50 Best Plants on the Planet (5 page)

by
CHERYL FORBERG, RD

James Beard Award–winning chef, former nutritionist

for
The Biggest Loser
, and author of
Flavor First

Go online or pick up a newspaper and you're almost guaranteed to read bad news about our health. In recent years, increasingly frequent headlines have tracked our nation's downward spiral—as evidenced by skyrocketing child and adult obesity rates, an uptick in type
2
diabetes, and a drop in the number of home-cooked meals we consume.

Nowhere is the reality of these statistics clearer to me than on the set of NBC's
The Biggest Loser
. Since the first episode aired in
2004
, I served as the show's nutritionist and co-wrote the eating plan that produced dramatic weight-loss results for contestants and viewers alike.

The contestants who arrive at “The Ranch” (the fitness and residential facility where they begin their weight-loss journey) are morbidly obese and often face the prospect of life- threatening conditions, such as heart disease and diabetes. Almost invariably, their pre-show diets are full of empty calories—that is, foods lacking in nutrient value but packing plenty of excess fat and sugar calories. Soft drinks, drive-through meals, and processed foods are usually staples.

Naturally, as part of the guidance I gave
Biggest Loser
contestants, I urged them to eliminate these unhealthy foods from their diets. But the massive lifestyle changes they undertake wouldn't be sustainable if they only involved deprivation. Instead, one of the cornerstones of the
Biggest Loser
eating plan is to increase—that's right, increase!—consumption of nutritious, high-quality foods. And that's where fresh fruits and vegetables come in.