South Beach Diet

The brand overlords have spoken. Kraft's line of South Beach Diet products will have a new name: South Beach Living.

Since 2005 Kraft have been partnered with South Beach Diet. There are currently over 70 products sold under the South Beach brand.'

So what's up with "diet"?

If you ever wanted proof of the commercial juggernaut that is called dieting - this is it.

Kraft Foods is rolling out a vending machine stocked with South Beach Diet branded food.

The Reality Diet is a new book by Florida-based cardiologist Dr. Steven Schnur. Schnur joins the ranks of several other prominent cardiologists who have authored diet books (such as Arthur Agatston, Robert Atkins, Dean Ornish).

Schnur used to be in practice with the South Beach Diet author Dr Agatston.

Every day, 1 in 4 Americans are eating fast food. So how do you continue to eat out when you want to make healthy choices? The South Beach Diet Dining Guide gives some helpful ideas - you don't have to be following the South Beach regimen to use some of these principles. Choose unprocessed, unrefined carbohydrates, such as whole grains, whole fruits, and fresh vegetables. Enjoy plenty of lean protein, such as chicken, fish, certain cuts of meat, low-fat dairy, and reduced-fat cheese.Choose foods that are high in good fats, such as fish, avocados, and nuts, and make sure your foods are prepared with healthy oils such as olive oil or canola. Avoid foods that are high in saturated fat, such as fatty cuts of beef, bacon, processed meats such as salami, and full-fat cheese. Eat plenty of fiber -- it's found in fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans, seeds, and whole grains. Avoid refined carbohydrates such as white bread, cake, candy, white rice, and other processed foods that are high in sugar and often high in fat as well. Avoid added sugar. Choose diet soft drinks, for instance, and watch out for hidden sugars in salad dressings and sauces.

The California Wine Country Diet, by Haven Logan, is the real deal.

It's a book about weight loss and weight management that actually covers all the bases. It makes no false promises, no eye-catching claims. Indeed - the book's cover is more like a coffee-table wine book than a glitzy diet book. I suspect there has been a deliberate choice not to embellish the book with hype.

Every year a plethora of diet and weight loss books are published. Many of these books are released in January - the "diet season" - together they represent the good, the bad, and the ugly of weight loss advice. Why do some diets become so popular - yet others barely get noticed?

Is it the quality of the book? Or the proven effectiveness of the diet? Is it to do with value for money?

The partnership between Kraft foods and the South Beach Diet has always felt... wrong. I believe the core of a healthy diet means, ultimately, minimizing the amount of processed foods consumed. There will always be a place for convenience foods - but not as a staple. Kraft have pushed the partnership into publicity overdrive with the "Beach in a Box" tour.

USA Today chewed over the last year in the world of diets. Here are some highlights according to Diet-Blog: