THE THREE KEY PRINCIPLES OF THIS DIET

“A loss of oestrogen, which occurs during the peri-menopause and menopause, can cause chronic inflammation in our bodies. If you’re overweight or obese your body is also chronically inflamed. Inflammation can worsen menopausal symptoms and increase the risk of developing diseases like arthritis, asthma, cardiovascular disease, stroke and more,” says Dr Haver. Her plan therefore has inflammation reduction at the heart of it to help you feel and look better. Start off with the first principle, intermittent fasting, and once you feel confident with this, then incorporate the other two principles.

1 INTERMITTENT FASTING

“Intermittent fasting can powerfully help combat inflammation, increase cellular renewal and increase fat burning,” explains Dr Haver. She recommends the 16:8 method of intermittent fasting, where you eat in an eight-hour window each day. For example, if you have your dinner at 8pm, you would then fast until noon the next day. You can drink black coffee and tea, herbal teas and water in the fast window. In the eight-hour eating window stick to healthy foods – two meals and two snacks, without counting calories (see the second and third principles of this diet). Dr Haver suggests taking it slowly to get used to this method of fasting. “Many women start off with a 12:12 approach, eating in a 12-hour window, then increase by a little bit each day. It might take you up to six weeks to get to the 16:8 method, or you may find 14:10 works better for you in the long run. That’s fine – getting healthier is a marathon not a sprint!”

2 EATING ANTIINFLAMMATORY FOODS

Even though you’ll be following the anti-inflammatory 16:8 intermittent fasting method, you can also increase the effects by eating more antiinflammatory foods and avoiding those that cause inflammation.

EAT MORE berries, artichokes, dark greens like spinach and kale, bell peppers, asparagus, oranges, avocados, carrots, celery, beetroot, broccoli, red cabbage, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, nuts, seeds, legumes, cloves, garlic, ginger, turmeric, fresh herbs, olive oil, salmon and mackerel.

CUT OUT added sugars; artificial sweeteners (they can promote proinflammatory changes in gut bacteria); nitrates in processed foods; artificial colours, flavourings and preservatives; fried foods; saturated fats and excessive alcohol (more than seven drinks weekly). Many people struggle with giving up sugar, so Dr Haver recommends taking ten days to wean yourself off and opt for easy changes – like fizzy water instead of fizzy drinks, fruit instead of pudding, fruit and nuts instead of sweets, and a square of dark chocolate instead of a chocolate bar.

3 GET FUEL REFOCUS

“Many of us eat too many carbs. This floods the body with glucose, which stimulates insulin release. Insulin is the main hormonal driver of fat storage in the body. To combat this, it’s vital to refocus your macros (protein, carbs and fat) and adjust your percentages to those that activate fat burning and stimulate the body to rely on fat as its main source of fuel,” says Dr Haver. On the Galveston Diet you’ll fuel your body with healthy fats and proteins and high-quality carbs, whilst ensuring your food choices are fighting inflammation – aim for around 6070% healthy fats, 20-25% lean proteins and 10-20% carbs (once you get to a healthier weight and feel better you can adjust these percentages for a maintenance plan; see the book for more details).

The foods you need to pack your diet with are as follows:

● Healthy fats are avocado, avocado oil, coconut oil, olive oil, olives, seeds, butter, nuts, nut butters with noadded sugar and olive oil-based mayonnaise.

● Lean proteins are grass-fed beef or lamb, chicken, pork, turkey, wildcaught fish, seafoods, eggs and lowcarb and low-sugar protein powders.

● Stick to complex carbs, which are high-fibre, like veggies, legumes, fruits and wholegrains. A good way to eat more lower carb foods is to make simple swaps, like swap bread for lettuce wraps or low-carb tortillas, mashed potato for mashed cauliflower, pasta for spiralised veg like courgetti, and rice for cauliflower rice. When you measure your carbs it is the net carbs you’re interested in

– so that’s the total carbs minus the fibre (look at your fibre intake separately – you should be aiming for at least 25g a day). Try a free tracking tool to keep an eye on your macros, like Myfitnesspal or Cronometer.