Why Fad Diets Don't Work!
Let's get a bit realistic here and see why not.
Perhaps our real problem is the wrong definition or understanding of what a "diet" is!
Most dictionaries give this as a definition of the word diet...
DIET - diet NOUN:
The usual food and drink of a person or animal.
A regulated selection of foods, as for medical reasons or cosmetic weight loss.
Something used, enjoyed, or provided regularly
VERB:
dieted , dieting , diets
To eat and drink according to a regulated system, especially so as to lose weight or control a medical condition.
The word, DIET comes from old Middle English diete, or from Latin diaeta, meaning a way of living. In the Greek diaita, back-formation from diaitsthai, to live one's life.
In our never-ending battle of the bulge, we seem to look at a diet as a quick fix, a way to drop the weight and then get back to life as usual. In truth our life as usual is the crux of the problem! A quick fix does not work because it fails to look at all the sources of the problem to begin with.
A fad "diet" or quick fix solution may work short term, but unless we look at our "usual lifestyle' and adjust the areas contributing to our weight gain, we will just put it all back on as soon as we end the "diet." Sadly not only do we regain what we struggled to lose, but then usually add additional weight on top of it! The 'Yo Yo' syndrome could be worst than maintaining the one high weigh!
Other areas we need to address for long term weight loss include activity level, stresses, heredity, medical conditions and yes... even our emotional well-being.
We all acknowledge that true hunger has little to do with why we eat and what we eat. We know we substitute food for other things neede or lacking in our lives yet, simply thinking about examining all these areas of our lives seems overwhelming. This sense of hopelessness sets us up nicely to seek a magic cure or quick fix.
Perhaps we need to drop weight loss diet from our vocabulary and present it more clearly as the lifestyle change it needs to be.
Only when we begin looking at a diet as a WAY OF LIFE, rather than a quick fix, we will see more long term success!
Published by Debra Cornelius
My experience in nursing has given me insight into the complex arena of healthcare from both a caregiver and consumer's perspective. As a retired RN with a BS in Nursing,I have experience in both acute an... View profile
- Tips and Ideas to Help You Stick to Your DietFatty, unhealthy foods just taste too good, and their hold on us is overpowering. The trick to defeating these cravings that break our diet is to improvise; that is, add a few items to our diet that taste good AND are...
- Eighteen Diet Friendly FoodsA list and definition of eighteen delicious foods that can be part of most diet plans yet satisfy taste cravings.
- A Look at the Cabbage Soup DietThe cabbage soup diet is a fad diet that consists of eating as much cabbage soup as one desires for seven days. Supposedly, one can lose ten to fifteen pounds by the end of the diet. Specific foods must be eaton on...
- A Guide to Fat in Your DietFat is not the enemy; a healthy diet must include certain fats. Learn which fats you should eat, which fats you should avoid (saturated/hydrogenated), and how much fat you really need.
- Discover Why Some Quick Weight Loss Diets FailQuick weight loss diets are great for those who want to shed a few pounds, but if you are trying to lose a lot of weight then you need to consider the problems that arise. Knowing them will be the difference in losing...
- Are Diet Pills Safe?
- Eight Reasons Why Fad Diets Don't Work
- Fad Diets Do Work for Short Term Weight Loss
- Top 10 Fad Diets for Weight Loss
- Diet Tips for Successful Weight Loss
- Fad Diets: Teenagers Beware
- Milk and Cereal Diets Marketing Campaigns Claim Weight Loss for Women