Sometimes I hear people wondering if they can eat a very specific comfort food from the Medifast diet. Sometimes they are almost certain that the food they want will not be acceptable. An example of this is sweets.
You might hear a comment like, “I know the answer to this is probably no, but is candy allowed on Medifast? I have a huge soft spot for sweets. I don’t eat tons, just one coupe of small pieces per day, and I don’t want to give this up, although I realize that my love of sweets is probably one thing that is contributing to my need to diet in the first place. “
You can have a very specific type of candy and still not be cheating. Medifast allows you to eat five of your packaged meals per day plus one meal that you prepare on your own. In addition to this, you are allowed to eat a snack each day consisting of foods such as celery, a sugar-free popsicle, sugar-free jelly, pickles, or three pieces of sugar-free gum or mints. (You can also have one of the Medifast cookies or potato chips. Examples are cheese flakes, apple chips, and vegetable crackers.
Now when we talk about mints, they are usually referring to peppermint or spearmint flavored mints. And I think they encourage gum and mints because they know that if you taste fresh in your mouth, you’re less likely to cheat. Because when your mouth feels clean and fresh, you’re less likely to want to eat and interfere with that sensation. (This is why people with cravings often brush their teeth when one hits them.)
I know some people expand the definition of mints to include sugar-free hard candy. I’m not sure this is endorsed by the company (and for that reason I encourage you to call and ask them), but this practice has not hurt their results at all. I even know people who will occasionally eat those little snack-sized sugar-free fudge candies. If you were going to go this route, you would want to make sure you chose a very low calorie option.
Frankly, people sometimes cheat on this diet too. I know someone who allows himself a small piece of chocolate a day. In terms of compliance, this will not be ideal. But some people have this kind of willpower and they make it work for them. And others will go out of their way and eat a full-size candy bar or other treat from time to time. I don’t think this is the end of the world as long as you get back on the diet as soon as you can. Usually that’s what I try to do.
But to answer the question posed, you can have three sugar-free mints per day and still be fully compliant. And you don’t have to take this in place of one of your six meals. This is in addition to those meals.
