There have been lots of rumors about Jennifer Aniston, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt and John Mayer and their relationships in the last few days.

But I'd like to know something about the diet Aniston follows.   After all, she has been in great shape and no wonder she was once picked by a magazine as one of the most beautiful women in the world.

There is not much reported about Aniston's diet, unfortunately. But it seems this beautiful movie star at least followed the so called zone diet for some time starting a few years ago, according to some sources. But I am not so sure.

What caught my attention is the zone diet. Some readers might have known something about it although it seems to me that it is not as popular as Atkins diet and Southern Beach diet.

The so called zone diet is a diet popularized in books by biochemist Barry Sears. The key principle of this dietary regimen is that the diet should contain carbohydrates, protein and fat at a ratio of 40%/30%/30%.   This ratio is called the zone, according to Wikipedia.

The theory behind this diet according to Sears is that the diet leads to the formation of specific anti-inflammatory chemicals, which are good for the heart.   Another feature is that the diet advocates use of omega-3 fatty acids from pharmaceutical-grade Omega 3 fish oil, according to the free online encyclopedia.

Many people have tried the zone diet to lose weight and many have reportedly lost quite some. But this is not something unique to the diet.   All types of diets may help people lose weight including Atkins diet.

Similar to the Atkins, the zone diet advocates use of fat.   Sears' rationale is "Monounsaturated fats in a meal contribute to a feeling of fullness and decrease the rate at which carbohydrates are absorbed into the bloodstream. Slower carbohydrate absorption means lower insulin levels which means less stored fat and a faster transition to fat burning. If the body needs energy and can't burn fat because of high insulin levels, a person feels tired as their brain starves and metabolism slows to compensate. This occurs because the brain runs on glucose and high insulin levels deplete blood glucose levels. Such a condition, rebound hypoglycemia, causes sweet cravings (which just starts the high-insulin cycle all over again)," cited from Wikipedia.

Aniston has had her body well maintained, but again I am not sure if that has anything to do with the zone diet.

Those who want to lose some weight for a long term or maintain a healthy heart might want to consider the advice of Dr. Dean Ornish, a professor of the University of California at San Francisco, whose advice is similar to Dr. Colin T Campbell, a distinguished nutrition professor at Cornell University.   Dr. Ornish demonstrated that a low fat and high carbohydrates diet stopped or even reversed plaque buildup in arteries.