Dr. Sears’ development of Zone Counts in 2005 was a further refinement of his original Zone Food Block method first presented 10 years earlier. At that time, he simply had two forms of carbohydrates — favorable and unfavorable – that was a defined amount of carbohydrate (9 grams) in a serving size and based on their glycemic index. In an effort to make the Zone Food Block method easier to disseminate to other health care professionals who use the USDA food pyramid and diabetic exchanges in nutrition education, he developed the Zone Count method, which has proven confusing to Zoners who follow the Zone Block method. The new method first appeared in Dr. Sears’ “Anti-Inflammation Zone.”

To make the Counts method easier to understand for everyone, Dr. Sears has revised the count numbers determined by the glycemic load – a more precise version of the glycemic index – to the serving sizes used in the Food Block method. The results are basically the same as the Zone Food Blocks, but now there is a more precise number attached the food items in the Zone Counts list. The average female should strive to get 15 Zone Counts per meal, whereas the average male should try to make sure to get approximately 20 Zone Counts per meal.