Vive la French Women!

After a day of extensive research, I've culled articles from credible sources that aim to unravel the famous French Paradox and clue us in on why the French women look as good as they do despite eating fatty food. After all, the fat-laden 'foie gras' is a French term, is it not?

If given a choice, I'm sure everybody would rather be the skinny bitch than the fat hag. Haha. But that said, you don't have to be either of the two extremes. I would be comfortable with the middle ground--neither morbidly obese, nor anorexic skinny--but healthily slender.

This is a summary of everything I've read thus far, lovingly consolidated by yours truly:

The French woman's diet is more lifestyle and philosophy than a diet consisting merely of do and do not foods, according to Mireille Guiliano, author of the best-selling book "French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating For Pleasure." It is a lifestyle of learning to live in the moment for that "joie de vivre" and feasting on foods that taste good.

Despite a diet stuffed with cream, butter, cheese and meat, just 10 per cent of French adults are obese, compared with Britain’s 22 per cent, and America’s colossal 33 per cent. The French live longer too, and have lower death rates from coronary heart disease – in spite of those artery-clogging feasts of cholesterol and saturated fat. This curious observation, dubbed ‘the French paradox’, has baffled scientists for more than a decade. And it leaves us diet-obsessed women smarting.

Vanity

In Chic and Slim: How Those French Women Eat all that Rich Food and Still Stay Slim, Anne Barone seeks to unravel the puzzle. As it turns out, it's all about knickers. 'Never underestimate the power of a black lace garter belt,' she writes. 'Even French women's lingerie helps to keep them slim, [it's] a constant reminder to make choices that pay off in slimness. Their belief in this principle is demonstrated by the fact that there are almost as many lingerie shops in Paris as bakeries.' Vanity, it seems, is a very useful vice if you want to fight the flab.

Take pleasure from food

To the French woman, eating is a leisurely experience. In Singapore, we often wolf down meals in record time or eat while driving or sitting at our desks. But the French appear to have all the time in the world to sit around and dine. “The mind is the French woman’s ultimate firewall against getting fat, and the senses are, of course, the portals to the mind. Through them we take in the world—its flavours, its textures, its sounds and its smells. We sit down and eat for pleasure, using all of our senses,” Mireille Guiliano, author of the best-selling book French Women Don't Get Fat, has said.

What she means is: eat what you love. Just make the space to appreciate your food fully. This means not eating your lunch while checking your emails—it’s about not multi-tasking when you’re enjoying food so that you connect with what you’re eating. If it’s chocolate you adore, that’s okay! Just eat a small portion and concentrate on it fully. You’ll need less of it that way.

Low-carb diets have many of us saying no to white foods like bread and pasta, but in France, everyone seems to be toting a fresh baguette to bring home. "You need to eat a large volume of bread or pasta for the calories to add up, and most of the time, French meals are quite light and portions are small," according to French diet expert David Benchetrit, MD.

Cutting down on Carbohydrates may not help

Doctor François Baudier of the CFES reports that 'the French, in contrast to Anglo-Saxons, hardly ever snack outside of meals'. One reason for this is that their fat-rich diet stimulates the production of cholecystokinin, a satiety signal which promotes an extended sense of satisfaction after eating even small amounts of high-fat foods. Brie-eaters stay fuller longer.

But, cutting down on Processed Food will help

Instead of an addiction to 'invented foods' full of hydrogenated oils, E numbers and preservatives, the French way, even today, focuses on the careful preparation of unprocessed foods. It's why French women ration themselves to one rich, dark square of real chocolate rather than hogging-out on a preservative-laden, pre-frozen, half-chemical wodge of pseudo-foodo. Snobbery, alongside vanity, is an asset in the war against weight. (Consider, by contrast, the disheartening fact that the market for ready meals in the US grew by 39 per cent from 1999 to 2003; the $3 billion market for 'food bars' is expected to more than double by 2007.) When they get those enviable produits du terroirs home, French people, it seems, naturally exercise strict portion control. 

Eating slowly promotes physiological negative feedback

Dr Andrew Hill, senior lecturer in behavioural sciences at Leeds University, agrees. ‘Eating in France is a social activity. There are several but small courses, with plenty of time between courses for the physiological feedback to kick in.'

The unhurried approach to eating extends even to France's Big Mac generation. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found ‘from observations in McDonald's that the French take longer to eat than Americans. Ironically, although the French eat less than Americans, they seem to eat for a longer period of time, and hence have more food experience.'

Aiming for Quality over Quantity

In their study of why the French remain so much slimmer than Americans, the researchers from the University of Pennsylvania came to the remarkable conclusion that it was because the French ate less. 'Based on observation in Paris and Philadelphia,' they wrote, 'we document that the French portion sizes are smaller in comparable restaurants, in the sizes of individual portions in supermarkets, individual portions specified in cookbooks, and in the prominence of "all-you-can-eat" restaurants in dining guides.'

Make Walking a Way of Life

Guiliano rejects the ''American rule'' of ''no pain, no gain'' and describes exercise machines as a ''vestige of Puritanism: instruments of public self-flagellation to make up for private sins of couch riding and overeating.'' By all means go to the gym if you really love it, she says. Otherwise take the stairs and pick up some weights in the privacy of your own home. She finds walking an indulgence that allows time for ''freedom of thought,'' and says French women walk an average of three times as much as American women do. She proudly reports that during the 2003 blackout she easily made it past the younger people in her building who were huffing and puffing on the stairs.

But sometimes these ''simple values'' seem perhaps too simple for our harried lives. Many of us need the discipline of the gym and don't have time to stroll to the open-air market or set a proper table twice a day. 

Nevertheless, incorporating daily physical activity into our hectic routines would certainly go a long way in helping us shed the pounds. Besides, taking an evening walk after dinner is a way to unwind and relax after a long day. The point is to get moving.

Beat the Stress

Learn to relax. Stress is a major factor in weight gain for women, as well as heart conditions and other health issues. In America (and just about every other developed nation), it seems that just about everyone suffers from chronic stress. Stress hormones like cortisol block weight loss. The body interprets extended stress as famine and stores body fat to offset starvation. Prolonged stress can also lead to chronic inflammation and adrenal fatigue. Many women with adrenal fatigue crave sweets, which can exacerbate the already rapid weight gain process. 

Eat Yoghurt Everyday
Yogurt is a dietary staple that helps French women manage their hunger. Guiliano says most French women eat one or two yogurts a day, often at breakfast -- and especially after an evening of overindulgence to help balance out the calories.

According to Guiliano, the calcium content helps block your body’s absorption of fat.

"Yogurt is the perfect food because it is high in calcium, has carbohydrates, protein, and fat - everything you need in every meal," she says.

When you wake up, drink two glasses of water
After a big long sleep your body has gone without water from anywhere between seven and ten hours (sometimes more). Even though you may not feel like drinking, your body will be craving water. Answer this with two glasses, first thing in the morning.

Sources: (not in proper citation style)

Brogan, Rosie. (2011, Jan 17) “The Best Tips from ‘Why French women don’t get fat’.”Blackmores Australia. http://www.blackmores.com.au/wellbeing-blog/the-best-tips-from-Why-French-women-dont-get-fat

Craig, Gemma. (2011, Aug 18) “How to Keep Slim by Following a French Woman’s Diet.” eHow. http://www.ehow.com/how_2151568_slim-following-french-womans-diet.html

Egan, Pamela. “Female Weight Gain: Why am I gaining weight?” Pamelaegan.com. http://www.pamelaegan.com/articles/weight-gain.htm

Reed, Julia. (2005, Feb 6) “'French Women Don't Get Fat': Like Champagne for Chocolate.” The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/06/books/review/06REEDL.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print&position=

Spencer, Mimi. (2007, Nov 4) “Let them eat Cake.” The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2004/nov/07/foodanddrink.features11

Zelman, Catherine. (2006) “How the French Stay Slim.” WebMd Weight Loss Clinic – Expert Column. http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=62088