How to Spot a Fad Diet

A challenge is that one might 'try' a fad diet even though they know very well that it is one. There is an inner voice in many of my patients that says "I know this is a fad diet plan, but maybe i can follow it for 2 or 3 months, lose 20-30 pounds and then I'll follow a healthier 'non diet' plan"

The key point here is that "diet thoughts" can become so hard wired in ones brain that they over ride rational thinking. Add to this a pound of despiration and we can make choices that we shake our heads at in hindsight.
Can any "ex dieters" out there attest to this?

I agree DietTired.. as with any behaviour, if we practice it enough it becomes hard-wired!

I'm a little alarmed that this article mentions "before" and "after" pictures in marketing as a sign that a weight loss plan may be 'fad'... all the other points make sense but this one does not. What does eveyone else think?

Plus it should really be made clear that a 'proper' weight loss programme has to have clinical evidence to support it. (I'm currently working with the NHS on some clinical trials of my programme - very exciting)

Best,
Pete

As a licensed dietitian nutritionist for over twenty years, the only true long-term diet is a balanced one. However, one needs to discover what types of foods best suit their needs to have a successful long-term plan.

I think for the most part, the list is pretty good, but I could change a few things. Even people who lose weight without doing a fad diet will have "before" and "after" pictures, so that one is kind of pointless. Also, some people do lose more than a pound or two a week at first when they decide to lose weight. Granted, most of it is water weight, but if you're a very overweight person that eats 3000+ calories a day, when you start eating 1800 calories a day, you're going to lose a lot of weight right off the bat.

A lot of what I've experienced with fad diets has been weird food restrictions. One diet I tried in high school had me subsisting on melba toast, plain tuna, and eggs. I lasted about a week and then I gave up and went back to eating "real food" again. Diets like that one make it difficult to learn how to eat for the rest of your life. Sure, you can slap tuna on a piece of melba toast and eat that for a couple of weeks, but what are you going to do when you want to eat different foods again? I have similar issues with any diet program that involves buying prepackaged foods. My mom and aunt are both doing Jenny Craig and they pick up their food every week and they eat that. Yes, they are losing weight, which is great. But...what's going to happen when they stop buying their "Jenny meals"? Are they going to go back to eating the way they used to? Probably. Will they regain the weight? Yeah, probably. And then they'll start buying the meals again and so the cycle continues.

I've struggled with diets for 20 years going from 39kg up to 118kg. I'm finally on a "normal" diet and am losing weight but even then I get obbsessed with food. The more I loose the more I want to loose. I wish food wouldn't be such a big thing in my life. I don't know how to stop the obbsession with food.

Personally I don't even like the word diet. Most "fad diets" are very transient. If the goals is to lose weight, expect to have slow, steady progress. Anything that happens fast (>5 pounds/week) will, in all likelihood, not last.

Anything that is a "program" is really a fad in my opinion. When my clients ask about losing weight I suggest eating half portions of all the same things they eat right now and add one extra meal per day (creating 4-5 smaller meals per day), drink half their body weight in ounces of filtered water each day, and walk for 30 minutes at least 3 times a week. When they begin to see results and start feeling better, we slowly add in things like increased fiber, more servings of fruits and veggies, whole grains instead of processed foods, more raw food, and more cultured foods. The concept is to slowly move them into understanding how and what to eat for the rest of their lives not just until they reach an "ideal" goal. This is the only way I know to create long term success and health.

You people are idiots. You can easily lose more than two pounds a week, and keep it off.

It's called a protein sparing modified fast combined with weight lifting and a reasonable and rational post diet maintenance.

OMG did someone just say 'protein sparing modified fast' and 'easily' in the same sentence!? ;-)

I agree with Spectra and a lot of others in this thread... the problem is with this idea of 'Diets'. ... Healthy bodies are the result of healthy living, and that comes from behavioural change, not Melba Toast. Sheesh!

We get it Barry you love your diet, but before you call everyone idiots you may want to actually read the post.(clue it's about spotting fad diets)

I think one of the big clues that I've noticed about fad/cult diets is there claims of finding "optimum health" only by pursuing said diet plan.

The AAFC has too broad a brush and typically has little to offer patients regarding help with weight loss.
How many of us have heard we need to “get more exercise and lose weight” as we are being rushed out of the exam room often by someone who needs to take their own advice?
Regarding the bullet points:
I agree that a pound or two of real fat loss per week is a good goal and that exercise and dietary changes are necessary.
I believe before and after photos can be helpful in encouraging others that success is possible.
Pre-made meals can be helpful with teaching macronutrient composition and portion control.
A balanced diet is important but you won’t get there using their FDA food pyramid.
Research by its nature can seem contradictory and there is nothing wrong with a simple explanation and plan if it works for you.

I've recently stumbled upon Our Lady of Weight Loss and she's been so inspiring!!

Janice Taylor has a blog on beliefnet and an ourladyofweightloss.com website . Check her out. She focuses on Happiness....which is not a fad!

There are good fads and bad fad diets. The good ones get people to actually do things that are good for them and are more lifestyle oriented.

The bad fad diets are the ones that manipulate one or two diet variables to achieve quick weight loss without addressing lifestyle issues.

This is a great post. I definitely agree with the AAFC's list. People are so desperate to look good, they are willing to compromise their health and waste their money on these silly things. I have even done it myself... I did the cabbage soup diet after a friend of mine lost 10 lbs in a week. It was horrible, I couldn't last a week and lost nothing but my will to live. And I like cabbage!
The most important thing is how you feel, not how you look. The best way to feel good is to eat healthy food and get some exercise. There is no magic cure... if it were really that easy, we'd all have bodies like Halle Berry.

I don't agree that all pre-made meal plans are bad. I was on Freshology for a few months last year, and it was all pre-made, but fresh (no frozen or high sodium food.) I lost the weight I wanted to and have been off of the program for about 3 months and haven't gained a single pound back. The pre-made meals taught me how to control my portion sizes. I have to be honest, I kept quite a few of the containers the food came in to help with my portions.

Fad diets are easy to spot...anything that has the word, "diet" in it is a fad! When you go on a diet, you cut either calories, carbs, fats, and or proteins, or a combination of all of them. Therefore, when you come off of the diet, you are adding the calories back on in some way, that the result is usually a weight gain. As a Certified Nutrition Consultant, I try to get my clients to not "diet," but to make a lifestyle change. Small changes equal big results if you make them consistent!

Great post !
I think one of the big clues that I've noticed about fad/cult diets is there claims of finding "optimum health" only by pursuing said diet plan.
Keep up posting good work.............. : )