Healthy meals at fast food joints and restaurants

Pizza Hut
Normally I recommend avoiding pizza restaurants so I am delighted to see that Pizza Hut has made a real effort to improve its offerings. Your best bets are Thin 'N' Crispy Pizzas and Fit 'n Delicious Pizzas (2 slices maximum) with garden salads and light dressings.

Taco Bell
Their line of Fresco tacos and burritos are acceptable green-light choices but are very high in sodium. Steer clear of the rest of the menu except the side salads.

KFC
Until just recently, KFC was a place to avoid. Stick to salads and chicken if you must eat here, and get the chicken without skin, grilled not fried.

Restaurants
As it's impossible to list restaurants by name, I've provided a quick rundown of different types of restaurants instead.

All-You-Can-Eat Buffets
This can be your worst or best option depending on your level of self-control. Best to do a quick reconnaissance of the whole buffet before you start to fill your plate. This way you can pick out your best green-light choices ahead of time.

Italian
Start with a good bean and vegetable soup such as minestrone. For the main course your best option is grilled, roasted or braised fish, chicken or veal. You may order pasta as a side dish if you wish, though you would be better off with an extra serving of vegetables.

Greek
Grilled or baked seafood is an excellent choice as well as the classic chicken souvlaki. Just watch your serving sizes. Instead of the potatoes, which are frequently served along with rice, order double vegetables. You must ask for both your salad dressing and feta to be served on the side so you can control your servings.

Chinese
This type of food can present some real challenges. Much of the food is deep-fried with sweet sauces. Sodium levels are usually astronomic and the rice is glutinous and red-light (short-grain rice has a much higher G.I. than long-grain rice such as basmati). Though you can make do with steamed or stir-fried vegetables, it's probably not worth the effort. This kind of restaurant would be my last resort when eating out.

Click to continue for more tips on best bets from Indian, Mexican, Thai and Japanese restaurants...

Excerpted from The G.I. Diet Menopause Clinic by Rick Gallop Copyright © 2009 by Rick Gallop. Excerpted by permission of Random House Canada, a division of Random House of Canada Limited. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.