FAFO: The diet endorsed by endocrinologists that allows you to eat cooked food and lose weight

New Year and diet are two concepts that go hand in hand. Improving our lifestyle is always at the top of January resolutions. Furthermore, the first month of the calendar is also the month to atone for the excesses of the Christmas holidays, from which we return with a few extra kilos. Almost a third of Spaniards admit to having gone on some type of diet in 2023. And 2024 will not be very different. In our country, 55.8% of those over 18 years of age are overweight – 37.1% are overweight and 18.7%, almost 1 in 5, are obese – as shown by research carried out by the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII) and the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (Aesan). The important thing when we decide to start taking care of ourselves is to choose a diet that has scientific evidence and always advised by a health specialist. The Mediterranean diet, the Atlantic diet, the ketogenic diet or intermittent fasting are nutritional trends that are applied in consultations, with proven usefulness in dealing with obesity. But these patterns do not always take into account the patient’s personal, social and economic circumstances. Some factors that the FAFO diet does value, an acronym for Flexible and Friendly for the Overweight, less known socially, although it has been used for 25 years. As its name in English indicates, it is a feeding style that tries to be flexible and friendly to promote adherence. One of the defenders of this diet is Dr. Rafael Gómez y Blasco, a specialist in endocrinology, metabolism and nutrition, and member of the Board of Directors of the Spanish Obesity Society (SEEDO), who, after many years of experience with the diet . Mediterranean, “the best in the world”, began working with a more flexible diet. «We started about 25 years ago because we saw that patients were not always able to make a series of purchases. We have achieved a type of diet in which the entire family circumstance is very well adapted to the dietary process because it can be adapted to any person who lives in the same house and there is no conflict,” explains the endocrinologist. To do this, the patient is previously studied, not only at an endocrine level, but also their personal circumstances so that following the eating plan is easier. «If you have an environment in which stew is eaten, because you are from Extremadura or cocido, if you are from Madrid, you will be able to lose weight by eating those dishes. That same dish, with a series of guidelines, can be used for someone who wants to lose weight or for another who wants to gain it,” he says. Furthermore, it is not just an issue of calories, but physical exercise and the psychological aspect must also be taken into account. More affordable The ‘problem’ with some of the diets with the most evidence, such as the Mediterranean, is that they use some ingredients that are not affordable for everyone right now. For example, extra virgin olive oil. «EVOO is wonderful, but not everyone can afford it. Neither does beef tenderloin or large hake. In exchange, in the FAFO diet, olive pomace or sunflower oil, meats such as strip of loin or cheaper fish such as mackerel are offered as alternatives,” explains Dr. Gómez y Blasco. The endocrinology specialist affirms that the results are really good, since it generates “great adhesion”, which is “the most difficult thing” to achieve in a patient accustomed to another way of eating. There is no conflict with the economic issue and it also favors the nutritional education of all cohabitants because no differences are established between them. «Patients who are overweight, obese and type 2 diabetes suffer a lot when they see that there is another diner at the table eating another type of food. In this way it helps the entire group to be educated. “It makes it easier to eat comfortably and at the same time lose weight or save,” he points out. Weight loss with FAFO is “equivalent” to that achieved with a Mediterranean diet, although slower than with a ketogenic diet. But the latter cannot be maintained over time and the first two can. «There are patients who have lost 30-50 kilos with FAFO in a year but because they are not with the diet mentality. They are losing 5 kilos every month quietly. In the long term it is unbeatable,” concludes the doctor. An example of a day on the FAFO diet would be: a breakfast of coffee, tea or milk with toast; mid-morning a montadito or fruit; At mealtime “a lot of work is done with legume stews and stews of any type and with normal preparation, except for some excessive fat adjustment,” the specialist clarifies. If, for example, there are lentils at home to eat, the amounts of carbohydrates and proteins are adjusted. “We would add more pork ribs to some of the diners and less to others,” he clarifies. Less protein The FAFO diet reduces the amount of protein, increases complex carbohydrates and includes more legume dishes weekly than in the Mediterranean (3-4 times a week compared to 2). At snack, whenever possible, fruit or a piece of turkey or olive oil toast. «For dinners, in people without cholesterol problems, eggs can be a reasonable solution with some bread, which is one of the cheapest and best carbohydrates we can find. Frying pan consumption has decreased. It is tremendously demonized but in moderate quantities (about 50 grams), it is perfectly legal,” he says. If on occasion there is no time to prepare legumes at home, the doctor considers it acceptable to buy them already prepared in a can, preferably with vegetables. “But it can also be a fabada, which comes with an absolutely acceptable amount of protein, unlike what everyone believes, and has fewer calories than a steak with fries,” he says. In the FAFO diet, which seeks an affordable but healthy diet, the lean part of the pig is allowed to be consumed, “which is perfectly useful for any type of diet,” says the doctor. For fish, the cheapest ones are used, such as mackerel, anchovy or sardine, canned or frozen ones. Five times a day In addition, this diet prioritizes eating fractionally (5 times a day). «We have to eat several times in small quantities, even more so with the problem that we are becoming diabetic due to excess insulin. We are prepared to digest small mammals and berries and we have given this Flintstones pancreas donuts and cola and it has produced a huge explosion of insulin, which is responsible for us gaining weight. One of the methods we know to avoid insulin triggers is the fractional diet », he explains. In any case, Dr. Gómez y Blasco warns that this type of flexible diet is not suitable for everyone. For example, people with type 1 diabetes, or people with severe liver or kidney failure, or pregnant women under certain circumstances, could not follow it.