Diets are something we all have, whether they are planned or not. Many people try to conflate dieting with regimented eating, weight loss, and, more likely than not, pain and suffering. Dietary plans are often advertised as ways to lose weight, cut fat, and look slim, but let us be clear–these are advertisements trying to sell plans.
These advertisements are not only trying to sell plans, but they are also trying to sell you on a feeling, the feeling of looking like you want to. In reality, many of these diet plans can harm your mental and physical health. Diets like these are commonly termed “fad diets,” as they go in and out of style just like every fad (think skinny jeans).
There is nothing wrong with wanting to lose weight, but it is something best done intentionally, with research and science behind it. That’s why we are going to help expose some myths commonly used by fad diets so that when we change our diets, we change them healthily.
Myth Number 1: Super Foods
Ever since kale went from being regarded as the worst-tasting green to one of the world’s most popular “super foods,” there’s been a rise in the amount of food advertised as having, well, superpowers. In reality, kale is a very healthy leaf that has tons of vitamins and minerals, and is very low-calorie. While kale is a great addition to a healthy diet, it won’t instantly make a plate full of nachos healthy (trust me on this one).
Acai berries, blueberries, quinoa, and more have all been advertised to be “superfoods,” and are all, in fact, very good foods to eat. However, this is not the reason they are being advertised. An article from Harvard Medical points this out well, saying that “the essentials are in place: scientific research on a particular food, catchy headlines from the fast-paced popular press, as well as infomercials and marketing campaigns of involved food industries…superfoods often translate into super sales.”
Yes, there are foods that are packed with vitamins and minerals your body needs to be healthy; that does not mean that they are always as life-changing as advertised. Eating foods like kale and blueberries can have great health benefits, but revolving one’s whole diet around them can lead to a lack of protein intake, nutrient imbalance, and, unfortunately, a diminishing wallet, as these foods continually are marked up for profit.
I suggest taking the advice of Harvard Medical when they say to “focus on creating a “super plate” full of different healthy and flavorful foods,” rather than “superfoods.”
Myth Number 2: Quick-Fix Diets.
It should go without saying that one day of eating, however good or bad, won’t completely change your life. Having a good diet is about healthy eating habits–patterns of eating that help us reach our fitness goals. Therefore, diets that promise rapid change in figure, metabolism, or muscle growth should be avoided.
Many quick-fix diets revolve around diet pills, juice cleanses, detoxes, “tea-toxes,” appetite suppressants, and more. These products can cause problematic symptoms, like mood changes, body pains, and sicknesses. When problems like these build up, people quit these quick fixes and any results they may have seen disappear, leaving them right back where they started.
In an article published by the Guardian, Professor Stephen Prowis, the director of the British National Health Service, gives some good advice on quick-fix diets. He says, “Making new year goals and shifting a few excess pounds after Christmas can be a good idea but is much easier to maintain when done gradually and safely.”
“It’s always a good time to try to get in shape, and new year’s resolutions are a great time to make a change, but the reality is there’s a slim chance of success with diet pills and detox teas–and people could end up doing more harm than good,” Prowis advises.
Myth Number 3: Eliminating Food Groups
One sign of a problematic diet is the removal of an entire food group from your diet. There are diets for people who cannot eat dairy, gluten, or meat, but these diets aren’t tailored for weight loss, muscle growth, or metabolic change. That, however, never stopped people from advertising them as such.
The official name for diets like these is elimination diets. They can be used at the advice of a medical professional to help find allergies, celiac disease, and other food intolerances, but are never intended to cause weight loss or significant body changes.
The Department of Health at the University of Michigan published an excellent article that discusses elimination diets and raises an important point. It reads, “Side effects from the shift can be unpleasant: constipation resulting from a low-carb Paleo menu, for instance, or diarrhea following the start of a gluten-free diet heavy with insoluble fiber — which is why a dietitian should be involved before, during and after any type of change is pursued.”
Side effects from any diet should always be considered before beginning one, as sometimes these effects can be very serious. If you are concerned about your diet, the best place to go for information is a registered dietician–not a blog, not social media, and certainly not celebrities.
Keep In Mind
Part of the reason fad diets are so popular is that they appear to be promising, that they could really change how you look and feel. In doing some research for this article, I came across dozens of ads and articles describing amazing diets that would absolutely work for me. However, most of these would fall into similar problems as the ones I’ve described above.
The most important thing is always your health. Make sure that whatever goal you have, losing weight or gaining muscle or anything else, your health remains the priority. A good gauge of your health is, well, how good you feel–feeling energetic, having regular gut health, and without too many hunger pangs. Putting all those things together usually means you have a healthy diet, which, again, is the most important thing to consider when you evaluate your eating.
