Our nutrition experts recommend adopting healthy eating habits permanently, rather than impatiently pursuing crash diets in hopes of losing unwanted pounds in a few days.

Why does the AHA care about these diets?

• We want to inform the public about misleading weight-loss claims. Many of these diets — like the infamous Cabbage Soup Diet — can undermine your health, cause physical discomfort (abdominal discomfort and flatulence [gas] ) and lead to disappointment when you regain weight soon after you lose it.

  Quick-weight-loss diets usually overemphasize one particular food or type of food. They violate the first principle of good nutrition: Eat a balanced diet that includes a variety of foods. If you are able to stay on such a diet for more than a few weeks, you may develop nutritional deficiencies, because no one type of food has all the nutrients you need for good health. The Cabbage Soup Diet mentioned above is an example. This so-called fat-burning soup is eaten mostly with fruits and vegetables. The diet supposedly helps heart patients lose 10–17 pounds in seven days before surgery.

  • There are no "superfoods." That's why you should eat moderate amounts from all food groups, not large amounts of a few special foods.
    
     
  • These diets also violate a second important principle of good nutrition: Eating should be enjoyable. These diets are so monotonous and boring that it's almost impossible to stay on them for long periods.
     
• Let's set the record straight: Many of these diets falsely say they are endorsed by or authored by our association. The public should know that the real American Heart Association eating plan gives recommended servings per day of various food categories, not of specific foods. Our eating plan for those who want to maintain their weight emphasizes reducing saturated fats and trans fats and advises adequate amounts of total fat to reach a caloric level balanced with energy output or activity. For weight management or weight loss, we recommend no more than 30 percent of calories from fat. Our eating plan recommends a variety of foods, including  five or more servings of fruits and vegetables every day. It also recommends a moderate sodium intake and adequate amounts of whole grains and fat-free or low-fat dairy products.

  Any diet that gives specific menus or suggests that it be followed for a set time period isn't from our organization. Our eating plan has been carefully researched and is intended for a lifetime of use. Most important, the real American Heart Association eating plan accommodates people with diverse needs and food preferences.

  Unlike an incomplete liquid protein diet or other fad diets, a good diet can be eaten for years to maintain desirable body weight and good health. Fad diets fail to provide ways to keep weight off.

• Some major medical centers prescribe extremely low-calorie, high-protein diets for selected patients carefully monitored by physicians.  

In what other ways are quick-weight-loss diets flawed?

• Many don't encourage physical activity — for example, walking 30 minutes most or all days of the week. This helps you maintain weight loss over a long time. Physical inactivity is a major risk factor for heart disease. It increases the risk of stroke, too.
   
• Because because quick-weight-loss diets require drastic changes in eating patterns, you can't stay on them for long. People on such diets don't learn anything about permanently changing their eating patterns.
   
• In addition, many fad diets are based on "food folklore," some dating back to the early 19th century. Diets high in protein, for example, are also usually higher in fat. They have not been documented to be safe in the long term.  Ideas about "fat-burning foods" and "food combining" are also classified by the American Heart Association as unsubstantiated myths.

Despite what quick-weight-loss diet books may say, the only sensible way to lose weight and maintain a healthy weight permanently is to eat less and balance food intake with physical activity.

What is the best way to lose weight?

A healthy diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and fat-free or low-fat dairy products, along with regular physical activity, can help most people manage and maintain weight loss for both cardiovascular health and appearance. The American Heart Association urges people to take a safe and proven route to losing and maintaining weight — by following our guidelines for healthy, nutritionally balanced weight loss for a lifetime of good health.
 

This paper was written by a student in a course at Bryn Mawr College, and reflects that student's research and thoughts at the time the paper was written. Thin for Life does not officially endorse the student's viewpoints, but does believe their thoughts have validity. More than once Anne mentions that the main reason the fad diets 'work' is because they help to reduce calories. The danger with the fad diets is that they do not encourage balanced eating. We would agree with these positions.

Americans have long been plagued with the serious problem of obesity. As the country obsesses over weight loss and the newest diet plans, the population ironically continues to experience increased body fat. The basic premises to healthy living seem simple: eat a balanced diet while remaining physically active, and burn more calories than those consumed. Americans are even given specific guidelines—outlined in the food pyramid—as to the appropriate quantities of each food. Why, then, is obesity one of the leading health risks confronting Americans? It may be that the seemingly "simple" and healthy road to weight loss is actually an arduous and long-term process. It is therefore enticing to substitute sensible diets and exercise regimens with what are known as "fad diets"—diets that promise quick and easy results. These diets have achieved enormous popularity despite the copious research proving their dangers and inefficiency. The following exploration will hopefully elucidate many of the mysteries and myths surrounding "fad diets."

Although they may assert very different "truths" about human biology and resulting dietary needs, most fad diets share several common characteristics. The majority claim to provide revolutionary information and insight, but are, in fact, simply replicas of older fad diets (2). Many will posit the vast claim that a specific food or group of foods is the "enemy" and should be banned from one's diet (2). This is a myth—there is not a single product which is capable of causing weight gain or loss (2). Fad diets usually promise immediate results and offer lists of "good" and "bad" foods (5). They are usually not supported by scientific research or evidence. Rather, the information they provide is derived from a single study, or by an analysis which ignores variety among human being (5).

The popular diet commonly known as "The Zone" falls into the category of fad diets. This plan was created by Barry Sears, Ph.D., author of The Zone, in 1995. Sears' principal argument is that human beings are genetically programmed to function best on only two food groups: lean proteins and natural carbohydrates (3). He claims that the cultivation of grains is a modern development, and that our genetic makeup has not yet evolved to require such foods. Essentially, carbohydrates cause excessive weight gain and are responsible for America's obesity epidemic (3). Consumption of carbohydrates, according to Sears, stimulates insulin production—a process that converts excess carbohydrates into fat (3). He argues that America's phobia of fat has inspired a diet which is counterproductive. The solution is to substitute complex carbohydrates for fat (2). Critics of this diet argue that Sears' theory regarding insulin production is an "unproven gimmick" (4). The diet is potentially dangerous because scientific research observes a strong correlation between animal fat—which contains more carcinogens from industrial waste than any other product—and cancer (4). Sears also ignores both the problem of cholesterol and the fact that vegetarians have a smaller chance of developing heart disease and cancer (3).

A second well-known fad diet is called Sugar Busters!. This plan, created by H. Leighton Steward and associates, labels sugar as the enemy because it releases insulin and is then stored as body fat (6). Sugar Busters! demands that both refined and processed sugars be abolished from one's diet (this includes potatoes, white rice, corn, carrots, and beets) (6). The revised diet also becomes a high protein, low carbohydrate plan that poses the same threats as does "The Zone." Sugar is not, in fact, naturally toxic and it is dangerous to eliminate complex carbohydrates which are a good source of fiber (6). Again, this plan calls for the complete elimination of a certain food, ignoring the fact that the human body needs a multitude of foods to remain healthy (6). Other fad diets include Protein Power Lifeplan , (5) and Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution, which also malign carbohydrates (5). Both of these diets promote high fat foods which increase one's risk for heart disease, cancer, high cholesterol, and liver and kidney damage (5).

Fad diets are clearly extreme and often irrational plans that lack valid evidence and scientific research. Aside from being unhealthy, they are often ineffective as well. High-fat diets may promote short term weight-loss, but most of the loss is caused by dehydration (4). As the kidneys try to destroy the excess waste products of fats and proteins, water is lost. High fat diets are low in calories, causing the depletion of lean body mass with little fat loss—another reason for immediate weight loss (4). Fad diets argue that the human body responds to carbohydrates in a way that causes weight gain. If Americans are gaining weight, it is due to the quantities they consume—the excessive calories, not the carbohydrates themselves, encourage obesity. If fad diets work, in spite of being extremely unhealthy, it is because one's calorie intake decreases (The Zone's recommended diet calls for less than 1,000 calories a day) (1). There is nothing miraculous about the foods which these diets prescribe. Furthermore, these diets are extremely difficult to maintain, since they often ban certain products and require the repeated consumption of others—making long-term weight loss impossible.

A proper diet should place long-term health before immediate results. Fad diets do just the opposite—long term use of these plans may pose serious health risks. They tend to be low in calcium, fiber, and other important vitamins and minerals (2). As previously stated, fad diets are usually high-fat diets. This presents a host of dangers: increased risk for heart disease and atherosclerosis (a hardening of the arteries), and an increase in low density lipoproteins (LDL), which carry cholesterol to the body's tissues, are among the most serious (2). Furthermore, a drastic reduction in carbohydrates causes the body to believe that it is being starved (7). Continued practice of these extreme diets may cause irrevocable damage to the liver and kidneys. The liver converts proteins into the necessary amino acids, and urea and nitrogen are the two by-products of this process (7). But excessive protein in the body places great stress and overwork on the kidneys and liver (7).

The obvious health dangers posed by fad diets combined with their failure to encourage long-term weight loss would logically deter people from embracing these "gimmicks." They continue, however, to remain the preferred substitute for healthy diet and exercise plans. What is so appealing about fad diets? Our world is set up in a way that encourages obesity. Modern transportation and technology have rendered physical activity unnecessary . (1) In addition, Americans have access to an enormous variety of delicious, and often unhealthy, foods. It clearly requires great effort to maintain a healthy weight. Rather than suffering the long and difficult process required by sensible diet plans, most are content to embrace the "easy fix"—the fad diet (1). It is, after all, human nature to seek the easy route, the short cut. When someone knows one person that lost weight quickly, he/she is likely to ignore the warnings in the quest for fast results.

It is important to note that it is entirely possible for fad diets to prove effective for certain individuals. Each person's body is different, operating and reacting to certain diets in various manners. Although fad diets are, in general, dangerous and ineffective, it is crucial to note that they may work for the particular individual whose body is programmed to respond positively to such extreme constraints. Similarly, some of these diets show signs of a rational philosophy. Sugar Busters!, for example, advocates caution against sugar products. This argument is indeed valid (it is only when this plan is taken to the extreme that it becomes dangerous). This idea divulges perhaps the most significant gap in fad diet theory—that which involves the great diversity in human genetic makeup. Fad diets operate under the assumption that the body functions and responds to certain foods in a standard and fixed way. Diversity, however, is the most basic principle in human biology. What works for one person may be completely ineffective for another. The fact that fad diets blatantly disregard this most fundamental truth renders them unreliable and ineffective.

References

1)Pros and Cons of Fad Diets

2)Fad Diets: What you may be Missing,

3)Key #1 Follow The Zone Diet,

4)Dubunking the Zone Diet,

5)Popular Diets: The Good, The Fad, and The Iffy ,

6) Is the Sugar Busters Diet For You? ,

7)Protein Fad Diets: Knowledge Does not Always Alter Behavior