How are fad diets and dietary supplements an unhealthy way to lose weight?
Weight Loss Myths and Facts
Myth: Fad diets work for permanent weight loss
Fact: Fad diets are not the best way to lose weight and keep it off. Diets often promise to help you lose a lot of weight quickly, or tell you to cut out certain foods to lose weight. Although you may lose weight at first, you may not get all the nutrients that your body needs. Many people quickly get tired of diets and regain the lost weight.
Instead: Losing 1-2 pounds a week by eating better and exercising more is the best way to lose weight and keep it off.
Myth: Skipping meals is a good way to lose weight
Fact: Your body needs a certain amount of calories and nutrients each day in order for it to work properly. Most people who skip meals during the day make up for it by snacking or eating more the next meal. Studies show that people who skip breakfast tend to be heavier than those who eat a nutritious breakfast.
Instead: Eat many small meals throughout the day that include a variety of nutritious, low-fat and low-calorie foods.
Myth: Certain foods, like grapefruit, celery, or cabbage soup can burn fat and help you lose weight
Fact: No foods can burn fat.
Instead: Cut back on the number of calories you eat and be more physically active.
Myth: Natural or herbal weight-loss products are safe and effective
Fact: A product that claims to be "natural" or "herbal" is not necessarily safe. These products are not usually tested scientifically to prove that they are safe or that they work. Some herbal and natural products may be unsafe for people with certain medical conditions.
Myth: High protein/Low Carbohydrate diets are a healthy way to lose weight
Fact: If the diet allows foods high in fat, it can raise blood cholesterol levels, which increases a person's risk of heart disease and certain cancers. High protein/low carbohydrate diets may cause rapid weight loss, but most of it is water weight and lean muscle mass- not fat. You lose water weight because your kidneys try to get rid of the excess waste products of protein and fat, called ketones, that your body makes. This can overwork your kidneys and cause dehydration, headaches, nausea, fatigue and dizziness.
Instead: Follow a reduced-calorie diet that is well balanced between carbohydrates, proteins and fats. This will help you lose weight without hurting your body.
The only way to lose weight safely and permanently is to burn more calories than you consume- usually through a combination of exercise and eating less. If 1 pound of fat equals 3500 calories, you would need to burn 500 more calories per day than you consumed to lose one pound per week. Over the course of time, you could end up losing a lot of weight, and permanently.