school year begins. The similar federal law applies only to schools that participate in the federal free lunch program. There are 17 districts in Oregon that do not par ticipate in that program, Walker said. Walker said the state law also adds some requirements, such as the well ness councils, which she said will get parents and school officials thinking about childhood obesity. But some lawmakers were unhap py with the bill. Sen. Bill Morrisette, D-Springfield, said it failed to address the problem of childhood obesity. “Schools do not lose money when they change products in the machines,” Morrisette said, arguing for the ban on junk food in schools. He said more work will be done next session to try to get a stronger bill passed. Senate Republicans also criticized the bill, calling it an unfunded man date on schools that are already un derfunded. — The Associated Press FROM THE UNDERGROUND Travis D. Roderick | Freelance photographer Underground rappers Abstract Rude and Aceyalone rocked the mic in tandem at the WOW Hall on Monday night. The duo is on tour with a large collective of its Project Blowed labelmates, all of whom shared the stage before heading to Bend on Tuesday. 022267 NO SECURITY DEPOSIT! Msjf Vj* i Jim “ -j pm Space limited, sign your team up today! Everybody's Invited! un i versity COMMONS apartments 90 Commons Drive, Eugene, Or 97401 338-4000 Thursday, May 12 Ethics in Journalism at the UO 11:00 a.m. Presentation of the 2005 Payne Awards for Ethics in Journalism Chambers Electronic Media Center Allen Hall, 1020 University Street 2005 Ruhl Lecture jay Harris, director, Center for the Study OF JOURNALISM AND DEMOCRACY, USC “.Ethical Stewardship of the News” Ballroom, Erb Memorial Union, 1222 E. 13th avenue Sponsored by the university of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication Both events are FREE and open to the public. For more information, call the School of Journalism and Communication at (541) 346-3819. 4:00 p.m O SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM AND COMMUNICATION University of Oregon EO/AA/ADA institution committed to cultural diversity
