Fad diets often have big promises of quick results. You’ve probably tried, or at least heard of, many of them. However, there’s more to these diets than you may first realize. Many of these fads are risky and can damage your health. They can destroy your body if you aren’t careful.
Needless to say, nutritionists despise them!
Learn the truth about some of these fad diets:
1. Cabbage soup diet. This diet forces you to eat nothing but cabbage soup.
* Nutritionists hate this diet because it doesn’t provide any protein or healthy fats. Cabbage soup has some carbohydrates and fiber, but it lacks most nutrients that you need to stay healthy.
* Although some variations of this diet allow skim milk or bananas, in general, you aren’t getting enough food to survive. This puts your body into dangerous starvation mode. It’s a quick fix that may help you lose some pounds initially, but without long-term weight loss.
* Another issue is that this fad diet can lead to bloating and gas.
2. Grapefruit diet. Although in this diet you do eat lean foods besides grapefruit, nutritionists aren’t fans of this diet because it still limits your food so much that it’s only a very short-term solution.
* The grapefruit diet is very low-calorie at under 1,000 calories per day, so you will lose weight. However, you can’t maintain this diet for a long period. It’s generally a 12-day plan. Mostly you lose water and muscle weight, with very little fat, and then gain it all back very quickly.
3. Tapeworm diet. The tapeworm diet is considered to be one of the most dangerous diets. Nutritionists strongly warn against it. This fad diet forces you to eat a live tapeworm or tapeworm eggs, so you lose weight.
* Tapeworms can grow and reproduce inside your body. They can cause serious side effects and are dangerous.
* Although you’re supposed to take anti-worm medication once you’ve lost the weight you want, many dieters don’t consider the long-term damage and risks of having tapeworms.
4. Cotton ball diet. Nutritionists don’t want you to even think about trying this diet! The main premise of this fad diet is to eat cotton balls soaked in orange juice to lose weight.
* Cotton balls can block your intestines. You don’t want to fall for this diet and end up in the hospital with an intestinal blockage. Plus, they’re also made from synthetic fibers that can cause other issues.
5. Baby food diet. Some believe that since baby food is safe for children, they can eat it as adults to lose weight. However, nutritionists warn that this fad can harm your health.
* Baby food is designed for children and doesn’t have enough calories for adults. You run the risk of putting your body in starvation mode and not getting enough nutrients to be healthy.
* Also, some adults have trouble digesting baby food because it gives them gas and bloating.
General Fad Diet Tips
Nutritionists share that many fad diets have similar aspects. The most common thing among fad diets is that they tend to severely restrict your calories or the food you can eat.
They may give you short-term results, but you won’t be able to stay on the diets very long and will gain the weight back, usually very quickly.
You also run the risk of having serious health issues from these diets. Besides the negative side effects, rapid weight loss itself can be dangerous for your body. This is caused by you losing bone mass, muscle mass, and nutrients too quickly. It’s healthier to lose weight at a slower pace.
Fad diets are tempting, but beware! You don’t want to be tricked by a fad diet that hurts your health. There are safer, more effective ways to lose weight that will give you long-term results.
Angela Atkinson is a Certified Life Coach and the author of more than 20 books on narcissism, narcissistic abuse recovery and related topics. A recognized expert on narcissism and narcissistic personality disorder who has studied and written extensively on narcissistic relationships since 2006, Atkinson was inspired to begin her work as a result of having survived toxic relationships of her own.
Atkinson offers trauma-informed coaching and has certifications in life coaching, level 2 therapeutic model, CBT coaching, integrative wellness coaching, and NLP. She is a certified trauma support coach and certified family trauma professional. She also has a professional PTSD counseling certification. Her mission is to help those who have experienced the emotional and mental devastation that comes with narcissistic abuse in these incredibly toxic relationships to (re)discover their true selves, stop the gaslighting and manipulation and move forward into their genuine desires – into a life that is exactly what they choose for themselves.
Along with her solution-focused life coaching experience, Atkinson’s previous career in journalism and research helps her to offer both accurate and understandable information for survivors of abuse in a simple-to-understand way that helps to increase awareness in the narcissistic abuse recovery community. Atkinson founded QueenBeeing.com Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Support, the SPANily Narcissistic Abuse Recovery Support Groups and the Life Makeover Academy. In her life coaching practice, Atkinson’s clients enjoy her personalized approach that allows and encourages them to become the best possible versions of themselves and to succeed in doing what they love most. She offers individual and group coaching for victims and survivors of narcissistic abuse at NarcissisticAbuseRecovery.Online and NarcissismSupportCoach.com.
