FoodTalk With Kotter and Trimark, Day 7

Today we talk more with Dr. Trimark about how to apply the gospel and avoid idolatrous and foolish overeating. Dr. Trimark, you offer two simples “rules of thumb” for healthy eating. What are they?

The first rule of thumb is to not eat fewer than 30 grams of fiber each day. Why concentrate on this measure?    Highly processed foods tend to be low in fiber while fruits, vegetables and whole grains are high in fiber.  Eating enough fiber in a day naturally leads one to fill up first with healthier foods. 

The second rule of thumb is to not eat more than enough grams of fat for your gender, height and frame size (for most people this is around 40 grams).  For most people keeping track of fat grams is the simplest way to ensure that their energy intake is appropriate.  Fat contains more energy per gram than any other components of food.  A lot more energy: about twice as much as protein or carbohydrates and nine times more than fiber.  This rule of thumb leads people to eat a satisfying amount of food, while consuming less energy.  Dieticians call this lowering the “energy density,” and can be accomplished without the starvation feelings of a crash diet.

Tracking two numbers--fat grams and fiber grams--is sufficient to help people wisely avoid idolatrous or foolish behavior. The standards are easily remembered, and the information is readily available on certified government labels and in reliable Internet databases.

In our book we will help people to establish a maximum daily budget for fat grams based on their gender, height and weight.  No matter how much weight needs to be gained or lost, eating the right amount of energy will lead over time to a “sanctified weight.”  Nonetheless, the goal is not weight loss in isolation, but to eat in a way that glorifies God.

Tomorrow, we’ll talk with Dr. Trimark on the importance of exercise…