Doctors Explain What Happens To Your Body When You Follow Fad Diets

These days, it's hard to start your weight loss journey without reading about the next magical diet. You may be looking for a fast way to lose weight and there's no shortage of "fad diets." These "diets" may provide short-term results, but they are difficult to sustain and, ultimately, they deprive you of the essential nutrients that only balanced eating can offer. To learn more about the detrimental health effects of following fad diets, we spoke with Daniel Boyer, a resident medical doctor of the Farr Institute, and Kevin Huffman, a medical doctor, and founder of Ambari Nutrition. They agree that not only can fad diets actually lead to weight gain, but they can also leave you sicker and weaker than ever.

First, let's determine what fad diets are. Boyer says, "Fad diets are dietary patterns that quickly become popular because of their promise of easy weight loss. Since it consists of very restrictive dietary changes, results are easily seen." That's why many people are tempted to lose weight by following simple fad diets that promise quick results—especially since they're so often normalized by celebrities.

"Fad diets are temporarily popular eating plans that promise incredible weight loss within a short period. They are often extremely restrictive and involve removing entire food groups from one's diet. There's usually little if any, scientific evidence to support the claims made by the proponents of fad diets. Also, any weight loss results realized in the short term are quickly lost as it's nearly impossible for people to stick to these restrictive eating plans," Huffman explains. Many popular fad diets can also cause mild to severe health effects because they involve cutting out sources of certain nutrients from one's diet or the excessive consumption of a particular food.

Boyer warns that a popular, yet incredibly dangerous, fad diet is the cotton ball diet. "The cotton ball involves dipping cotton balls in beverages such as water and fruit juices. These fruit juices will supply the nutrients needed by the body while the cotton balls are meant to make you feel full. This is a very dangerous diet as some cotton balls contain plastic polymers, thereby you are ingesting plastic with it, which can be very dangerous to the body," he informs.

Huffman adds the cabbage soup diet, the five-bite diet, and juice cleanses are other examples of fad diets that are actually bad for weight loss and your health. "The cabbage soup diet entails consuming fat-free cabbage soup three times a day while avoiding other types of food. It might result in the shedding of a few pounds but this extremely low-calorie diet lacks essential carbs, healthy fats, and proteins, which can result in nutrient deficiencies, severe fatigue, and muscle loss," he explains.

Similarly, juice cleanses involve excessive consumption of a particular food group. "Juice cleanses might be a good source of essential minerals and vitamins, but they also tend to be low in both fiber and protein, which are essential for sustainable weight loss," Huffman warns. "They also usually have high sugar content, which can interfere with your body's insulin and glucose sensitivities, while disrupting your metabolism." And, you're also likely to lose muscle instead of fat because of the low protein content of these cleanses.

The five-bite diet involves skipping breakfast, and then only taking five bites of food for lunch, and five bites for dinner. "You can essentially eat anything you like when on this diet, but eating only ten spoons of food a day can lead to heart palpitations, impaired immune function, cognitive impairment, muscle loss, and issues with your metabolism," he adds. Yikes!

Following fad diets like the ones listed above can make you sick. Boyer says, "It can stress out your body so you might initially see results. However, you might end up with a lot of complications with your internal organs, making you sicker than before."

When it comes to the best way to lose sustainable weight, Huffman says it's essential to practice balance and moderation with the food that you eat. "Consume foods rich in fiber and healthy proteins like whole grains, beans, vegetables, and fruits, and minimize your intake of processed foods, and sugary drinks. You should also increase your level of physical activity and drink sufficient amounts of water each day to promote sustainable weight loss," he notes.

At the end of the day, even though it can be tempting to fall for a weight loss plan that promises "quick" and "magical" results, they often only provide temporary effects. And, some common fad diets can actually lead to detrimental health effects like weakness, fatigue, nausea, headaches, constipation, bloating, dehydration, heart issues, and more. So, that's why it's best to just avoid fad diets if you want to lose weight—your body will thank you for it!