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Two points for a glass of wine, 2 points for a few Oreos. Well then, I'll just make that dinner. It was this unhealthy thought pattern that recently led the folks at Weight Watchers to rethink the current points system. The system was based entirely on calories, fat, and fiber rather than the nutrient density of foods and for many faithful dieters that meant choosing a sweet treat because the 2 point banana used up more of your daily allotment than a fun pack of Skittles.

But recently, Weight Watchers changed the system to reflect the need for fruits and vegetables in your daily allowance of calories. Fruits and vegetables are now zero points and processed foods generally have a higher point value.

According to a story in the New York Times, Weight Watchers began unveiling its first major overhaul forcing its 750,000 weekly meeting attendees and 1 million online participants to listen up and reevaluate the way they had been eating.

Drinking juice instead of eating fruit won't give you a leg up either because fruit juices are now worth 3 points. Officials at Weight Watchers commented that fruits and vegetables have a different effect on the body than other foods. The new system allots points based on a mix of protein, fiber, carbohydrates, and fat.

Karen Miller-Kovach, the chief scientific officer for Weight Watchers International said:

It's a complete overhaul; it doesn't get any bigger than this. Fifteen years ago we said a calorie is a calorie is a calorie. If you ate 100 calories of butter or 100 calories of chicken, it was all the same. Now, we know that is not the case, in terms of how hard the body has to work to make that energy available. And even more important is that where that energy comes from affects feelings of hunger and fullness.

In essence, Weight Watchers is endorsing a whole foods diet. A diet that's loaded with fruits, vegetables, and whole grains with the addition of some plant-based proteins like low point beans, homemade veggie burgers, nuts, seeds, or lean animal-based protein sources. While it's not as glossy and may not come with a points calculator, a whole foods diet doesn't need to be because the proof is in the pudding (or rather the zero point banana).

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