We recommend that patients focus on eliminating sweetened beverages, such as soft drinks, sports drinks, energy drinks, vitamin water, sweet tea, chocolate milk, and Frappuccinos. We also recommend substantially limiting or eliminating fruit juices and fruit smoothies due to their high sugar content. For example, 8 oz of orange juice contains 26 g of carbohydrates, which is almost as much as 8 oz of soda.
Compared with eating whole fruit, consuming fruit juice has demonstrated a small amount of weight gain in young children and adults.18,19 It also has shown a higher insulin response compared with eating the same amount of carbohydrates in whole fruit.20 Better options to drink include water, unsweetened tea, and black coffee. Also, avoid ultra-processed carbohydrates from foods such as breads, cereals, and pastries, as they have similar effects on blood glucose when compared to sugar.21
Greatly restrict highly processed foods. The evidence suggests that the availability of processed food is associated with increasing obesity.22 Simple advice to offer your patients is to encourage them to shop the perimeter of the grocery store, where fresh produce, meat, and dairy products are primarily located, and avoid the inner aisles, which contain primarily processed foods. Choosing food items with 5 or fewer ingredients is a starting point when teaching patients to read labels.
Consider limiting saturated fats.In 1977, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommended that Americans eat no more than 30% of total energy intake from fat and less than 10% of total energy intake from saturated fat; however, no randomized controlled trials had been done that supported this recommendation and epidemiologic data supporting it were weak.23
The 2015 Dietary Guidelines continue to recommend limiting total energy intake from saturated fats.24 While there may be a small decrease in cardiovascular risk with a reduction of saturated fat intake and replacement with unsaturated fats, no overall mortality benefit has been demonstrated.24,25 More research is needed in this area to guide patients in decisions regarding consumption of saturated fats and what types of unsaturated fats are best for their health.
