Dr. McDougall's Online Discussion Board

I asked Dr. McDougall about the fruits in an email and he responded:

Email June 10 2021
“We never put an emphasis on adding fruit or not in Mary’s Mini.
The problem with fruit is people like it and can eat lots. This means eating calories. Most people do the Mini Diet for weight loss. Calories count.

Thus the diet emphasizes a single starch and a few vegetables. Simplicity is why it works so well.

Remember this is intended as a temporary diet, but many people make it a lifetime.

Best Wishes,

John McDougall, MD

[email protected]

Dear Jeff, I have read over all the new Mini Guidelines on the McDougall website, and I have a question....

Is just one starch recommended for all meals for the 10 days?

.....In one place I see "Practical Application of Mary’s Mini-McDougall Diet® Which starches are your favorites? Potatoes, sweet potatoes, winter squash, corn, beans, rice? Choose one or several to form the centerpiece of your diet." So that would suggest that more than one starch could be used.

.....Then in the Q&A section I read "The diet follows the basic principles of the McDougall Program: starch-based with the addition of vegetables and one piece of fruit a day, but limits food choices to one kind of starch and repetitive selections of green and yellow vegetables and fruits. The same starch and vegetables can be eaten every day."

So those 2 comments seem to be at odds somewhat. Or is the choice of one starch or several now left up to the individual?

.....And I see beans are on the chart of acceptable starches. So if only one starch is recommended for the 10days, how could you use beans which McDougall limits to an average of 1 cup/day?

Appreciate your input. Thanks. JoAnn

Many thanks! JoAnn

Hi Jeff, Well on the Chef AJ McDougall video today, a few things were cleared up, not all. McDougall made it clear that it was just one starch period for the Mini. Beans? From what he said, they were OK to use as a starch but not if you had kidney problems. And coffee was OK, although he stressed that it could raise cholesterol and BP so I guess some folks should avoid. Here is the video in case you didn't see it yet.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3nVAFvO9Yw

Hi Jeff,
There does seem to be confusion in the new guidelines on the website if I am reading them correctly.

From the Mary’s Mini-McDougall Diet® Updated August 9, 2021.........Practical Application of Mary’s Mini-McDougall Diet®
Step 1: Choose one or several starches to form the centerpiece of your diet.

The from the Q&A Article on the Mini..........."but limits food choices to one kind of starch and repetitive selections of green and yellow vegetables and fruits."

So it can't be both 'several' or just 'one kind'.

What am I missing? Thanks. JoAnn

Here we go again!

Dr and Mary McDougall did a webinar with Chef AJ yesterday and they did a 45 minute slide show entirely on the Mary's Mini. Some highlights:

Remember this is a DIET, and diets mean temporary and suffering. The suffering from a Mary's Mini is the monotony - just ONE starch for 10 days.

Even though it's "temporary suffering," you CAN follow the rules of a Mini for a lifetime, though.

Beans, peas, and lentils - No, they're too high in protein to be the starch on a mini.

Winter squashes - Yes, they're wonderful for a Mini because they're so low in calories per serving.

Fruit - Yes, 1-3 pieces a day.

Coffee and tea - Some debate between Dr. McD and Mary on this. He said an emphatic no, but Mary said people love their coffee or tea in the morning and said yes to decaf, but black, nothing added.

They answered many other questions, too, in the 2 hour webinar. So far I only got through the slide show part and will watch the rest later today. Here's the link on Chef AJ's page, and they usually appear on Dr. McDougall's about a week later.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aywEiTjwKg

BTW, Dr. McDougall will appear monthly on Chef AJ's YouTube page, they all agreed.

The new Mini Guidelines say no winter squash, which makes sense as some like Hubbard and pumpkin are non starchy veggies. They also allow beans as a starch. Not sure why the guidelines changed. They worked great before. JoAnn