Saying adios to flab could be as simple as spreading peanut butter on your toast. A study published in the International Journal Of Obesity showed that women who snacked on the nutty goo had their hunger reduced for up to two and a half hours, making them less likely to binge throughout the day.

2. SWITCH FROM WHITE TO RED

The real reason French women don’t get fat? It’s all that Merlot. A recent German study found that red wine contains a compound called resveratrol, which reduces the growth of fat cells. Bottoms up!

3. GET SCRIBBLING

We all know that keeping a food diary can help you slim, but what if we told you it could double the amount of weight you lose? Well, that’s exactly what a major study in America has discovered. “The more food records people kept, the more weight they lost,” says Dr Jack Hollis, who led the study. “Slimmers who kept daily food records lost twice as much weight as those who didn’t bother. It seems that writing down what you eat encourages people to consume fewer calories.” Now, where’s that pen?

4. SLURP AWAY

Next time you dine out, don’t deny yourself a starter. A study at Pennsylvania State University found that women who ate a first course of soup reduced the total calorie intake of their meal by a fifth compared with those who didn’t have a first course. In other words, fill up on minestrone soup and the chances are, come dessert, you won’t be so tempted by that Mississippi mud pie.

5. GRAB YOUR MAN

The fastest way to shift weight is to sweat it off. A study at the University Of Colorado looked into the habits of more than 5,000 successful slimmers and found that they were all very active, burning an average of 2,800 calories a week through exercise. Gym-phobes need not be deterred, though. Another study concluded that having sex three times a week can burn as many calories as running 30 miles per week. We know which we’d rather do!

6. TURN UP THE HEAT

A dash of Tabasco sauce could be all it takes to shift your beach bulge. A study in the British Journal Of Nutrition found that women who seasoned their food with hot sauce ate 200 fewer calories than those who didn’t. Just keep a glass of water handy!

7. BRIGHTEN UP

A candlelit dinner might be romantic, but it won’t do your waistline any favours. Researchers at the University Of California found that lower levels of light encourage binge eating, so turn up the dimmer switch. And swap the light bulb for a blue one – another study found that blue is the least appetising colour for food (since the brain associates it with poison), so you’ll eat less.

8. GET OUT MORE

It seems Britain’s obesity epidemic might have as much to do with our cloudy skies as with our monster appetites. Sunlight is vital for the production of vitamin D, but a recent study showed that some Brits, especially those living in the north, don’t get enough. And, as vitamin D is vital for controlling appetite and suppressing hunger hormones, the only solution is to get outside more. And no, another holiday is not the answer – you need sustained sunlight all year round, and don’t forget it was bingeing in Benidorm that was to blame for your excess baggage in the first place!

JOIN FABULOUSDIETS.CO.UK TODAY TO LOSE A STONE IN JUST SIX WEEKS. PLUS SIGN UP TODAY AND GET FOUR WEEKS FREE

Photography: matrix, pacific coast news, photolibrary, retna, Splash