Debunking Fad Diets

We’ve all heard of fad diets – eating plans that promise rapid weight loss and other health benefits but are typically not support by scientific evidence! We all want quick results for weight loss, but one particular issue with fad diets – aside from potential health risks – is that they lack the balance and variety of food which is required for optimal health.

It's also possible to be eating too little for weight loss! And most fad diets are extremely low-calorie diets, let us give you a few examples. 

Let’s start with something whacky – the cabbage soup diet! It’s a short-term weight loss diet that claims it can help you lose up to 4.5kg in a single week. The diet involves eating homemade cabbage soup for every meal, allowing for one to two additional foods such as fruit and veggies. 

There’re about 134 calories in one serving of cabbage soup, so if you stick to the plan you may shed some kilos, but you won’t be losing fat! It’ll be water weight for the most part, and you’ll be hangry. It’s far too low in calories, so your metabolism could slow down as early as three days into the cabbage soup diet, which would make it difficult to prevent weight gain once you stop it.

Steer clear from this one, it’s not sustainable, and you won’t be happy!

While keto has been hailed as a successful diet for weight loss, it’s not one you’ll want to stay on forever. The diet plan for keto severely restricts your carbohydrate intake and replaces it with fat, which can help your body burn fat for energy – otherwise known as ketosis. 

Due to its restrictive nature, keto can lead to deficiencies in certain essential vitamins and minerals such as magnesium, potassium and fibre, which are abundant in fruits, vegetables and wholegrains that are limited on the diet. Since it’s a high-fat diet, if too much of your fat consumption is coming from saturated fat, you run the risk of developing high cholesterol. 

Some people on the ketogenic diet long-term develop the notorious ‘keto flu’, these include symptoms headache, fatigue and irritability – this is because we get most of our energy from carbs! While it’s shown to offer short-term weight loss benefits, it’s long-term safety and efficacy with weight management are still debated. 

The juice cleanse diet involves only consuming fruit and vegetable juices for a short time, typically three days to a week. It claims to detoxify the body, promoting rapid weight loss, and boosts overall health, but we’re here to say that it isn’t a great idea.

Protein, healthy fats, complex carbs and fibre are a must for health, so the juice cense diet can easily lead to nutrient deficiencies. Some fruit juices are very high in sugar, which can cause spikes in blood sugar levels and the lack of protein could result in your body breaking down muscle mass. That’s the last thing you want on a weight loss journey. The weight you’d lose on a juice cleanse is just water weight anyway, so you’re doing yourself no favours on this diet.

The raw food diet consists of consuming uncooked, unprocessed foods, mainly fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and sprouted grains. While it can promote the intake of nutrient-rich foods, it carries several potential risks!

Like most fad diets, the raw food diet can lead to deficiencies in essential nutrients such as protein, vitamin B12, iron, calcium and omega-3 fatty acids. Some people might also experience digestive discomfort from eating large amounts of fruits and veggies as such a big fibre intake can cause bloating and gas. 

Sure you might lose a bit of weight in the beginning, but it’s not sustainable for long-term weight loss.

Fad diets create a vicious cycle. When you restrict too many calories, you feel deprived and tempted to eat, this leads to intense cravings where you’re most likely going to give in to, and wind up disappointed in yourself. This is why a balanced diet is key for physical and emotional wellbeing. Fad diets aren’t sustainable because food affects the way we think and feel, your gut is your second brain after all!

If you want to lose weight, and keep it off, you need to stop with the fad diets. Take Lady Shaker Emma, she stopped crash dieting, and with the help of The Lady Shake, she lost 30kg! Read her inspirational story here. 

A healthy, balanced diet is required for weight loss, weight management, and overall health and wellbeing.