It's summer time - too hot to cook, so let's have a salad.

Salads are healthy, right? Not necessarily. Salads can be the downfall of a well-intentioned diet. They can actually lead to weight gain. However, that does not have to be the case - salads can be a very delicious and healthy part of your diet. Armed with the following information, you will be able to build low-fat salads as part of your summer menu.

Probably the worst salad you can possibly eat is a Caesar salad - it is loaded with fat. Having a Caesar salad for lunch on a regular basis is a great way to sabotage your weight loss efforts. If you absolutely must have one, get the dressing on the side and use a small amount; or even better, make one at home and use a fat-free or low-fat dressing - there are some good ones on the market these days.

Another potential pitfall is Chef's Salad; think about it for a minute - sure, it starts out great with lettuce, tomato and onion, but what about the meat and cheese? Quite often the meats on a Chef's salad are fairly high-fat, such as ham, and we all know that cheese is fattening, yet normally there are layers of it in a Chef Salad. Do we think that just because it's in a salad it won't make us fat? Wishful thinking.

Here are some other no-no's to keep in mind when preparing your summer salads:

Croutons can add more than 100 calories and five grams of fat per ounce.

Luncheon meats such as salami, ham and pepperoni contain up to 60 percent calories from fat and lots of salt.

Salad dressings can be a disaster; regular dressings, especially creamy ones, add loads of calories and fat - one ounce of dressing can add 100 or more calories and ten grams of fat.

Regular cheeses, even regular cottage cheese, will also add loads of calories and fat.

Potato salad, tuna salad, chicken salad, pasta salad - anything mixed with regular mayonnaise or dressing will add fat and calories to your diet.

So what does that leave us with? How are we supposed to enjoy our salads? Add all your favourite vegetables to your salad - don't just stick with the traditional lettuce, tomato and onion. Try mushrooms, raw broccoli or cauliflower, radishes, cucumber, peppers - all colours, cabbage, alfalfa sprouts, corn, carrots - whatever you like.

You can also top your salad with some grilled chicken or turkey breast, or your homemade tuna salad (mixed with low or fat-free mayonnaise, of course). You may be surprised by how much you enjoy the flavour of all these goodies without any dressing at all.

But if you do want dressing, use the low or fat-free varieties; however, these still add calories, so don't drown your salad. You can also try sprinkling some balsamic vinegar over your salad for a lighter taste. If you want cheese on your salad, try fat-free cottage cheese or fat-free shredded mozzarella or cheddar, or a light powdering of grated Parmesan cheese.

Don't turn up your nose without giving these healthy salad ideas a try - you will discover just how delicious a healthy salad can be. Use these tips when preparing your summer salads and you will be well on your way to becoming Body Wise.