Hi, I'm Monica Reinagel, and you're listening to the Nutrition Divas quick and dirty tips for eating well and feeling fabulous.

Today we're going to be talking about strategies for doing a complete overhaul of your

diet and what to tackle first.

Stephanie writes, if you need to overhaul your diet, are there some principles that are more of a priority?

What's the best order to tackle all the changes needed to rebuild a healthy diet?

I love this question,

because it shows that even if her diet needs a total overhaul,

Stephanie understands three very important things.

One, that building a healthy diet is an ongoing process, not just a decision.

Two, that trying to change everything at once is likely to backfire on you.

And three, that some things are more important than others.

I thought it would be a great topic for us to explore today.

Of course it's a little hard to know what sorts of changes Stephanie should make first

because I don't know very much about what her current diet looks like.

But if it's anything like the typical American diet,

then the very first thing I'd suggest would be

eliminate or drastically reduce sodas flavored waters juice and sports drinks.

Why? Well you know I try to avoid focusing on individual foods, food groups, or

nutrients as being either the problem or the solution. But if pressed to identify one thing about the typical American diet that is doing more damage than any other one thing,

I think I would have to single out our excessive consumption of refined sugar.

And for more on why, check out my show,

why is sugar bad?

...