The beginning of May marks the halfway point of spring--and when many individuals begin stressing about the upcoming bathing suit season. Dieting and quick weight loss schemes increase in popularity, but as I mentioned in a post last month, overly restrictive diets can lead to feelings of deprivation, followed by episodes of bingeing and negative emotions like guilt--meaning that they can do more harm than good for your waistline.
In addition to not being able to sustain those types of diets, restrictive diets are difficult to follow and can result in a negative relationship with food. When foods are labelled ‘bad,’ those moral judgements can be internalized when those foods are eaten, making people feel like they themselves are ‘bad.’
In my next two posts, I will be taking a more in depth look at many popular diets, from the latest fad diet, to sustainable eating patterns backed by science.
Ketogenic Diet
The ketogenic diet is a very low carbohydrate diet that was developed to reduce the number of seizures in children with epilepsy, but has since gained popularity as a diet for quick weight loss.
Glucose, a product of carbohydrate metabolism, fuels the brain and body. In the absence of carbs, fat is broken down, creating ketones to fuel the body instead. The source of fat is from the foods you eat, instead of your body’s fat stores. Weight loss is, however, common but attributable to water weight since glucose is stored with water in the body, a calorie deficit caused by cutting out several food groups, and prolonged satiety from eating high-fat foods. Many studies indicate that the weight is gained back long term.
The ketogenic diet is very restrictive, which may cause constipation, decreased bone quality, loss of muscle mass, or vitamin and mineral deficiencies due to a lack of whole grains, fruits, many vegetables, and some milk products. It must be strictly followed since the body readily switches back to using carbs as an energy source. This can be difficult to sustain since this diet can be expensive and socially isolating, and you may experience the keto flu in the first few weeks since the body is craving glucose.
Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting is a pattern of eating that involves planned periods of abstinence from food and drink, in order to create a caloric deficit and promote weight loss. The types of fasts differ in severity and frequency.
In addition to weight loss, intermittent fasting has been advertised to also increase insulin sensitivity and to reduce inflammation, blood pressure, blood glucose, and total cholesterol. However, there are not sufficient high quality clinical trials to validate these claims.
While some studies have highlighted the potential for intermittent fasting to lead to weight loss, many studies indicate it is not as sustainable or effective for weight loss compared to simple caloric restriction. Other potential issues with intermittent fasting include decreased energy, irritability, cravings, hunger, and an increased risk of disordered eating.
Paleo Diet
The Paleo diet involves eating how our ancestors might have eaten. Also known as the Paleolithic, Caveman, or Stone Age diet, this eating pattern rejects modern agriculture and processing, positing that foods created from those methods have led to heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.
The staples of this diet are meat, fish, nuts, vegetables, and fruits. Foods to avoid include grains, dairy, legumes, sugars, potatoes, peanuts, alcohol, and processed foods.
As with any restrictive diet where entire food groupings are eliminated, weight loss is likely as there are fewer foods to choose from to reach your caloric needs. However, overly restrictive diets are more difficult to sustain long-term and have an increased risk of nutrient deficiencies.
Whole30
Whole30 is a short term elimination diet marketed to reduce cravings & unhealthy habits, restore a healthy metabolism, heal the digestive tract, and balance your immune system. The proposed mechanism is by eliminating foods that are considered harmful for 30 days, thereby giving the body a chance to rest, heal, and reset.
An important facet of Whole30 is strict adherence to the rules. If at any point during the 30 days you eat one of the prohibited foods, you must restart at day one, as the reset and healing has been interrupted. The creators of Whole30 oversimplify the difficulty of making long-lasting changes by punishing participants when they face hardship and shaming them saying “don’t you dare tell us this is hard.”
The most important factor to consider before trialing Whole30 is that the health claims and foods chosen for elimination are not backed by clinical evidence, and that nutrition experts, such as dietitians, were not involved in the creation of this program. Many of the prohibited foods have been shown to have beneficial health effects, and long-term elimination may result in nutritional deficiencies.
See the next post to learn about the Low FODMAP Diet, Vegetarian/Vegan Diet, Portfolio Diet, DASH Diet, and the Mediterranean Diet.
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