What You Need to Know About Fad Diets

Weight loss

A fad diet is a stylish weight loss plan that surfaces from time to time, enthusiastically promoted by so-called weight loss experts. These diets promise dramatic results, but are usually not healthy and don’t lead to any long-term weight loss. The weight loss plans are often feverishly followed by celebrities and other notable people, which draws attention to themselves as well as the diet they might be on, and encourages ordinary people to follow suit.¹

There is a constant endeavor by overweight people to find a diet that works, and many seem to fall for the miraculous-sounding diets that promise to melt off the fat, with very little effort on their parts, in an unbelievably short time.

Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a weight loss plan that works the same for everyone who decides to diet. The key to success is to find a weight loss plan that suits your lifestyle, and one that you will be able to stick to for the long term.

The truth about fad diets

There are hundreds of unhealthy, quick-fix diets out there, ranging from the grapefruit diet to the severe detox diet. Even the worst of the diets will likely result in some

weight loss, but experts agree that there is little point in losing weight which invariably comes back after you have completed the week or two durations of the diet.

These weight loss plans where you can eat, for example, only cabbage and grapefruit, often rule out food groups that are necessary to get the nutrients you need, could be harmful to your health. Outlandish detox diets such as Master Cleanse, the Hallelujah Diet, and The Martha’s Vineyard Diet Detox, must be treated with the utmost suspicion, no matter which icon may have recommended any of them.²

Health experts also state that plans which require extreme procedures to lose weight like liver flushes, and acute body or colon cleanses, are also highly suspect. They have the potential to do more harm than good.³

The dangers of fad diets

There are inherent dangers of the unbalanced diets people so readily embrace to lose weight. Here are a few crazy diets some folk resort to:

The cabbage soup diet which is all you can eat.
The strict vegan diets.
The raw food only diet.
A massive variety of low-carb and protein only diets.
A severe calorie restrictive diet, that offers a rewarding cheat day once or twice a week.

There are many others not mentioned here, but most of them are dismal flops, as you may initially lose some weight, but are bound to put it all back – plus more.⁴ Doctors have labeled these diets as absurd, as you may not get enough nutrients to stay healthy. And drastic calorie reduction can lead to fatigue and loss of energy.

How to recognize dangerous diets

Fad diets or miracle diet products have several things in common, all of which seem to hone in on making extravagant promises.⁵

Here is a list of weight loss products and plans to steer clear of, should they maintain any of the following:

Claim to help you lose weight very quickly, usually at least 5kg per week. This is not healthy, as it takes time to lose weight so that your body is allowed time to adjust.
Tell you that exercise in not necessary to lose weight and keep it off. Only the naïve will believe this.
Limit your food choices, or exclude certain foods entirely, without offering a balanced nutrition plan.
Some of the diets focus on food combinations to promote fat burning. However, research has shown that eating certain foods together does not lead to speedier weight loss.
Many success stories are based on before and after photos. These may or may not be genuine, and the time it took to get to the after pics, and other specific details are often not provided. The impression is given that no matter how obese you might be, you can also feature in before and after pics when you sign up for a stunning weight loss plan.
Some diet plans may require you pay in advance, which include pre-packed meals, diet shakes, pills, or even attend meetings in your local area – all necessary they say, for the plan to work.
Many the weight loss companies tend to shrug off complex medical research and draw simple conclusions to suit their own diet plans.

When you set a goal to lose weight, bear in mind that the weight did not arrive overnight, and nor will it disappear overnight. Losing weight is a process, so don’t be tempted by some of the instant results you see on the TV, on the internet, or in fancy magazines.⁶ It all may look fantastic, but in the end, you could just be clutching at straws in the wind.

The best way to lose weight and keep it off

Going to extremes and starving yourself is not a smart way to lose weight. It can cause nutrient and protein deficiencies, which may lead to other health problems.⁷Focus on the results you want to achieve, and opt to lose weight slowly by changing your diet and eating healthy foods. These can include whole grains, fruit, vegetables, lean cuts of meat, and other healthy proteins.

Reduce intake of sugary, refined foods to the barest minimum, and watch your portions until you are used to eating less.

It makes sense then that the way to lose weight and keep it off is to make some permanent lifestyle changes, learn to eat differently – and most important, exercise on a regular basis.

We can help

The Clean Start Weight Loss Program is a medically designed and supervised program blueprinted to eliminate the body’s fat deposits, particularly targeting the buttocks, abdomen, thighs, and neck.

The program promotes the burning off unhealthy fat, healthy eating and appetite control, which will result in you looking and feeling better.

For more information visit www.renewmetoday.com and take the weight loss survey to see if you are a candidate for the Clean Start Weight Loss Program.

References:

What You Need to Know About Fad Diets

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