Fad Diets:  What You May Be Missing

Food-specific diets rely on the myth that some foods have specific properties that can cause weight loss or gain.  But no food can.  These don’t teach healthful eating habits; therefore you won’t stick with them.  Sooner or later, you’ll have a taste for something else—anything that is not among the foods “allowed” on the diet.

            The popular high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets are based on the idea that carbohydrates are bad, that many people are “allergic” to them or are insulin-resistant, and therefore gain weight when they eat them.  The truth is that people are eating more total calories and getting less physical activity and that is the real reason they are gaining weight.  These high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets tend to be low in calcium and fiber, as well as healthy phytochemicals (plant chemicals).  Some authors of these fad diets recommend taking vitamin-mineral supplements to replace lost nutrients.  Supplements should “bridge the gap” in healthy eating rather than make up for inadequacies of an unbalanced diet.

            Authors of high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets also advocate taking advantage of ketosis to accelerate weight loss.  Ketosis is an abnormal body process that occurs during starvation due to lack of carbohydrate.  Ketosis can cause fatigue, constipation, nausea, and vomiting.  Potential long-term side effects of ketosis include heart disease, bone loss, and kidney damage.

How can you spot a fad diet?

            Weight loss advice comes in many different forms.  Often times the “new” and “revolutionary” diets are really old diets making an encore appearance.  Examples include those that:

·        tout or ban a specific food or food group

·        suggest that food can change body chemistry

·        blame specific hormones for weight problems

Ten Red Flags That Signal Poor Nutrition Advice

1.      Recommendations that promise a quick fix

2.      Dire warnings of dangers from a single product or regimen

3.      Claims that sound too good to be true

4.      Simplistic conclusions drawn from a complex study

5.      Recommendations made from a single study

6.      Dramatic statements that are refuted by reputable scientific organizations

7.      Lists of “good” and “bad” foods

8.      Recommendations made to help sell a product

9.      Recommendations based on studies published without peer review

10.  Recommendations from studies that ignore differences among individuals or groups

Healthy lifestyle tips for losing weight and keeping it off

            Successful weight loss (losing and maintaining weight for at least 5 years) is accomplished by making positive changes to both eating habits and physical activity patterns.

            To establish a habit of regular physical activity, make simple, small changes.  Try getting 30 minutes of physical activity most days of the week.  Try a variety of different activities to prevent boredom.  Instead of meeting a friend for lunch, meet for a walk.  Wash your car by hand instead of using the car wash.  Take up gardening.

            Eat a wide variety of foods.  Variety is the spice of life.  Eating a variety daily helps provide vitamins, minerals, fiber, and phytochemicals, all of which may help reduce chronic disease risk.  You do not need to give up favorite foods in order to maintain or lose weight.

            Tailor portion sizes.  This is an important part of healthful eating.  This can be challenging, especially when eating out.  Things that may help include sharing a meal, saving half and taking it home, or ordering an appetizer as your meal. 

            The key to success is to make small, realistic changes to both eating and physical activity habits rather than trying to do too much all at once.

Adapted from the Journal of the American Dietetic Association (JADA). 

Make it a Healthy Day!

Debbi Whitcome MS, RD