Search Weight Loss Topics:

Home » Diets that Work » Diet trends through the ages and why fads don’t work – Stuff.co.nz

RACHEL THOMAS

Last updated07:57, March 15 2017

FILE

A cafe in Whangerei serves 'paleo coffee' in 2014: a long black mixed with a dollop of butter and a teaspoon of coconut oil.

"Want to lose weight fast?"

"YES" we all say in our heads, as we're paying attention to the carefully craftedsocial media post, or TV commercial.

Next come the convincing before and after shots,the guarantee on how "it's so easy",a smiling celebrity, andwe're climbing on the bandwagon.

The approachis so simple it's almost embarrassing, and yet it's worked on Kiwis for decades.

A far back as the 1930s, theEvening Post newspaper spouted 'recommendations' from the US on slimming: two weeks of bananas and skimmed milk, followed by two weeks of whatever you like.

123RF

The lemon detox diet soared in popularity after it was revealed Beyonce used it for rapid weight loss for her role in the 2006 film, Dreamgirls.

Around that time, we also hailed smoking as a way to combat weight gain, ignoring mounting evidence about its health effects untilthe 1950s.

Looking back, it all seems so obvious. Smoking is bad for our health. Sugary drinks aren't good for us.

But fast forward to 2017and we still market sugar to children, we still get sucked in by celebrity weight loss stories, and we're still buying diet soda.

Perhaps the most influentialdiet of them all was one thatpeaked in the last decade, with a little help from Instagram filters and hipsters: paleo.

Arguably, paleoisn't restrictive enough to be labelled a fad,but the diet undoubtedlybecame trendy, peaking in popularity about 2013.

Itcoastedoff the movement towards clean eating, encouraging people to switch out grains and dairy for protein.

Shortly before paleo arrived, thelemon detox diet promoted rapid weight loss through consuming nothing but lemon water, with cayenne pepper and a sugary syrup for 10 days.

Although widely condemned by health professionals, the lemon detox diet is still marketed to anyone"looking for maximum weight loss in a short period of time," according to a New Zealand website which sells lemon detox kits.

Written online testimonials, including one from a 15-year-old,boast fast results,feelings of exuberance and glowing skin.

However, one nutritionist and UK registered dietitian,SiobhanMiller, says "fad diets just don't work".

"Fad dietsmight help you lose weight, until you get fed-up, start over-eating and choose less healthy foods and pile the pounds back on."

Miller emphasised the damaging long-term effects thatquick-fix, drastic dietscando to our bodies.

"Rapid weight loss is not sustainable and yo-yo dieting - where weight is lost and then regained over the years - leads to being heavier than when you first started.

"A very restrictive diet of any kind is most likely to be lacking in essential nutrients."

The tried-and-true celebrity endorsement should be taken with a grain of salt, she said.

"Remember that celebrities are not experts in nutrition and have limited knowledge of nutrition so don't be sucked in by fantastic claims."

Excess weight creepedup over many years, so we hadto give our bodies time to adjust to weight loss, she said.

"It's not a surprise that when someone feels the urge to tackle weight they look for a quick fix. [But] there is no magic bullet and weight is not going to be lost quickly."

All this noise just addedto the confusion about what and how we weresupposed to eat, Tauranga dietitian Fiona Boyle said.

"You have got to think of what you could sustain. Could you see yourself doing it in sixmonths, or sixyears?

"Lookat the whole picture."

HOW DOYOU SPOT A FAD DIET?

The Association ofUK Dietitians defines afad diet as:the kind of plan where you eat a very restrictive diet with few foods or an unusual combination of foods for a short period of time and often lose weight very quickly.

-Stuff

Continued here:
Diet trends through the ages and why fads don't work - Stuff.co.nz

Your Full Name
Your Email
Your Phone Number
Select your age (30+ only)	30313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120
Select Your US State	Select Your StateAlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWashington,DCWest VirginiaWisconsinWyoming
Program Choice	Select Your ProgramInjectable HGHInjectable TestoteroneInjectable SermorelinInjectable Weight LossInjectable HCG DietInjectable Vitamins
Confirm over 30 years old	Yes
Confirm that you resident in USA	Yes
This is a Serious Inquiry	Yes
Message:

Home » Diets that Work » Diet trends through the ages and why fads don’t work – Stuff.co.nz