The Dangers of Fad Diets

Fad diets can be attractive if you want to get slim and trim for a holiday or a coming wedding. If you are really lucky and persistent, you will be in good shape in time but the honeymoon will be short lived. You may find the weight piling on even before the holiday is over. This is because what you actually lose is water and not fat. The loss of water from the body results in lowering of weight but as soon as the water accumulates in the body you tend to gain your lost weight.

What are fad diets?

Fad diets are diets that emphasize a particular food or a type of food. This means that such diets put you on one kind of food for days at stretch. Hence a fad diet goes completely against the principles of good nutrition, which implies eating a wide variety of foods every day so as to include all the nutrients daily. Remember no one food is rich in a particular nutrient that helps you stay healthy. So deficiencies tend to set in if you are on a fad diet for a long period.

The success of fad diets

Fad diets work great in the beginning as initial results show a weight loss. However, no matter what the claims, fad diets can never make up for healthy eating habits. Fad diets require you to take in special pills and foods that are formulated to increase urination. In this way, a lot of water is lost from the body. But along with water you also lose a number of vital vitamins and minerals, which are necessary for the proper functioning of the body. The amount of weight you lose is proportional to the density of water. The density of water is 1g/cubic cm. So, if you lose 1 liter of water, you will lose 1 kg of weight.

Some fad diets, though unbalanced, work well in people but lack the taste and nutrition of a healthy diet. You may enjoy it initially and adhere to it strictly but soon you will find it difficult to maintain such an unappealing and boring diet. In due course of time you may find yourself weighing less, but the minute you start eating some goodies you will add on to the already existing fat cell and gain weight, which will not be easy to lose.

Fad diets are dangerous

Fad diets can lead to death. Shocking, isn't it? But it is the truth. This is because these diets lack the nutrients and the energy that the body needs. A diet too low in calories can lead to a feeling of tiredness, irritation and muscle cramps. Lack of proteins and carbohydrates also results in dizziness, fatigue and many other illnesses.

Hence the next time you want to lose weight, avoid fad diets and lose weight in a healthy and sustained manner.