A Bay Ridge woman swears by a dietary supplement that comes from a liquor store.
Blogger Cara Alwill Leyba says that her “Champagne Diet” — two parts healthy living and one part bubbly — transformed her from an overweight depressive into a woman with a lust (or at least a lush) for life.
“I felt really good when I drank it. I stood a little taller and felt classier,” Alwill Leyba told us during a promotional visit to BookMark Shoppe on Third Avenue — a glass of sparkling rosé in her hand. “I started working out more and taking care of myself more.”
Has the dream of boozing your way to good health finally come true? Is the secret to fitness more Night Train and less LaLanne? Is hard cider better than the proverbial apple a day? Should we be hitting the bottle instead of the speed bag? You get the idea.
One chapter of the book details recent scientific studies that suggest that champagne can ward off strokes, improve heart health, and increase sexual potency (but then, you knew that).
And some experts say — wait for it! — that the anti-oxidants in champagne are beneficial — as long as you don’t overdo it.
“That said, small amounts of alcohol do raise the risk of breast cancer for women,” said Jennifer Schonborn, a Park Slope nutritionist. “And there may be fewer calories in champagne than in other drinks, but there are still calories.”
How crazy is this diet?
Not really that crazy at all, when you consider the book-selling popularity of plans like the Frenchwomen’s Diet, which calls for healthy doses of foie gras, red wine and Gauloises; the Hollywood Diet, where every food item is in liquid form; and the Mayo Clinic Diet, where you eat grapefruit for every meal.
And then, there is Atkins. Nuff said.
Of course, there’s a larger issue here: champagne makes you happy — and, really, is there anything more important to human health than that?
“The whole concept of the ‘Champagne Diet’ is just loving yourself and celebrating everything,” said Alwill Leyba.
And who doesn’t want drink to that?
Reach reporter Dan MacLeod at [email protected] at (718) 260-4507.
