Q: Why has everyone told me to stop eating carbohydrates so that I can be thin?

A: You may be someone who used carbohydrates to help your mood when you were upset and you probably ate carbohydrates with too much fat or ate too much. People who gave you the advice don't understand that you were eating to make yourself feel better and even if they did, they probably think this is wrong. What they don't understand is that nature has given us an effective way of improving our mood. When this was discovered at MIT, people understood that they could use carbohydrates in the right amount and eaten at the right time to make themselves feel good and lose weight. When carbohydrates were removed from the diet, the drop in serotonin made people lose their good mood and their ability to control their appetite. That is a high price to pay for being on a diet.

Q:I am in sales and taking clients to dinner several times a week is part of my job. How can I hold back from eating and drinking? Won't it affect my business relationship with them?

A: Is it bad business to eat in a healthy manner? Are you being less than effective as a sales person if you are frugal in your alcohol consumption so you can be in charge and control the conversation and communicate information? Your mandate is to entertain your clients and you can do this, as a gracious host, without eating and drinking as they do. Order drinks and wines as before; you do not have to consume them. If you feel you must order a mixed drink, just sip it. When the wine comes do the same thing. If you do not want to draw attention to yourself by ordering a carbohydrate dinner, then choose a low-calorie entrée and skip the appetizer and dessert. Make sure that your salad comes with dressing on the side. Do eat bread — but no butter — as your carb and do not clean your plate. Remember that your primary task is to carry out business, which is why your meal is on an expense account. Only restaurant critics are paid to eat.

Q: Won't my brain be making too much serotonin if I eat all those carbohydrates and therefore affect my medication?

A: No, eating carbohydrates will not make your medication less effective. Since serotonin may be affecting certain aspects of your mood not influenced by antidepressants, like grumpiness or impatience, you may find yourself in an all-round better mood. None of our clients ever experienced negative effects from producing more serotonin. No one had to adjust his or her dose of antidepressants because they were eating more potatoes or pasta.