Although on the surface some diets may seem odd, many people try them anyway because they are desperate to meet their weight loss goal. Sadly, millions of people are disappointed when they don’t lose the weight or worse, experience more weight gain as a result of their diet attempts. Some diets are not only unsuccessful though, they can be dangerous.
Grapefruit and Other Random Food Diets
This is an older concept diet, but people still use the basic principle behind it when they think it will help them with weight loss. The idea is that if you eat the same healthy food item and nothing else it will be good for you and cause you to lose weight at the same time. Yes, grapefruit is rich in many vitamins; however, we need to eat a variety of foods to meet all our nutritional needs. The cabbage soup diet and the banana diet are other examples of this old diet method.
The Problem With Single Food Diets
A single food diet almost always turns out to be a short-term gain situation. Many people are able to reach their weight loss goal quickly but if you want to permanently alter your weight then it is not a good option. As soon as you stop the single food diet you put the weight back on. Some people complain that they gain more weight after they have stopped the diet.
Unhealthy Single Food Diets
Using the single food diet long term can be very unhealthy. It impacts your glucose. Our bodies use foods like breads, pastas, and dairy products to make glucose which gives us energy. If you don’t have carbs in your diet for weight loss reasons and you take in fewer calories; yes, you will lose the pounds. The catch is that eventually you will start eating carbohydrates again, your body will start to replenish any of the carbohydrates that were stored during your diet and that weight comes right back on. While you are on that diet you also feel sluggish, cranky and open yourself up to more illness due to the lack of vitamins and minerals in your system.
Fat Isn’t Bad – Don’t Eliminate From Your Diet
Whenever we hear the word fats we automatically think bad thoughts. The fact is though, if we avoid fat completely, our bodies won’t function. The key is to consume the right kind of fat so if you are trying to lose weight using the single food method you might want to re-think your approach.
When grandma said “eat up” because we all need “meat on our bones” she was right. A layer of fat under our skin protects our vital organs. Fats also help our hormones function, as well as our neurotransmitters. They are an important part of the membranes of the cells in our bodies. They are also needed to absorb fat-soluble vitamins like A, K, D, and E.
Good fats include cold water fish since they are high in omega 3, plant oils like flax seed oil and hemp oil, and nuts and seeds. Bad fat includes trans-fats and saturated fats which can be found in margarine, ice cream, hamburgers, fried foods, and a long list of snacks.
In recent years the single food diet has been taken to an all new level and turned into a drink. That’s right, from a single type of food, to a mere glass of food. Hollywood made the liquid diet; consuming nothing but liquefied fruits or vegetables really popular. Again, while the drinks do have some nutritional value, they don’t give the body everything it needs in terms of vitamins, minerals and energy. Liquid diets can cause your metabolism to slow down, make you light headed, as well as fatigued.
Many people around the world still believe in the single food diet, as well as the liquid diet. If you think it’s something you still want to try; doing it under the supervision of a nutritionist and a physician is the best way to go. Think about it, you are going on a diet in the first place to improve your situation so why ask for double the trouble by experiencing weight gain or endangering your health.