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Dr. Hirsch’s Guide to Scentsational WEIGHT LOSS

“Like most participants, they tried to avoid sniffing in front of other people – except each other.”

Theory:

This diet focuses on the role of smell in appetite and weight control. More than 90 percent of taste is actually smell. This weight loss philosophy is based on the philosophy that the urge to eat too much is governed not by the stomach – as most people believe – but by a specific portion of the brain called the satiety center.  Once you understand how taste and smell affect this center, you can satisfy it by sniffing certain scents whenever you feel the urge to overeat.  This diet involves using odor devices similar to lipstick containers whenever and wherever you feel hungry.  The results have showed that odors alone can promote weight loss, in the absence of a food plan or exercise.

Sniffing odors isn’t a substitute for a meal; rather, the odors are an adjunct to meals. 

The smell devices are safe for almost everyone.  If you have asthma, you can still use your nose for weight loss, but it isn’t advisable for you to sniff devices and people who suffer from migraine headaches need to use the devices with great care

General Guidelines

1. Sniff the inhalers as many times a day as you lie. Each time you use the device, inhale three times in each nostril.  The more often people use the device, the more weight they lost
2. Take the odor device with you wherever you go.  Carry it in pocket, handbag, briefcase, and so forth.  Keep devices in your car, on your nightstand, in the bathroom, and by all means, in the kitchen
3. Vary the odors. We get tired of the same food because we are tired of the small smells
4. If a smell buddy will help you, find one
5. If you prefer to protect your privacy, you aren’t obligated to tell anyone what you’re doing
6. Keep a journal if you want to
7. Don’t be concerned with a food plan or restrictions on your diet just now.  As you progress, you can think more about healthful eating, but you will never have to feel deprived. 

Sniffing without a Device

1. Smell your food before you eat.  Let the odor molecules travel up your nose, stimulating the olfactory nerve.  Hence, you begin stimulating the satiety center before you begin eating.
2. Chew and chew again.  Take only small bites of food and chew each bite well.  The natural odors of food are released when you chew each bite well. 
3. These bubbles aren’t as ridiculous as they sound.  After chewing a mouthful of food well, try blowing bubbles in it, like blowing bubbles with bubble gum.  When you blow bubbles in food you are mixing the air and the food molecules. which in turn releases the odor molecules and stimulates the satiety center.
4. Learn to like it hot. The natural odor in food is more efficiently released when food is hot rather than cold.
5. The fresher the better.  The odor of fresh vegetables is stronger than the odor of canned or frozen vegetables.
6. Pour on those herbs and spices – in general choose the most aromatic foods possible in order to get the most odor to the olfactory bulb.  People tend to lose weight more quickly and with less feeling of deprivation if they eat food with strong aromas and, therefore, strong taste
7. Try limiting your food choices at any one meal. People who want to lose weight should eat only two or three different foods during a meal rather than eating a little bit of many foods. 
8. Avoid buffet tables and “all you can eat” food bars. Even with a smell device, too many selections and unlimited choices spell potential overeating
9. First bite, best bite. We are more sensitive to the smell and taste of our foods when we first starting eating. Eat especially slowly at the beginning of a meal
10. People who want to lose weight should avoid dairy products because the satiety center does not respond in the same way as it does when other categories foods are digested.  We can eat large amounts of dairy products without getting the “I am full” message.

Alan R. Hirsch, M.D., F.A.C.P. 1997. Mass: Element Books, Inc.

Information provided on this website is not meant to replace the services of your physician, but only to act as an educational tool. The diet summaries are by no means a substitute for reading the actual diet programs, but rather are synopses of basic principles meant to pique your interest and help you select a diet. Be sure to consult your physician and read the entire diet book before beginning any weight loss program.