What Is A Fad Diet

Fad Diets:  What are they?

A fad diet could mean any number of things, and it will depend on whom you ask.  Most often, a fad diet refers to diets that quickly become popular, and just as quickly lose that popularity. Sometimes though, a diet is coined a fad because it does not actually help the people who use it to lose weight, and/or proves to be nutritionally poor.

Other reasons that a diet is called a fad diet are that the diet promises a quick weight loss fix, requires the elimination of one or more food groups, or claims that sound too good to be true.

Things to look for when trying to spot a crash diet are:

·         Studies on the diet:  Are their complex studies that draw a simple conclusion?  Conversely, are there studies on various groups, which seem to ignore the difference between the groups?

·         Recommendations:  Is the diet recommended in order to help sell a product?  Is this diet being recommended based on studies which were published without review from other researchers?

·         Does the diet signal any red flags to you personally?  Does it seem possible to stay healthy, and feel full while you are on this diet?

Certain “fad” diets, like the Atkins Diet, do work.  The science behind them makes sense, but it does require you reduce your carbohydrate intake.  Although, it allows for the healthy carbohydrates, and it the reduction serves to kick your body into ketosis, which is fat burning mode.  The diet also markets products that will make the diet easier for you by allowing you to eat the things you like with reduced carbohydrates in mind.  With that, you can see that the Atkins Diet fits the profile of many of the things to look for when trying to spot a fad diet, but it does not mean that it will not work, and that it is not worth trying. 

The best thing you can do is find a diet that you feel will work for you, try to see if you can understand the science behind it, and consult a doctor about it.  You should always talk to a doctor before beginning any diet, and if worse comes to worse, follow the old fashion guideline of the food pyramid with an appropriate caloric intake.  Just because everyone else is doing a diet, does not mean you have to jump on the bandwagon too.  Do what is healthy!