The Pasta-farian Diet

I think I’m going to propose a new diet called “The Pasta-farian.” I freely admit I’m borrowing the concept, in toto, from a research study at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in which dieting subjects ate frozen Uncle Ben’s Rice Bowls and lost weight. Now, clearly, despite the frantic efforts of anti-carbohydrate apostles over the years, if you can eat rice and lose weight, it can work for spaghetti and its cousins, too.

The theory behind the rice-bowl diet was simple; that people had difficulty in portion control or in correctly judging just how many calories they were actually eating. By using prepared frozen foods, this uncertainty was eliminated, and the participants eating the frozen foods lost more weight than those who prepared their own meals within the caloric guidelines (not to mention, saved a lot of time!). These results were replicated both in male and female test subjects.

The great thing about my new Pasta-farian diet is that, unlike the somewhat limited rice bowl selection (during the study, 24 choices), dozens of manufacturers of frozen food produce hundreds of pasta choices, ranging from Healthy Choice Stuffed Pasta Shells Marinara (230 calories) to Marie Callender’s Fettuccine Alfredo with Garlic Bread, weighing in at a whopping 920 calories. There are dishes to suit all tastes and all caloric or carbohydrate requirements. For carnivores, from Swanson comes Hungry-Man Hearty Meatball Lasagna Bake, while over at Amy’s Organics you Vegans can get your lasagna with vegetables or tofu. For palates wanting a more café-style selection, Bertolli offers a terrific line of pasta dinners for two in a bag, while Stouffer’s new Corner Bistro selections are catching on fast.

So, don’t hesitate. There are lots of great lunches and dinners that can fit into the Pasta-farian diet plan for successful weight loss, not to mention the ease of preparation. Hey…if it works, why not?