If you find yourself binging on sweets mid-day and having too many midnight snacks, “booster foods” could be your secret weapon to curb cravings sabotaging weight loss success.

On a recent episode of the Dr. Oz Show, Dr. Mike Dow, author of Diet Rehab and co-host of TLC’s Freaky Eaters, shared his 28-day plan featuring healthy, filling “booster foods” and strategies for retraining your brain to want healthier foods. According to Dr. Dow, certain foods can fuel cravings even more, making it harder to resist them. Here are examples of how his plan works during the first four weeks:

Week One: Halt the Salt
Dr. Dow says salt is one of the worst craving offenders because it can play tricks on taste buds, raise blood pressure and trigger cravings for unhealthy, sodium-rich foods. Instead of using salt as a seasoning, he suggests trying other healthier alternatives such as black pepper, basil, cilantro, curry, ginger, oregano, paprika, rosemary, sage or turmeric.

Week Two: Snack Attack
Instead of completely eliminating “forbidden” snacks you crave the most, Dr. Dow advocates pairing “booster” snacks with “pittfall” snacks like chips and chocolate. This can start creating an association between the two, ultimately making the booster food more appetizing. Dr. Dow says alternating bites of pitfall snacks with booster foods twice a day can help make your brain start to crave the healthy booster foods too.

Week Three: ‘Swaportunities’
Dr. Dow explains that if you replace pitfall foods like fried chicken or thick cream sauces with booster foods like grilled chicken and broccoli, your body will become even more used to the booster foods as you work toward eliminating pitfall foods entirely. Try to replace at least one pitfall meal and two pitfall snacks per day.

Week Four: Lose Weight – Look Great!
During week four, Dr. Dow challenges you to replace all your meals with booster meals – but you can still indulge in one or two pitfalls snacks a day. He believes if you can eliminate virtually all pitfall foods by this time, you’ll have successfully retrained your brain to crave “all things healthy!” Dr. Dow’s Booster Food Grocery List To retrain your brain to stop craving unhealthy foods, try incorporating the following booster foods into your diet. They’ve all been selected by Dr. Dow to help you on your 28-day journey to stop craving the foods that hinder weight loss:

Grains: Quinoa, soba noodles, barley, brown rice, steel-cut oats
Protein: Chicken, turkey, trout, buffalo, navy beans, Greek yogurt, almond milk, 1% milk, goat’s milk, low-fat cottage cheese
Fruits/Vegetables: Broccoli, mushrooms, figs, grapes, kiwis

For more information about booster foods and Dr. Mike Dow’s book Diet Rehab: 28 Days to Stop Craving the Foods That Make You Fat, visit dr.mikedow.com

Recognizing the tremendous opportunities for doing business with Brazil, GH International Consulting is organizing three-city “Business Tour to Brazil’s Top Markets” trade missions March 11-21 and August 2-12 with support from UPS, TAM Airlines, Greater Miami Chapters of OWIT (Organization of Women in International Trade), the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) as well as other U.S. companies.

March tour destinations include Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba, where a series of business meetings, seminars and high-level networking receptions have been scheduled with local business professionals. August tour destinations include Porto Alegre, Sao Paulo and Belo Horizonte.

“Leading law firms along with top government agencies and private-sector business groups will be meeting with tour participants in every city,” said Gláucia Hartman, founder of GH International Consulting – specializing in business development, management consulting and intercultural marketing. “Our focus is to help American companies succeed in Brazil. GH International is also planning a full-day ‘How to do Business in the USA’ round table event with the Federation of Industry in the southern Brazilian city of Curitiba.”

Business Matchmaking programs can also be scheduled (at least four weeks prior to departure). Participants can benefit from one-on-one appointments with companies and representatives in Brazil coordinated by the U.S. Commercial Department or Amcham. Arrangements can also be made to be accompanied by Gláucia Hartman – or if travel to Brazil is not possible, companies have the option to be represented by GH International Consulting during matchmaking meetings.

Full Business Tour registration includes: Briefings, presentations and group appointments with local officials and Brazilian business organizations; translation services; networking events; access to discounted airfares and hotels; a confirmed agenda close to departure date; local transportation and tourist information for each city; a Welcome memorandum after registration to prepare for the mission; and cultural training in Brazil.

To prepare for the Brazilian tour, participants are invited to arrange personal or group consultations with Gláucia Hartman. For tour registration, contact Gláucia Hartman, GH International Consulting: 310- 941-1887, email gh@ghiconsultants.com, or visit ghiconsultants.com