Your Health: Can a paper plate help you lose weight?

Paper Plate DietHere's an easy way to make sure you're eating the right portion sizes at mealtime: use a paper plate.Lake County Health Department Dietician Toby Smithson recommends putting a paper plate on regular dinnerware and using it to limit the amount of food you dish up.Half the plate should hold nutritious vegetables like spinach, broccoli or cucumbers. One-quarter of the plate should hold the protein, either chicken, fish, beef, tofu or something similar.The last quarter of the plate should hold filling, starchy grains or vegetables, like whole-grain rice, pasta, sweet potatoes, peas or beans. But wait, before you buy paper plates - there's more!You can also use the paper plate as exercise equipment.By putting a plate on the floor and standing with one foot on it, you can slide your foot backward for lunges, to the side for squats, or, on your hands and knees or in push-up position, slide your hand out forward or to the side.Start with one set of eight repetitions of each exercise, and work your way up to three sets of 20.Wear gym shoes and hold onto a wall or table, if necessary, to keep from slipping.The exercises build strength and can be done anywhere.Alcohol and weightHere's some news about drinking that may say more about moderation than alcohol.Women who drink light to moderate amounts of alcohol gain less weight as they age than women who don't drink alcohol at all.In a study of 19,000 women who started out at normal weight, over 13 years, 41 percent ended up overweight or obese.After adjustments for factors like age and physical activity, women who drank one-half to two drinks a day were significantly less likely to become overweight.Researchers in the "Archives of Internal Medicine" speculate that alcohol might result in a net energy loss due to metabolic changes or eating less.Child can't sleep?Dr. Anna Ivanenko, a sleep disorder specialist from Suburban Lung Associates and Children's Memorial Hospital in the pediatric program at Central DuPage Hospital, will discuss common sleep disorders among children under 18.The free dinner program with the doctor will run from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 17, at the Danada House in the Danada Forest Preserve, at 3S501 Naperville Road, north of the Reagan Tollway in Wheaton.Registration is required at (630) 933-4234 or TTY (630) 933-4833 for the hearing-impaired.False20001469Lake County Health Department Dietician Toby Smithson recommends putting a paper plate on regular dinnerware and using it to limit the amount of food you dish up. False