Fad diets can work for some people. They're fun, trendy, and can sometimes show quick results! Is that the best choice for you?
Let's take a deeper look at a common diet fads and popular ways to lose weight:
Juicing: Many of my friends have tried "juicing." Yes, fruits and vegetables are healthy, and you will probably see fast results, but is it really worth it?
Mayo Clinic, a great health/medical source, stated that
"...there's no sound scientific evidence that extracted juices are healthier than the juice you get by eating the fruit or vegetable itself" (J. Nelson, Jan. 2014). You don't get the satisfaction from physically chewing your foods, which makes the few days of the fast less enjoyable. You also
may be consuming more calories than you hope.
Pauline Williams shares that although an orange only has 60 calories, you may have to use at least three to get enough juice for your recipes, along with all the other fruits and vegetables to put in your "meal". These calories quickly add up and may not be as satisfying as eating a low calorie meal. You are also not getting all the nutrients you need.
Once the few day fast is over, most people
see the weight come back on as soon as they begin eating regular food again. My dear friend Courtney (right) (isn't she gorgeous?!) tried a day of juicing. Although she saw immediate results, her weight came right back on when she returned to her regular (still healthy) diet.
DConclusion: Juicing has its health benefits, but you have to be cautious of the calorie and sugar intake. You may see quick results, but you may also gain the weight back once you return to your regular diet.
Diet Pills/ Appetite Suppressers: Garcinia Cambogia is an example of a dietary supplement that claims to be "the top fat burner."
Garcinia is a tree that grows in tropical locations, such as Indonesia. They grow pumpkin shaped fruits that claim to be an effective weight loss aids, and have other claimed medical uses. A few family members of mine have used this and
they didn't see any results; however, there are positive (and negative) reviews on
Amazon, some saying they lost 33 pounds!
I love
Mayo Clinic because they are reliable, and they list a good deal of diet supplements along with their claim, their real effectiveness, and common side effects. Be sure to research the diet supplement before taking the challenge. Some can be very dangerous!
DCConclusion: It really depends on who you are and your body. Again, take a look at Mayo Clinic's reviews. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don't.
ALWAYS research before taking your choice of supplement.
Paleo Diet: The Paleo Diet is known as the cave-man diet. In this diet you consume the foods that would have been available back in the Paleolithic era.
You are encouraged to eat fresh vegetables and fruits, lean meats and seafood, and healthy fats (seeds, nuts, etc.). You're essentially taking out all refined sugar and grains. This is where the Paleo Diet has it right, taking out sugars can enhance weight-loss.
This diet has you removing entire food groups from your diet. That's where it goes wrong. Whole grains and dairy products are an important part of your diet!
US News posted rankings for several categories for the Paleo Diet. Overall it got a 2.0 from expert reviews in categories such as short and long term effects, nutrition, and safety. However, when trying to find consumer reviews, they didn't seem to bash it as badly as the experts.
CBSNews and
Huffington Post both have articles about the Paleo diet, varied comments about its success.
DConclusion: Experts rank it the last of the fad list. It's not very healthy and you're not getting the nutrients you need. Consumers may see results, but they are not healthy ones.
Lowering Your Calorie Intake: There are many varieties of the lowering caloric intake diet. You have Slim Fast, Special K,
Medifast, South Beach, Atkins, and many more. This is where people see the most success, but you have to be careful not to let your body go into "starvation mode" by cutting out too many calories. Your body needs a certain number of calories to function properly each day. Yes, the number varies, but you're able to
cut down a few calories from what you're taking in now. Programs such as Slim Fast and Medifast cut your calories down to 1,200 a day. You eat about every 2.5 hours and their designated snacks/meals have a balance of the nutrients your body needs. It can be difficult, and you never get very full, or stuffed, but you're body is satisfied and it's a healthy means of losing weight. Loretta Shepherd is a great example of someone who took on the Medifast diet, saw quick results, and is still seeing results today. She began the diet (which supplies most of your meals, resulting an average of 2-5 pounds lost a week) in August of 2013 and is still doing it today. Between August 17th and November 8th,
she lost 30 pounds! Take a look at her transformation! Way to go Loretta!!!
You don't necessarily have to buy the plan from
Medifast. If you decrease your caloric intake
(consuming around 1,200-1,500 calories) while being aware of your nutrients, you'll see great, healthy results. The MyFitnessPal app is a great tool to help you track your calories and nutrition to always make sure you're getting what your body needs!
**New addition below**
Comparing SB, Atkins, and Special K: Each of these three diet choices all have the same concept. You replace your meals and snacks with their products, then make your own healthy dinner. Atkins has a wide variety of products. They make it more enjoyable to "diet" by allowing you to switch up your foods frequently.
Atkins does have the highest calorie and fat content, is tied for the lowest amount of fiber, and highest total fats. It does have the highest amount of protein, and may be more filling.
Special K has a smaller variety of products, the lowest calorie and fat content, but the highest carb count. You probably won't get as full with these products, but they sure do taste good :).
SB is kind of in the middle of nutrition facts, but have a very small selection of foods.
I picked two products that were the most similar (a chocolate chip meal bar from each line). Here's a chart of the info I'm looking at:
|
|
Atkins
|
Special K
|
South Beach
|
|
Calories
|
200
|
170
|
180
|
|
Cal. From Fat
|
80
|
40
|
?
|
|
Carbs
|
19g
|
26g
|
24g
|
|
Fiber
|
5g
|
5g
|
9g
|
|
Protein
|
16g
|
10g
|
12g
|
|
Total Fat
|
9g
|
4.5g
|
9g
|
I've always favored Special K, because I like the taste of their products better, but each has their benefits. If you're looking for
low carb- pick Atkins. Low calorie and fat- Special K. More
variety- Atkins. Keeps you
full for longer- Atkins or SB.
CConclusion: This is a healthy way to loss weight and a more sure way of keeping it off. Just be sure you aren't starving yourself and are getting the appropriate nutrients for your body :)
New Addition**
Raspberry Ketone: Another fad diet supplement is Raspberry Ketones. It was hard to find credible sources, but I'll share what I found! First, I checked the product reviews. As most supplements, it was split pretty evenly of good and bad testimonials.
Fox News ran a report last February on Raspberry Ketones and claim
ed "to date there is not even one human study demonstrating any weight loss at all as a result of consuming raspberry ketone. Huffington Post said the same.
Consumer Review did a more in-depth study. They took all the different brands and found that a lot of the ones being offered are fake. They have unnecessary filters and bad proportions which make the pill ineffective (further explanation on their website). The did find three brands that "passed their tests" and placed them in order. If you are going to try the Raspberry Ketone supplements, I recommend checking out the Consumer Review page and their studies and what to look for in each brand you're considering. Let me know what results to find!
What diets have you tried? Have they worked? What diets do you want to learn more about? Share your secrets!!
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