Michel Montignac
Encyclopedia
Michel Montignac was a French
diet developer who originally created the Montignac diet
to help himself lose weight, which he based on research that focuses on the glycemic index
of foods, which affects the amount of glucose
delivered to the blood after eating. The diet, which distinguishes between good and bad carbohydrate
s, became the basis for best-selling books and a chain of restaurants and stores promoting his diet regimen and was one of the theoretical predecessors of the South Beach Diet
.
Born in Angoulême
, France in 1944, Montignac had a family history of obesity, with his father weighing 265 pounds (120.2 kg). He studied political science and worked as a human resources manager, ultimately working as the personnel manager in the 1970s for the European subsidiary of Abbott Laboratories
, an American pharmaceutical firm. Using the research materials available to him there, and despite the lack of any formal medical training, he sought a way to counteract the effects of the daily business lunches he ate and came to the determination that the issue in weight loss was not how much you ate but what you consumed. By dividing carbohydrates into two categories, good (including bean
s, leaf vegetables, lentil
s, whole grain
wheat products, wild rice
and dark chocolate) and bad (such as corn
, potato
es, refined flour, white bread
and white rice
), Montignac's research led him to conclude that eating bad carbs, those with a high glycemic index, raises the levels of glucose in the blood and results in weight gain by coaxing the pancreas
to generate insulin
, which ultimately leads to the conversion of excess glucose into body fat. In 1993 he told The New York Times
that "all traditional methods of dieting have amounted to a myth as big as Communism
, and like Communism, they are destined to collapse". He tested the diet on himself and lost 30 pounds (13.6 kg) in three months.
Building on his own experiences and research, Montignac proposed that trying to lose weight by reducing caloric consumption was a "scientific swindle" and that weight could be controlled by monitoring and selecting the foods one ate. Montignac's diet was based on the idea that reducing calories in ones diet triggers a "survival instinct" that causes the body to store fat after losing pounds early in the diet. He self-published the book Dine Out and Lose Weight in 1986 aimed at business people who eat out often as part of their work and sold more than 500,000 copies. By the early 1990s, Montingac was opening a series of diet stores and restaurants that sold such items as beef
, cheese
, chocolate bars, foie gras
that had been traditionally viewed as "symbols of ruinous hedonism" but that were promoted as part of Montingac's diet method. His 1987 book Je Mange Donc Je Maigris (translated in English as Eat Yourself Slim ... and Stay Slim!) was aimed at the general public and had reached sales of 16 million copies in 40 countries by 2005.
A resident of Juvigny, Haute-Savoie
, Montignac died of prostate cancer
at age 66 on August 22, 2010, at a clinic in Annemasse
. He was survived by his daughter Sybille, a dietician.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
diet developer who originally created the Montignac diet
Montignac diet
The Montignac diet is a weight-loss diet that was popular in the 1990s, mainly in Europe. It was invented by Frenchman Michel Montignac , an international executive for the pharmaceutical industry, who, like his father, was overweight in his youth...
to help himself lose weight, which he based on research that focuses on the glycemic index
Glycemic index
The glycemic index, glycaemic index, or GI is a measure of the effects of carbohydrates on blood sugar levels. Carbohydrates that break down quickly during digestion and release glucose rapidly into the bloodstream have a high GI; carbohydrates that break down more slowly, releasing glucose more...
of foods, which affects the amount of glucose
Glucose
Glucose is a simple sugar and an important carbohydrate in biology. Cells use it as the primary source of energy and a metabolic intermediate...
delivered to the blood after eating. The diet, which distinguishes between good and bad carbohydrate
Carbohydrate
A carbohydrate is an organic compound with the empirical formula ; that is, consists only of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, with a hydrogen:oxygen atom ratio of 2:1 . However, there are exceptions to this. One common example would be deoxyribose, a component of DNA, which has the empirical...
s, became the basis for best-selling books and a chain of restaurants and stores promoting his diet regimen and was one of the theoretical predecessors of the South Beach Diet
South Beach Diet
The South Beach Diet is a diet plan designed by cardiologist Arthur Agatston and dietician Marie Almon as an alternative to low-fat approaches such as the Ornish Diet and the Pritikin Diet advocated by the American Heart Association in the 1980s. Although the original purpose of the diet was to...
.
Born in Angoulême
Angoulême
-Main sights:In place of its ancient fortifications, Angoulême is encircled by boulevards above the old city walls, known as the Remparts, from which fine views may be obtained in all directions. Within the town the streets are often narrow. Apart from the cathedral and the hôtel de ville, the...
, France in 1944, Montignac had a family history of obesity, with his father weighing 265 pounds (120.2 kg). He studied political science and worked as a human resources manager, ultimately working as the personnel manager in the 1970s for the European subsidiary of Abbott Laboratories
Abbott Laboratories
Abbott Laboratories is an American-based global, diversified pharmaceuticals and health care products company. It has 90,000 employees and operates in over 130 countries. The company headquarters are in Abbott Park, North Chicago, Illinois. The company was founded by Chicago physician, Dr....
, an American pharmaceutical firm. Using the research materials available to him there, and despite the lack of any formal medical training, he sought a way to counteract the effects of the daily business lunches he ate and came to the determination that the issue in weight loss was not how much you ate but what you consumed. By dividing carbohydrates into two categories, good (including bean
Bean
Bean is a common name for large plant seeds of several genera of the family Fabaceae used for human food or animal feed....
s, leaf vegetables, lentil
Lentil
The lentil is an edible pulse. It is a bushy annual plant of the legume family, grown for its lens-shaped seeds...
s, whole grain
Whole grain
Whole grains are cereal grains that contain cereal germ, endosperm, and bran, in contrast to refined grains, which retain only the endosperm. Whole grains can generally be sprouted while refined grains generally will not sprout. Whole-meal products are made by grinding whole grains in order to make...
wheat products, wild rice
Wild rice
Wild rice is four species of grasses forming the genus Zizania, and the grain which can be harvested from them. The grain was historically gathered and eaten in both North America and China...
and dark chocolate) and bad (such as corn
Corn
Corn is the name used in the United States, Canada, and Australia for the grain maize.In much of the English-speaking world, the term "corn" is a generic term for cereal crops, such as* Barley* Oats* Wheat* Rye- Places :...
, potato
Potato
The potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well as the edible tuber. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species...
es, refined flour, white bread
White bread
White bread is made from wheat flour from which the bran and the germ have been removed through a process known as milling. Milling gives white flour a longer shelf life by removing the bran which contains oil, allowing products made with it, like white bread, the ability to survive storage and...
and white rice
White rice
White rice is the name given to milled rice that has had its husk, bran, and germ removed. This alters the flavour, texture and appearance of the rice and helps prevent spoilage and extend its storage life. After milling, the rice is polished, resulting in a seed with a bright, white, shiny...
), Montignac's research led him to conclude that eating bad carbs, those with a high glycemic index, raises the levels of glucose in the blood and results in weight gain by coaxing the pancreas
Pancreas
The pancreas is a gland organ in the digestive and endocrine system of vertebrates. It is both an endocrine gland producing several important hormones, including insulin, glucagon, and somatostatin, as well as a digestive organ, secreting pancreatic juice containing digestive enzymes that assist...
to generate insulin
Insulin
Insulin is a hormone central to regulating carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle....
, which ultimately leads to the conversion of excess glucose into body fat. In 1993 he told The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
that "all traditional methods of dieting have amounted to a myth as big as Communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
, and like Communism, they are destined to collapse". He tested the diet on himself and lost 30 pounds (13.6 kg) in three months.
Building on his own experiences and research, Montignac proposed that trying to lose weight by reducing caloric consumption was a "scientific swindle" and that weight could be controlled by monitoring and selecting the foods one ate. Montignac's diet was based on the idea that reducing calories in ones diet triggers a "survival instinct" that causes the body to store fat after losing pounds early in the diet. He self-published the book Dine Out and Lose Weight in 1986 aimed at business people who eat out often as part of their work and sold more than 500,000 copies. By the early 1990s, Montingac was opening a series of diet stores and restaurants that sold such items as beef
Beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle. Beef can be harvested from cows, bulls, heifers or steers. It is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of the Middle East , Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Europe and the United States, and is also important in...
, cheese
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
, chocolate bars, foie gras
Foie gras
Foie gras ; French for "fat liver") is a food product made of the liver of a duck or goose that has been specially fattened. This fattening is typically achieved through gavage corn, according to French law, though outside of France it is occasionally produced using natural feeding...
that had been traditionally viewed as "symbols of ruinous hedonism" but that were promoted as part of Montingac's diet method. His 1987 book Je Mange Donc Je Maigris (translated in English as Eat Yourself Slim ... and Stay Slim!) was aimed at the general public and had reached sales of 16 million copies in 40 countries by 2005.
A resident of Juvigny, Haute-Savoie
Juvigny, Haute-Savoie
Juvigny is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.-References:*...
, Montignac died of prostate cancer
Prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, there are cases of aggressive prostate cancers. The cancer cells may metastasize from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly...
at age 66 on August 22, 2010, at a clinic in Annemasse
Annemasse
Annemasse is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.It lies on the border with Switzerland. It is the second town in the Haute-Savoie department with a population estimated to 29'450 in 2010.-Geography:...
. He was survived by his daughter Sybille, a dietician.