Fad diet is any trendy diet that promises fast and easy weight loss, like baby food diets, alkaline diets, Paleolithic diets, gluten-free diets, cleanses and fasts, etc. They’re tempting, and the advertisements for the fad diets lure you in with grandiose claims of weight loss.
Fad diets are bad because they don’t address the problems that caused you to gain weight in the first place. Once you’re through with the fad diet, you’ll probably gain the weight back as you reestablish old eating habits. Fad diets are also bad because they usually require the elimination of foods that aren’t bad for you, which can result in nutritional deficiencies.
It’s easy to spot a fad diet.Typically, a fad diet shares some, or all, of the following characteristics:
- Promises a quick fix
- Promotes ‘magic’ foods or combinations of foods
- Implies that food can change body chemistry
- Excludes or severely restricts food groups or nutrients, such as carbohydrates
- Has rigid rules that focus on weight loss
- Promises a quick fix
- Promotes ‘magic’ foods or combinations of foods
- Implies that food can change body chemistry
- Excludes or severely restricts food groups or nutrients, such as carbohydrates
- Has rigid rules that focus on weight loss
- Fad diets can cause health problems
Because they often cut out key foods, fad diets may cause the following symptoms:-
- Dehydration
- Slow metabolism
- Weakness and fatigue
- Nausea and headaches
- Depression
- Constipation
- Inadequate vitamin and mineral intake
- Acne
- Irregular bowel movement
- Loss of bone density
- Gastrointestinal problems
- Electrolyte imbalances
Nutrients such as iron, protein, omega three fatty acids, and calcium which are vital parts of daily dietary breakdowns and what is needed to help fuel the body entirely and keep it healthy are lacking in these diets.
Later when solid food is introduced back to the diet, the digestive system will have to readjust to breaking down solid foods again, which causes fat storage which leads to rapid weight gain and bloating.
Fad diets that severely restrict food groups or nutrients may also mean that you miss out on the protective health effects that a balanced eating plan provides. The answer is a balanced eating plan.
Don’t worry. There is an eating plan that gets results. You can achieve and maintain a healthy body weight and you don’t have to cut out any foods because you can eat everything – in moderation.
It’s called a balanced eating plan and it’s nothing new. Combined with moderate physical activity, it will change your life.
With a balanced eating plan, it’s what you leave in that makes all the difference. For a balanced eating plan to be successful, you need to:
- Eat plenty of vegetables, legumes, and fruits.
- Include a variety of cereals (including bread, rice, pasta, and noodles), preferably wholegrain.
- Include lean meat, fish, poultry, or alternatives.
- Include milk, yogurts, cheeses, or alternatives.
- Drink plenty of water.
- Limit saturated fat and moderate total fat intake.
- Choose reduced-fat varieties of foods where possible.
- Choose foods low in salt.
- Limit your alcohol intake, if you choose to drink.
- Consume only moderate amounts of sugars, and food and drinks containing added sugars. In particular, limit sugar-sweetened beverages.
- Be active every day
- Once you have a healthy eating pattern, you’ll soon feel like you have more energy and you’ll want to be more active. Put together at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity on most, preferably all, days.
- Enjoy some regular, vigorous exercise if you can for extra health and fitness.
A healthy lifestyle is easier than you think, Changing your eating and physical activity habits can be difficult at first. But once you’ve started, it’s easy to sustain. Here are a few tips to help ease the transition: Combine an active lifestyle with healthy eating.
Make small, achievable, lifelong changes to your lifestyle, and eating habits.
- Fill up on low-calorie nutritious foods.
- Keep portions moderate in size.
- Eat until you have had enough – not until you are full.
- Do your best to avoid eating when you are not hungry.
- Recognize that on some days you might be hungrier than on other days.
- Eat slowly and enjoy your food.
- Eat regular meals including breakfast, lunch & dinner.
