The Virgin Diet: Drop 7 Foods Lose 7 Pounds Just 7 Days

Fitness and nutrition expert/celebrity coach and author (Six Weeks to Sleeveless and Sexy) Virgin makes some stunning claims in her latest book, among them that with her plan followers will look 10 years younger and that the very foods that most people think are healthy may be making them fat. According to Virgin, who has tested her theories on thousands in the past two decades it’s food intolerance (FI) that leads to weight gain, inflammation, premature aging, and the inability to take weight off and keep it off even when dieting, exercising, and eating “healthy” foods. Her three-cycle plan includes 21 days of totally eliminating the seven main culprits: gluten, soy, dairy, eggs, corn, and peanuts, and sugar/artificial sweeteners (with a chemist’s aplomb, she explains why). After the initial “cycle,” followers may re-introduce certain foods while keeping a close tab on whether such symptoms as bloating or achy joints recur. Although the plan initially works the same way for everyone, in the second cycle readers learn how to tailor their diet to counter individual food intolerances. In the third (and lifelong) cycle, readers are encouraged to stick to the foods that jive with their own body chemistry (some items, such as peanuts and corn, are permanently nixed). Virgin’s prose is clear and convincing, but it appears, one must be true to the method for 21 days to reap results. (Dec.)