Unhealthy Fad Diets

About Unhealthy Fad Diets

When it comes to dieting, people generally desire immediate gratification. They want to see the weight come off as easily as it piled on. It isn't that these diets don't work. Most of the time, they actually do. The weight comes off and people see this as being healthy, but being thin doesn't necessarily equal being healthy.

Generally, fad diets are not good for the body and although the weight comes off, which is a positive effect; these diets often affect other parts of the body negatively. How do you tell if a diet is unhealthy or not? Here are some of the signs:

• The diet claims that you will lose weight without exercising.
• Certain foods like those containing carbohydrates are extremely restricted or completely eliminated altogether.
• There is no scientific evidence to support that the diet actually works.
• Fad diets often promise quick weight loss (more than two pounds a week).

Unhealthy Popular Fad Diets

The following list of unhealthy popular fad diet plans offers the reasons why they are not good for you.

Low Carbohydrate/High Protein Fad Diets

Many diet plans follow the low carb/high protein mantra such as:

• The Dr. Atkins Diet Revolution
• The South Beach Diet
• Sugar Busters! Diet

Yes, these programs work as far as weight loss is concerned. Droves of people have sworn by Dr. Atkins zero-carb-high-protein diet and many celebrities swear by The Zone. When these diets were relatively new, not much was known about high protein/low carb eating except for the fact that it worked. Well, here is what scientists now know:

• High protein/low carbohydrate diets are hard on the kidneys – The American Kidney Foundation warns people that the Atkins diet plan puts undue strain on the kidneys due to the high level of proteins consumed. Here's the simplified explanation: when protein consumption is increased, the nitrogen level in the blood increases. The kidneys must clean the nitrogen from the blood before it is recirculated back into the body. The nitrogen comes out as urine, meaning, more frequent trips to the bathroom. More frequent trips to the bathroom leads to dehydration, which further taxes the kidneys.

• Increased risk of heart disease – Diets high in saturated fats lead to high cholesterol, a main cause of heart disease. As a side note, some short-term studies were conducted regarding cholesterol and the Atkins diet that concluded that over a short period of time, LDL or "bad" cholesterol levels dropped for Atkins dieters over this period of time. This is due to the weight loss and not because the diet is healthy.

Liquid Diets

Liquid diets suggest you replace at least two of your daily meals with a "shake" or some other sort of drink. These diets are unhealthy because they deprive your body of necessary and essential vitamins and nutrients. Liquid diets also drastically reduce caloric intake, which leads to lean tissue loss (as opposed to fatty tissue) and chronic fatigue. Some popular liquid diets are:

• Slim Fast
• The Hollywood Diet

The Focus on Fitness

Just like all fads, the popularity of unhealthy fad diets is fading. Instead of the quick fix, losing weight is refocusing on healthy lifestyle changes like:

• Reducing caloric intake
• Reducing saturated fats
• Exercising more
• Portion control

Even fad diets encourage all four lifestyle changes, with the exception of Atkins, which allows you to increase saturated fats. In the end, fad diets don't work because they focus on short-term changes for short-term results. These diets are often too strict and not sustainable over long periods, which is why most of the people that go on fad diets end up gaining the weight back. Healthy lifestyle changes, on the other hand, give anyone trying to lose weight and be healthier a greater chance of keeping the weight off and staying healthy long term.