How to recognize a harmful diet

Nowadays, many types of diets are circulating that under the attractive name of promise fast and effortless weight loss, but are they really safe and adequate?

• Usually when we stop miracle diets, more kilos are recovered than those lost; It is the well-known “rebound effect” phenomenon.
• We must be wary of diets that are based on eating only one food, that offer very rapid weight loss or that recommend fasting as they are detrimental to health.
• The Spanish Society for the Study of Obesity (SEEDO) recommends reducing between 0.5 and 1 kg of weight a week as a maximum.

Rebound effect

Most miracle diets are not recommended. We must distrust them since they all have in common the lack of scientific rigor, as well as the deficiency of essential nutrients that can lead to health problems. In addition, usually when leaving them, more kilos of those lost are recovered, the well-known “rebound effect” phenomenon.

A diet hurts you if ...

It is based on the intake of a single food: Diets of, of, of papaya ... are diets that in addition to being boring and monotonous are completely unbalanced and can cause digestive disorders.

Has a low or very low caloric value:

They are usually very low-calorie diets (they provide between 400 and 1200 Kcal / day), so their continued monitoring can cause a dietary imbalance and nutritional deficits, gastrointestinal disorders, dizziness, hair loss, anxiety, insomnia, irritability ...

It is poor in carbohydrates

They promise quick results from the exclusive consumption of protein and fatty foods, eliminating or limiting as much as possible foods rich in carbohydrates (rice, wheat or corn and their derivatives such as pasta or bread, potatoes, legumes, vegetables and fruit). This type of diet causes cytogenesis (oxidation of fats and of some amino acids for energy) producing rapid weight loss but with important side effects such as: bone decalcification and kidney damage due to excess nitrogen, fatigue, nausea, halitosis, headaches, insomnia , dizziness, dehydration, constipation, loss of muscle and visceral protein, increased levels of cholesterol, triglycerides and uric acid, with the consequent.

It hardly provides protein:

Unlike the previous ones, these limit protein foods (dairy, meat, fish, eggs and their derivatives) and fats (oils, margarines ...) and are based on the almost exclusive consumption of cereals and fruit. In addition to being unbalanced, the excessive intake of fiber reduces the absorption of nutrients, causing at the same time intestinal disorders such as diarrhea, abdominal cramps and flatulence. In addition to the loss of muscle and visceral mass, these diets are characterized by lowering of blood pressure and possible.

It is dissociated:

These are diets based on avoiding mixing different nutrients in the same food. This concept is unrealistic since there are no “pure” foods in nutrients, which only contain carbohydrates or only proteins or fats. Foods combine different nutrients in different proportions. Even so, this type of diet does not pose a health risk if food from all groups is eaten throughout the day. The consequence appears when abandoning the diet since it is monotonous and it is not feasible to eat "forever" in a dissociated way. Then, when you return to the usual diet, there is usually an increase in weight. It offers a very fast weight loss: they are very low in calories and deficient in many nutrients. The Spanish Society for the Study of Obesity (SEEDO) recommends reducing between 0.5 and 1 kg of weight a week as a maximum. With more abrupt weight loss, muscle mass is lost, contrary to what is recommended in healthy weight loss, which seeks to lose fat mass while preserving muscle mass to the maximum.

Recommend fasting:

There is a popular belief that skipping some daily intake makes you lose weight more easily. The kilos that can be lost while fasting correspond mainly to water and muscle protein, and not to fat, which is harmful in excess weight.

If it is a generic diet and / or is not supervised by a specialist:

Any diet must be adapted to the needs of the person. You can make the mistake of choosing an inappropriate diet with the consequent nutritional deficit or "rebound effect". Also, the diet that serves one person does not have to work for another. That is why it is important to put yourself in the hands of nutrition experts. For all this, attention. The time is beginning when magazines, websites, friends ... will bombard us with miracle diets. Do not make the mistake of choosing one of them, now you have the keys that will make you distrust. And remember, before going on a diet, contact a specialist who will assess your specific characteristics and adapt the diet to your real needs.