10 Diet Fads That Actually Work

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Chances are, you’ve heard dozens if not hundreds of different ways to lose weight. It seems to be almost everyone’s goal, and some folks will go pretty far to achieve it.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of diet fads that promise you your dream body and optimal health but fall flat on delivering. Some of these can even be dangerous and unhealthy.

Fortunately, there are some popular diets out there that can truly help you to lose weight without giving up essential nutrients.

What Is a Diet Fad?

A diet fad is simply a popular diet that promises fast and easy weight loss. They are often unhealthy as many of them restrict certain nutrients in the name of slimming down.

While there are many out there that are unhealthy, not all diet fads are bad news.

Diet Fads That Actually Help

What is it about these diets that make them better than your average empty promise to lose pounds effortlessly?

These 10 diets have actually been proven to make a difference and are scientifically sound. They are more well-balanced and healthy than most drastic calorie-restrictive fads.

1. The Keto Diet

The Keto Diet is essentially a low-carb diet with an emphasis on healthy fats. These healthy fat compounds are named ketones. 

Following this plan lowers insulin levels and shifts your body away from using sugar as fuel. This helps reduce inflammation and eases weight loss.

2. The Mediterranean Diet

This diet may not be considered a traditional fad diet, but it has become exceptionally popular recently.

There have been numerous studies done that conclude it is one of the healthiest, if not the healthiest diet around. It is especially helpful for those with heart disease, high risk of stroke, and diabetes.

It is essentially just following what people traditionally ate in the Mediterranean. Include things like olive oil, fresh fish, nuts, lean meats, vegetables, and whole grains.

3. The Atkins Diet

For a long time, it felt like the Atkins diet was the only diet around. It was wildly popular in the early 2000s. It’s basically a very low carb diet, and it can truly help you lose weight. 

Unlike the Keto diet, the Atkins diet is broken down into 4 stages. The introductory phase is severely limited carbohydrates. After this, you gradually add more carbs, keeping track of your weight to see what the right levels of carb intake are for you in order to lose weight and keep it off.

4. The Intermittent Fasting Diets

Intermittent fasting has long been proven to help shed pounds. It also has a number of other benefits like improving energy levels and brain function.

The key is to limit your eating to a certain window of time, whether only for certain hours of the day or only certain days of the week. A very popular one is to fast for 16 hours and eat only during an 8 hour period.

5. The Vegan Diet

The Vegan diet is an ethical and effective diet, but it does have some drawbacks. Critics see the diet as being too restrictive as you can’t consume any animal products whatsoever on this plan.

It depends on what foods you choose to eat on the diet, but if you stick to whole fruits and vegetables, there is a good chance you are going to lose weight and keep disease away. Simply avoiding dairy and meat won’t help you if you’re downing sodas and overloading on sugary treats.

6. The Dukan Diet

This is another low-carb, high-protein diet broken up into different phases. Most of what you eat on this diet is exclusively lean meats and fiber supplements like oat bran.

Since it is so restrictive, eliminating fat and carbs for the most part, it may not be the best long-term diet plan. It can, however, help you lose weight quickly.

7. The South Beach Diet

The South Beach diet was created by a cardiologist hoping to help his patients lose weight in a healthy way. This diet is low-fat and low-carb while promoting high protein levels in your diet. 

There are three stages to the diet, starting off restricting what you can eat more heavily and gradually easing up. It can be restrictive but will help you lose weight.

8. The Paleo Diet

This diet began in an attempt to eat like our ancestors did, consisting predominantly of meat, fruits, and vegetables. Things like dairy, legumes, and grains are discouraged as they are considered to be new to the human diet. 

Eating whole foods is the goal, and it has been shown to be effective in promoting weight loss. It can even help lower blood pressure and cholesterol, most likely due to the nature of avoiding processed foods for more healthy whole options.

9. The Zone Diet

This biochemist designed diet is based on a specific ratio for where you get your calories. According to the Zone diet, you need to eat 30% healthy fats, 30% lean protein, and 40% high-fiber carbs.

When you eat what is also strictly regimented and broken up into snacks and meals throughout the day. It’s been shown to reduce inflammation, which may be one of the key reasons that you do lose weight on this diet.

10. The DASH Diet

The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet was created to help lower blood pressure. Lowering your salt intake can help keep your blood pressure at normal levels. 

Making sure you get the right amount of vitamins also plays a part in this plan. While this diet certainly can help lower your blood pressure and keep your heart healthy, it can also provide a smart way to shed some pounds.

Explore Effective Fad Diets

While there are many diet fads out there that don’t produce promised results, there are also many popular diet trends that can really help you lose weight. Use common sense and seek out healthy, balanced diets to help you keep off unwanted pounds.

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