Hershey's chocolate gains Best Life treat seal

Resolve to live a healthy life while still enjoying treats in 2010, suggests Bob Greene, health and fitness expert.

Hershey®'s Extra Dark Chocolate is the only chocolate to earn the distinction of the Best Life Treat Seal of Approval. Created by Greene, the Best Life treat seal is awarded to products that are available in portion sizes of 150 calories or less, are free of partially hydrogenated oil, meet sodium and other nutrition guidelines and/or have another plus, such as the antioxidants in dark chocolate. The Best Life treat seal appears on select foods and is intended to help consumers make healthier food and lifestyle decisions.

 “Worried that you can't keep your New Year's resolutions and enjoy chocolate, too? Relax! Living a healthy lifestyle isn't about depriving yourself and removing all indulgences from your diet; it's about making good choices,” said Greene. “In fact, when you're cutting calories to lose weight, it's especially important to continue to eat the foods you love; that way you're more apt to stick to your healthy-eating plan. Some treats – like dark chocolate – are better for you than others, so if you're a dark chocolate lover, you can enjoy all varieties of Hershey's Extra Dark Chocolates.”

 The Best Life Diet is a three-phased plan developed by Greene that helps people to live healthy lifestyles. To keep living your best life in 2010, Greene recommends three easy-to-follow steps as a part of the Best Life Diet:

1. Change Habits: Making a few key adjustments to your routine can mean big results, both in terms of health and weight-loss. The dietary changes include eating three meals, a snack or two, and a treat, and curtailing eating and drinking at least two hours before bedtime. On the exercise front, aim to gradually add minutes to your regular workouts and keep up your intensity – it doesn't matter if you're walking or working out at the gym.
2. Manage Hunger and Control Portions: Use Bob's 10-point hunger scale to differentiate true hunger from emotional eating. Ideally, you should start a meal when you're just beginning to get hungry, but not ravenous (a three or four on the hunger scale) and finish the meal when you're at a five (you're fairly satisfied, but could eat a little more) or six (perfectly comfortable and satisfied).                                                                                                                                                    In Phase Two, you'll also be zeroing in on portion sizes of all foods, including treats. Enjoying your favorite treats is key to sticking with a healthy-eating plan. The key is to keep a lid on portions. The number of calories you can spend on treats depends on how many total calories you can eat to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight. (The more total calories you can eat, the more treat calories you can have. For instance, on 1,700 calories per day, you can have 150 treat calories, about three Hershey's Extra Dark tasting squares.)
3. Fine-Tune Your Diet: Include a variety of colors of fruits and vegetables in your diet. Colors are a good indicator of the vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients that each food contains. Also, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds help maintain a well-rounded and wholesome diet.