February, 2008

This week, Diets In Review added six new reviews to the list. Check these out and see if one is right for you. If you’ve already tried it or have experience with the program, we encourage you to leave a comment here or at the review.

DineWise
DineWise is a meal delivery service bringing healthy meals right to your door, and doing it a bit differently than some of the other guys. You can personally customize each meal based on dietary needs or likes and dislikes, and each menu item is designed by professional chefs.

IntelliTrim
IntelliTrim is a diet supplement pill that actively blocks fat. The company shares its research for the effectiveness of the product and how the active ingredient prevents the body from absorbing fat cells.

Acai
This berry is native to the Amazon and is a powerhouse of nutrients. In addition to a rich flavor, Acai provides antioxidants, amino acids and essential fatty acids. It’s listed as one of the 10 Super Foods and can be a healthy supplement to naturally energize.

Calorie King
You won’t find a better resource for giving you the calorie counts and other nutrition facts for more than 11,000 foods. Everything from pantry staples to restaurant menu favorites can be found at Calorie King. It’s worth bookmarking and using its many other features like recipes and community support.

Valerie Bertinelli: Losing It
In January, Valerie announced that she had exceeded her weight loss goal with the Jenny Craig program. This week, she released her book “Losing It”, sharing her experiences and giving like-minded dieters inspiration.

Zinera
This new diet pill says you’ll be “zinergized” by its 40 ingredients. With all recognizable ingredients like vitamins, calcium and green tea, Zinera claims to boost metabolism, squelch cravings and help you better manage your weight loss.

The Baby Food Diet
Leave it to Hollywood to dream up another fad diet. Starlets are eating little jars of baby food as small meals and snacks to stop cravings. While they are packed with nutrients and no preservatives, can it really provide an adult healthy weight loss?

File this one under government working well for the public… The city of New York is taking an initiative to put 1,000 fruit and vegetable stands in lower income neighborhoods. Obesity effects everyone, but especially poorer people, because they tend to buy cheaper processed and fast foods. And, people in general these days are living busy lives and eat on the run. If a fruit and vegetable cart is on the corner as you’re walking to your apartment, you have no reason not to pick up some produce on your way. As they say, you can only lead a horse to water.

Shaquille O’Neal says “When the heat is on, the pain is gone” in his spot for Icy Hot, the pain relief product that is supposed to sooth muscle pain. But now the heat is on the therapy product’s maker. There’s been a recall on various products. That’s because there have been reports of skin irritation and up to third degree burns! Here’s more detail on the extensive Icy Hot recall by Chattem, Inc.

The Kmart “New Day Your Way” program is a 16-week contest where women are encouraged to lose weight for cash prizes and other gifts that are awarded at the end. The 2008 contest started in January and will finish up in April. The judges vote on the winners based upon how much weight they lost, their physical transformation and the essay each woman had to write. Each woman chooses a diet that she wants to follow whether it’s the South Beach Diet, Weight Watchers or a diet plan that she created for herself. To learn more about this program, read the “New Day Your Way” diet review.

I feel it’s a fun goal to have in the back of your mind as you count calories and up your exercise routine with “fun” being the operative word. My fear with this program is that the contestants might become too consumed by the end prizes, it might detract away from the real reason they are losing weight and the staying power of the weight lost.

What do you think about losing weight for a monetary reward? Or, if you’re a “New Day, Your Way” contestant, let us know what your experience has been.

Now we have another reason to collectively adore Valerie Bertinelli. As revealed on “Oprah,” February 25th, 2008, Valerie has put out a book, detailing her life as well as her weight loss struggles. “Losing It: And How I Got My Life Back One Pound at a Time” is available for purchase, and is already getting rave reviews on Amazon.

Immensely likable, it was curious how she found love with a hard-edged rocker like Eddie Van Halen. Like her marriage, much about her personal life has remained a mystery, until now. Having lost more than 30 pounds with Jenny, and in a timeline that is realistic (you can read all about it on her blog), she does good friend, Kirstie Alley, proud with strong testimonial and certifiable results.

Valerie, you Rock!

You can read the full review of Valerie Bertinelli’s new book here at Diets In Review.