The Perricone Weight Loss Diet

As described in his New York Times bestseller, The Wrinkle Cure (Warner Books, $13.95, paperback), Dr. Nicholas Perricone, this diet and skin care plan is not intended for weight loss, and there is no mention made in the book of this incidental benefit.  Dr. Perricone is a Fellow of the New York Academy of Sciences and American College of Nutrition, and a world-renowned dermatologist.  His book focuses on the relationship between food and its nutritional components to health and skin care.  A correlation is made between nutrition, skin care and the aging process -- that is, how certain foods, vitamins, nutritional supplements and skin care products affect the look and appearance of your skin and improve your overall health.  Perricone believes that much of the skin damage, wrinkles, and lines result from inflammation caused by eating the wrong foods.

Dr. Perricone's Anti-Inflammatory Diet consists of 5 main components:

• Always Choose Whole Grain Carbs
  Select whole grain bread, beans, legumes and cereals that rank low on the Glycemic Index ("good carbs") and avoid all refined carbs that rank high on the Glycemic Index ("bad carbs" which cause us to secrete insulin rapidly).  

• Moderate Your Intake of Dairy Products
  Limit your intake of whole milk and hard cheeses (high in fat), and choose low-fat alternatives like low-fat milk and yogurt and soft cheeses (cottage, ricotta, Feta), and Cheddar or Swiss cheeses.

• Choose Fruits and Vegetables High In Anti-Oxidants
  Best include: avocado, bell peppers, berries, cantaloupe, honeydew, dark green leafy vegetables (like spinach and kale), orange-colored squash, Pineapple,  tomatoes. Avoid dried fruits.

• Eat More Protein
  Especially fish (wild salmon or canned Alaskan red/pink salmon), egg whites, skinless chicken and turkey breast. Dr. Perricone strong recommends eating salmon, since it is rich in the powerful antioxidant DMAE (Dimethylaminoethanol).

• Eat the Right Fats
  Limit saturated fats, avoid trans-fats (hydrogenated fats), and polyunsaturated fats (from vegetable oils). Use Olive oil, which is rich in oleic acid that helps omega-3 fats to protect cells).  Fish is an excellent source of  omega-3 fatty acids.

• Limit Your Intake of Dairy Products and Sugars
  Limit your intake of whole milk and hard cheeses (high in fat), and choose low-fat alternatives like low-fat milk and yogurt and soft cheeses (cottage, ricotta, Feta), and Cheddar or Swiss cheeses.

• Drink Lots of Water
  Perricone strongly recommends drinking lots of water -- both for it's benefits to the digestive system, and for great skin.

Given the obvious nutritional benefits of Perricone's healthy diet program, this diet plan will undoubtedly improve one's general health, and appears to show benefits for the health of one's skin as well, based on feedback and comments from fans of his book.

His emphasis on foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, nutrient-rich fruits and vegetables high in anti-oxidants, and low-fat, whole grain foods is not particularly new.  Diabetic diets, the Anne Collins Diet and others are similar in many ways. Having lived through the Low Carb trend popularized by the Atkins Diet and the South Beach Diet, there's probably no one out there who is not well-versed on the difference between "good carbs" and "bad carbs" at this point.  Perricone's diet program can be a strain on your budget -- salmon is a pricey food choice, and buying some of the specialty items he recommends, such as organic vegetables, may be a budget breaker as well. 

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