While some Fad Diets may have some benefits in the short term others may just be downright unhealthy!
Gluten-free/low-carb diets
Gluten is a protein y’all. If you are allergic to gluten or if you have Celiac disease, then yes, you should not eat gluten. However, there’s nothing in gluten that will make you gain weight. The reason people lose weight on gluten-free diets is because they switch from eating an excess of highly refined carbohydrates to a moderate amount of whole grains.
In terms of low carbohydrate diets, they do help you lose weight, but in the long run, it slows down your metabolism. For each gram of glycogen stored, 3-4 grams of water is stored. Therefore, the weight you initially lose is water weight. After a little while, though, your body starts to go into starvation mode, and your body starts to adjust to under-consuming carbohydrates and will rely on less of them. This, in turn, slows down your metabolism.
The HCG Diet
This fad diet includes taking HCG, a special hormone that only activates on a extremely low-calorie diet. In the first five days of the diet, you eat high-fat foods and start taking the drops of hormones. Then you drop to a 500-calorie diet for 40 days — which is equivalent to a bagel with cream cheese once a day. If this doesn’t scream unhealthy, I don’t know what does. FYI, in multiple studies, these hormones have proved not to help in weight loss.
Bottom line
Eat a healthy, well balanced and most importantly calorie and/or portion controlled diet! There is no substitute or quick fix other than calories vs. calories out.
The Fresh Plan
224.480.3700
