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You read about it in magazines, see it on TV, and hear about it from your friends; diet has definitely been a hot topic of conversation for what seems like forever. Whether you are trying to lose weight, gain weight, or none of the above, there is no escaping from the word “diet” when it comes to the media. What use to be a simple chart in a triangular form that was taught in grade school has become a much more detailed and complex list of do’s and don’ts which, in my opinion, isn’t necessary to follow. Personally, I don’t encourage fad diets because most people end up not sticking with it and it only leads them to become even more insecure and hard on themselves.
Nowadays, there is a plethora of different diets that you can choose from. Depending on what your goal is, you can find a specific diet to your liking. However, the most common ones that you see in the media have to do with losing weight/fat of some sort. There are a few famous fad diets that come to mind at the moment. For example, there’s the Atkins Diet, which stresses the importance of balancing lean protein with controlled portions of fat and healthy carbs. Dieters begin with just 20 grams of carbs a day. Even carb-dense whole-grain foods are off-limits, which is actually good for the body. According to everydayhealth.com, critics say that you’re not getting a well-balanced diet and may particularly be lacking calcium.
There’s also diets in which all of the planning is done for you, such as the NutriSystem diet. All of the meals are pre-made so that dieters don’t exceed a certain amount of calories per day depending on your age and gender. The downside of this diet is that the cost of the packaged meals is expensive. And then there is the Paleo Diet, also known as the Caveman Diet. According to US News, the Paleo Diet ranks in “Best Diets” of2014. This allows dieters to only eat the foods that man ate when he first roamed the planet millions of years ago: fish, lean meats, fruit, non-starchy veggies, and nuts. That means that starchy veggies, dairy foods, grains, and processed foods are out of the question. Although this diet is rich in nutrients, everydayhealth.com reports that people say that long term results aren’t proven yet and that the diet is difficult to maintain.
All in all, there is no perfect fad diet out there. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many overweight people in the world. However, I do believe that it takes dedication from the dieter in order for them to reach their goal, which isn’t put into account/researched enough. But we are humans and there are so many bad foods in the world, that if thrown our way, we will accept it. Of course, everyone wants to be thin and healthy, but choosing to be healthy should be a lifetime goal and not a one-time thing. I am a firm believer in taking care of your body the natural way (all things in moderation, including exercise).
Most people weren’t meant to have the body of a runway model and need to accept that because depriving yourself is very unhealthy. I know this because I suffered from anorexia (which was quite a battle for me and still is sometimes) a few years ago. But through a group recovery program that I was in for four months, dieticians taught us what our bodies needed in order to sustain a healthy life. We even ate meals together and I must say that it opened my eyes to a lot of things. Now, I feel and look healthy, but the best part is that I’m not depriving myself like I was when I was sickly thin. Therefore, I strongly believe that everyone can be their healthiest selves without all this diet nonsense. All a person needs is the drive to permanently live a healthy lifestyle.
