Cynthia McFadden | 05/04/2009 11:00 pm

Dr. Nancy Snyderman Might Save Your Life, by Cynthia McFadden

But first, the author of Diet Myths That Keep Us Fat and the 101 TRUTHS that will Save Your Waistline and Maybe Even Your Life can help with your weight.

By Cynthia McFadden

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Dr. Nancy Snyderman

Nancy Snyderman is not only a doctor and the Chief Medical Editor of NBCNews, she is an inveterate truth teller and myth buster. I have known Nancy for nearly two decades and in that time I have come to rely on her wisdom and insight. We first met in the makeup room at "Good Morning America" — and while I don’t remember the conversation, I do remember she was hysterically funny even at four o’clock in the morning. It was the start of a beautiful friendship. Nancy has always had a talent for explaining things. Her uncanny ability to translate often-conflicting medical reports into useful information has made her one of the most trusted women in America. So what better subject to bring her vast experience to than diet? Her new book, Diet Myths That Keep Us Fat and the 101 TRUTHS that will Save Your Waistline and Maybe Even Your Life, is a must-read for all of us who battle our weight or just want to be healthy. (Isn’t that all of us?) She is also the ultimate girlfriend — a funny, compassionate friend who is willing to share her own struggles as she helps us confront ours. I adore her. She has helped me in so many ways. I bet you’ll say the same after reading her book.

CYNTHIA MCFADDEN: So, Nancy, what was the inspiration for this book?

NANCY SNYDERMAN: Well, I’m fascinated with myths; the urban myths that hit people who are really, really smart and, frankly, too smart to be sucked into this stuff, and the myths that are passed down from generation to generation and the myths that sometimes lie entangled in normal medicine and science. I think we, as doctors, and obviously me as a physician correspondent — we sometimes just make things too damned difficult. And so if you can cut through things and make it simpler, I think that’s it. Also, because you’ve known me for a very long time, I am sort of the face of the perennial dieter. There is nothing I haven’t tried. And there is a moment in your midlife where you come to terms with your demons and your body shape and who you are. But until then, I really think we chase the elusive.

CYNTHIA: Mmm, you mean that idea of the perfect figure we see in the magazines?

NANCY: Right. Well, you and I know they’re airbrushed. You and I know they aren’t normal. You and I know that there are lumps and bumps that we can’t see. But when we’re standing by ourselves in our underwear, looking in the mirror, we sort of think, “What happened to me?” And, you know, you and I both had children. We know that that means there are parts of us that have gone east and west, and parts of us that have gone south. Nothing ever seems to go north.

CYNTHIA: Why is that?

NANCY: Why is that? I think we have these conversations with ourselves and we aren’t very nice to ourselves. So at the end of the day, knowing … if you look at diets, you have to know what’s myth and what’s fact. And frankly, I think the word diet is a four-letter word. I don’t even think it should be used anymore.

Click here for some surprising diet myths … and truths.

CYNTHIA: You know, you start in a really interesting place, one that is debunking the idea that “your weight is your fault.”

NANCY: Yes.

CYNTHIA: I think it’s hard to find a woman who won’t relate to that first chapter.

NANCY: There’s not a woman I know who isn’t feeling guilt about eating things at one time anyway. So when her weight is up, or her body’s not perfect, the average woman internalizes as if everything is her fault.

CYNTHIA: And it gets in the way.

NANCY: It gets in the way of being healthy.

CYNTHIA: Yes.

NANCY: The weight is not the scale. The weight is where you feel good. You know, you and I were both lucky enough to know Julia Child. And one of the great moments in my life was having dinner in Paris with Julia. And I watched how she ordered and what she ate. And Julia was always a believer that you order real foods and eat less of it, and you don’t get sucked into the “no sugar, no fat, this, that.” She thought it was garbage. Julia led a big life and let food be her companion. I think too many of us see food as the enemy.

CYNTHIA: You say in the book, “I’m at peace with food.” Has it taken even you a while to get there?

Read more about: Books, Diet, Health, Nancy Snyderman, Q & A, Weight Loss

10 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Love this piece! and ironically… Nancy and I have all the same ideas and even the same methods of maintaining our weight! I sit at a lot of business dinners and business functions. At the dinners everyone always wants to "share" desserts. so we’ll order two or three. if they are still sitting on the table in front of me when i’m done and everyone else is done.. i put salt or pepper all over them. I have some! but i don’t have a lot. If i’m done with my dinner and picking at it i call the server over to remove it right away. I ask not to have the bread brought to the table. not because i’m carb phobic… i’m all over that myth… but becasue it’s calories i’d rather spend on dinner.

as to the carb phobia in this country… as part of an education for my personal trainer business I took some nutrition and physiology classes. I learned in those that I was eating to much protein. which often translates to to much fat if you’re getting it from meat or dairy especially. The average protein needs for a person range from 50-70 grams a day. depending on your weight. and 1 egg has 6 grams. if you’re a 3 egg cheese omelette eater you’re getting half your daily protein needs in one meal. and a ton of fat.

but the bottom line is… as Nancy says… calories in calories out. period. there is no magic there is no secret. it’s been calories in and calories out since the beginning of time.

By Chrome Toe on 05/05/2009 9:39 am

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I took love this piece. I am a fan of the Today Show. I love Dr Snyderman. She does tell it like it is and gives great advice.

You just have to watch what you eat and how much. You don’t have to just not gorge.

By Beth Cornell on 05/05/2009 9:46 am

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Just saw the segment on the Today show with Nancy talking about her book with Matt L. I like watching her on TV - very sensible and down to earth. I totally agree with her concerning plate size and portion control. A few years ago I was given my step-grandmother’s mother’s wedding china dating back to the early 1900’s. The dinner plate is just a little bit larger than our salad plates today. This year I switched to using those plates and I have noticed a difference - you do adjust portion size accordingly. I eat what I want in moderation and I walk (last year I walked a 3-day walk for breast cancer awareness). I feel good and I am starting to notice that clothes fit differently which I use as my guide instead of the scales.

I would like to see Dr. Nancy Synderman as a regular contributor on this site.

By J Holmes on 05/05/2009 11:08 am

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By Cynthia McFadden on 05/06/2009 11:02 am

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Yes Cynthia?

By Beth Cornell on 05/06/2009 12:27 pm

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This is the sanest commentary on women’s health I’ve ever read. And I’ve read a few.

By Paula Forman on 05/06/2009 4:36 pm

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I need to lose 30 pounds of ‘attempting to get into lawschool’ weight…I packed it on in a year and I’ll be damned if I don’t shed it in a year.

Dr. Snyderman’s points are sane and down to earth. I’m buying this book. Done.

By Pat M on 05/06/2009 5:01 pm

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Here’s a "trick" of mine that is similar to Nancy’s destroying her food, and I believe this is one of the main reasons I’ve stayed at a healthy weight my whole adult life: Ask the waiter for a go-box at the beginning of your restaurant meal then put half the food on your plate into the box before you have a chance to eat the whole thing. Take the box home and either truly give doggie a treat, or have it as an appropriate-sized meal the next day.

By victoria hallman on 05/11/2009 9:14 am

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I think Dr. Snyderman really says some of the things women have thought for decades but were afraid to share or say out loud. The idea that some or many of us "can’t say no-do not have a shut off valve" is pretty prevalent, so we find ourselves binging and unable to just eat certain foods "normally" but not seeking help because we don’t want to reveal those behaviors to anyone. So throw it out/give it away/don’t keep leftovers or seconds nearby has to be the mantra for alot of us, as the doctor suggests.

What concerns me is the reality that all those women struggling (and guys too) with unhealthy habits and relationships with food -have already given those legacies of behavior to their kids. So whever we isolate "ourselves" to diet or change habits - and leave the kids or family "out of the equation" - we are in a way being selfish and frankly, not very good parents. I get that we often need to work on ourselves first, but we leave our kids and family members doing the same old patterns that got US into trouble healthwise, in the first place.

That’s why I wrote a book Fat Families Thin Families with many of the same revelations as Dr. Snyderman - they just target the "family as a whole" rather than the individual dieter. Wellness and lifestyle change should be a team sport - with everyone learning better eating and fitness habits. If certain foods are your nemesis - I guarantee you that more than likely, you’ve also introduced your kids to these foods and more-out of love or wanting them to have the latest and greatest snacks - than to create a weight or health issue - - I get that, and no finger pointing- I just feel we are, as women and nurturers, missing the boat on fixing the obesity equation, by only focusing on fixing ourselves…even if we plan, later on, to shift the family scene as well. Let’s do it as a team effort, with all the lifestyle habit changes and education going on together, and all the participation happening together - at home - where we all learn our first relationships with food as fuel or as something else and our like or dislike of fitness. www.healthgal.com, Author, Fat Families Thin Families (BenBella Books 2008)

By Amy Hendel on 05/11/2009 7:36 pm

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Thank goodness there are two sane people about our weight and I wish I could pass on my attitude as I believe I’ll probably always be somewhat overweight however always beautiful because it comes from inside. Now don’t misunderstand I also exercize and try to eat good foods (along with the bad ones) therefore setting a reasonable goal feeling good within and improving as we get older (I’m going to be 63) and of course learning more from respected and trusted people like Nancy and Cynthia will also help us make progress in this forever fight with fat.

Regards, Dorothy from grammology

grammology.com

By Dorothy Stahlnecker on 05/25/2009 11:13 am