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| 1. |
Q: CAN I HAVE FAT-FREE CHEESE WITH MY CARBOS? |
| A: Technically, yes, but check the ingredients list because many of these products are filled with things your body does not want or need. |
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| 2. |
Q: CAN I HAVE PROCESSED PRE-SLICED CHEESE, OR DOES THE CHEESE HAVE TO COME IN BLOCKS? |
| A: You may have processed cheese, but the unprocessed kind is healthier. |
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| 3. |
Q: CAN I HAVE VELVEETA CHEESE ON LEVEL ONE? |
| A: Velveeta is an American cheese, and as such we haven't technically ruled it out. However, it does contain enough preservatives to sit on a shelf unrefrigerated! Just remember that the closer you stay to whole, unprocessed foods, the better. |
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| 4. |
Q: CAN REGULAR RICOTTA CHEESE BE USED WITH PRO/FATS OR CAN WE ONLY USE NONFAT, WHICH CAN ONLY BE COMBINED WITH CARBS? |
| A: Regular ricotta cheese has trace amounts of carbohydrates, but we have included it with our Pro/Fats group so as not to split hairs. You may eat regular ricotta cheese with Pro/Fats, or nonfat ricotta cheese with Carbos. |
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| 5. |
Q: CAN RICOTTA AND MOZZARELLA CHEESES BE EATEN WITH VEGGIES LIKE EGGPLANT AND TOMATO SAUCE AS IN EGGPLANT ROLLATINI, OR MUST THEY BE NONFAT? |
| A: Yes! I have several recipes that include this combination. These are Pro/Fats and Veggies meals. Whole-milk ricotta has trace amounts of carbohydrates, but it is a small imbalance. |
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| 6. |
Q: COTTAGE CHEESE IS ON THE PRO/FATS LIST, BUT YOU SAID NO WHOLE-MILK PRODUCTS. IS THERE SOMETHING I AM MISSING? |
| A: You are absolutely correct. Nonfat cottage cheese is the only cottage cheese allowed and it should only be listed in the Carbos group. This was an error from the earlier books. |
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| 7. |
Q: I AM A VEGETARIAN. I GET MY PROTEIN FROM TOFU AND FISH. HOW SHOULD I TREAT TOFU CHEESE? |
| A: Tofu cheese should be treated as a Pro/Fat. It does contain some carbohydrates, but we make exceptions for vegetarians. |
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| 8. |
Q: I BOUGHT SOME SHREDDED CHEESE AND THE INGREDIENTS SAY PART SKIM MILK. DOES THAT MAKE IT FUNKY? IT ALSO HAS AT THE END OF THE INGREDIENTS LIST POTATO STARCH TO PREVENT CAKING. IS THIS OKAY? |
| A: All cheese is made with milk. The carbs are eliminated in the process. As for the starch, the more processed your food gets, the more additives you wind up with. I doubt that the imbalance from eating this food would be very great, but if you have time, it's certainly better to shred your own cheese. |
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| 9. |
Q: I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT CREAM CHEESE. HOW DO I COMBINE THIS WITH OTHER FOODS? LEVEL ONE OR LEVEL TWO? |
| A: Regular cream cheese is a Pro/Fat. There are nonfat cream cheeses, but many of them are filled with starches and chemicals to make up for the missing fat. Technically, nonfat cream cheese is a Carbo, but check the ingredients list for yucky stuff. |
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| 10. |
Q: I HAVE BEEN BUYING SLICED FARMER'S CHEESE, WHICH IS A FORM OF YOGURT CHEESE. IS THIS OKAY FOR SOMERSIZING (LEVEL ONE)? |
| A: The rules are the same as the rules for yogurt. If it's nonfat farmer's cheese, it would be a Carbo. If it's low-fat or whole-milk farmer's cheese, it would be a Funky Food, as it contains both Carbos and Pro/Fats. |
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| 11. |
Q: I KNOW YOU SAID WE COULD HAVE FAT-FREE COTTAGE CHEESE ON WHOLE-WHEAT BREAD, BUT CAN WE ALSO HAVE FAT-FREE MOZZARELLA CHEESE? OR ANY OTHER FAT-FREE CHEESE WITH WHOLE-WHEAT BREAD? |
| A: Yes, technically you can have any kind of fat-free cheese with a Carbos meal, such as whole-wheat bread. However, please check the label. Many times the fat that is removed from cheese is replaced with all kinds of fillers, so watch those labels! |
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| 12. |
Q: I LIVE IN CANADA AND I CAN'T BUY FAT-FREE CHEESE. I CAN BUY LOW-FAT CHEESE WITH DIFFERENT AMOUNTS OF MILK FAT. CAN YOU TELL ME HOW MUCH MILK FAT IS IN THE FAT-FREE CHEESE THE BOOK SAYS I CAN HAVE? |
| A: Fat-free cheese has 0 percent milk fat. One percent would actually be considered low-fat. |
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| 13. |
Q: I LOVE HAVING GRILLED-CHEESE SANDWICHES. IS THERE A WAY I CAN EAT THEM ON LEVEL ONE? CAN I EAT GRILLED CHEESE IF I USE NONFAT CHEESE AND WHOLE-WHEAT BREAD? |
| A: You could do your grilled cheese with nonfat cheese. However, most nonfat cheeses do not melt very well. Have real cheese and fry eggplant slices as your "bread." |
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| 14. |
Q: IF CHEESES ARE CONSIDERED TO BE PROTEINS, WHY CAN'T NONFAT CHEESES AND YOGURTS ALSO BE CONSIDERED IN THIS CATEGORY? WHY ARE THEY THOUGHT TO BE ONLY CARBOHYDRATES? |
| A: Any kind of milk-nonfat, low-fat, or whole-has protein and carbohydrates. Since we don't combine fat and carbohydrates, we put low-fat and whole milk in the Funky Food category. Even though nonfat milk also has protein, we treat it as a Carbo. Yogurt falls into the exact same category as milk. Nonfat is a Carbo, low-fat and whole-milk yogurt are Funky Foods. Cheese is different because in the process of making cheese, cream, and butter, all of the carbohydrates are separated from the original milk and only the proteins and fats remain. These foods are therefore grouped as Pro/Fats. Now to answer your question. Look on the label. If nonfat cheese has carbohydrates, you should treat it as a Carbo (just beware of starchy fillers that are sometimes used to replace fats). You may not group it as a Pro/Fat because we don't want to eat carbohydrates with proteins and fats. Same goes for nonfat yogurt. It has carbohydrates and we don't want to eat carbohydrates with proteins or fats because carbohydrates cause our bodies to secrete insulin. Remember, insulin must be present for food to be stored as fat. We can eat proteins, fats, and low-starch vegetables freely because they do not cause an insulin response. Whole-grain carbohydrates and nonfat dairy products cause a moderate release of insulin and, therefore, are eaten separately. |
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| 15. |
Q: IS PARMESAN CHEESE ALLOWED ON TOP OF MY WHOLE-WHEAT SPAGHETTI? |
| A: In Level Two you can add a little fat, like Parmesan and olive oil, to your whole-wheat pasta. |
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| 16. |
Q: IS THERE A LIMIT TO HOW MUCH CHEESE I CAN EAT IN A DAY? |
| A: No, but don't forget to eat plenty of vegetables. |
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| 17. |
Q: MAY I EAT REGULAR COTTAGE CHEESE WITH A PRO/FAT MEAL? IS NONFAT COTTAGE CHEESE A CARB? |
| A: Nonfat cottage cheese is a Carbo. Low-fat and whole-milk cottage cheese are technically Funky Foods, as they contain both fat and carbs. However, if you're doing well on the plan, you may incorporate some whole-milk cottage cheese with your Pro/Fats meals and see if it disrupts your weight loss. |
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| 18. |
Q: WHERE DO PIMIENTOS FIT IN? CAN I HAVE PIMIENTO CHEESE? |
| A: Pimientos are peppers that have been pickled. They are considered Veggies. Pimiento cheese is fine. |
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| 19. |
Q: WILL EATING ORANGES AND CHEESE BE ENOUGH NUTRITION FOR MY BODY WITHOUT DRINKING WHOLE MILK OR DRINKING ORANGE JUICE? |
| A: Absolutely! Whole oranges are much better for you than orange juice because they have all the added fiber. Cheese has all the same qualities as milk, without the carbohydrates. |
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| 20. |
Q: I HAVE HEARD YOU SAY THAT YOU CAN EAT AMERICAN CHEESE WHEN SOMERSIZING. I THOUGHT AMERICAN CHEESE WAS A FUNKY FOOD SINCE IT HAS MILK AND FAT IN IT. COULD YOU CLARIFY THIS? |
| A: American cheese has trace amounts of carbohydrates, but I have included it in the Pro/Fats group. When I was creating the program, I found there were places where it seemed appropriate to bend the rules slightly. This minor imbalance will not likely throw anyone off course. |
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| 21. |
Q: YOU HAVE SAID THAT SOME FOODS ARE OKAY IF THEY HAVE "TRACE" AMOUNTS OF CARBS AND/OR SUGARS. HOW MUCH WOULD YOU CONSIDER A TRACE? FOR EXAMPLE, I'M CONCERNED ABOUT USING SPRAY CHEESE ON MY CELERY. IT HAS 2 GRAMS OF CARBS AND 1 GRAM OF SUGAR, BUT IT'S C |
| A: I cannot advocate spray cheese. It may say "cheese" somewhere on the label, but spray cheese is a distant cousin of real cheese. It is probably called "cheese food." When Somersizing, we always try to stick to real foods. I don't know how big the serving size is, but it sounds like a lot of sugar for a little squirt of cheese. There are many soft cheeses like goat cheese and Brie that would spread on celery without the addition of all those fake foods. |
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