Fad Diets

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Fad Diets

• Kristen Strong, R.D.

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According to a recent survey

• 26 percent of women and 19 percent of men in the
  United States said they were on a diet.
• 60 percent of U.S. adults say "they would like to
  lose 20 pounds"
• http//www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/diet.fitness/01/10/
  diets.survey.reut/index.html

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America on the Scale

• Overweight Adults 65 (120 million)
• Obese Adults 31
• Children age 6-19 who are overweight or at risk
  of becoming overweight 30
• Overweight children with at least one overweight
  parent have an 80 chance of being overweight as
  adults
• Average American gains 1-2 pounds a year through
  adulthood

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Obesity Trends Among U.S. AdultsBRFSS, 2004
(BMI 30, or 30 lbs overweight for 5 4
person)
No Data 1519 2024 25
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If so many want to lose weight and need to

• Why are we failing to do so?

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Set Point Theory

• Set Point is a particular weight range your body
  fights to maintain
• Contributing Factors
• Heredity, Age, Health, and Activity Level
• Your body defends this set point by altering
• Metabolism, Efficiency in burning calories, and
  Intensity of hunger

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Set Point

• Increases with
• Age
• Chronic Dieting
• Chronic Overeating
• Long-term Depression
• Maintaining a weight above set-point
• Decreases with
• Exercise
• Nicotine
• Some drugs

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The Weight Cycling Effect of Repeated Dieting
Each round of dieting is followed by a rebound
of weight to a higher level than
before. Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg
262
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Recommendations for Healthy Weight Loss

• No more than1 to 2 pounds a week
• Rapid weight loss may cause serious health
  problems.
• Nausea, headaches, and dizziness
• Death
• Rapid weight loss is a loss of more than 1 ½ to
  2 pounds per week or weight loss of more than 1
  percent of body weight per week after the second
  week of participation in a weight-loss program
• It is important to consult a physician prior to
  beginning any weight-loss program.
• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg 261

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FAD DIETSAnyone who wants to believe in them
is forced to wonder how the thousands of
scientists working on obesity research over the
past century could possibly have missed such
obvious connections.

• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg 251

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What is a Fad Diet?

• A fad diet is a weight loss plan or aid that
  promises dramatic results. These diets don't
  offer long-term success, and they are usually not
  very healthy. American Academy of Family
  Physicians

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American Heart Association

• We want to inform the public about misleading
  weight-loss claims. Many of these diets  like
  the infamous Cabbage Soup Diet  can undermine
  your health, cause physical discomfort and lead
  to disappointment when you regain weight soon
  after you lose it

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American Heart Association

• Quick-weight-loss diets usually overemphasize
  one particular food or type of food. They violate
  the first principle of good nutrition Eat a
  balanced diet that includes a variety of foods.
  If you are able to stay on such a diet for more
  than a few weeks, you may develop nutritional
  deficiencies, because no one type of food has all
  the nutrients you need for good health. The
  Cabbage Soup Diet mentioned above is an example.
  This so-called fat-burning soup is eaten mostly
  with fruits and vegetables. The diet supposedly
  helps heart patients lose 1017 pounds in seven
  days before surgery. There are no "superfoods."
  That's why you should eat moderate amounts from
  all food groups, not large amounts of a few
  special foods

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American Heart Association

• These diets also violate a second important
  principle of good nutrition Eating should be
  enjoyable. These diets are so monotonous and
  boring that it's almost impossible to stay on
  them for long periods.
• http//www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?ident
  ifier4584

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How to identify Fad Diets

• Promise dramatic, rapid weight loss
• Promote diets that are nutritionally unbalanced
  or extremely low in calories
• Use liquid formulas rather than foods.
• Attempt to make clients dependent upon special
  foods or devices.
• Fail to encourage permanent, realistic lifestyle
  changes.
• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg 253

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How to identify Fad Diets

• Misrepresent salespeople as counselors
  supposedly qualified to give guidance in
  nutrition and or general health.
• Collect large sums of money at the start or
  require that clients sign contracts for
  expensive, long-term programs.
• Fail to inform clients of the risks associated
  with weight loss in general or the specific
  program being promoted.
• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg 253

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How to identify Fad Diets

• Promote unproven or spurious weight-loss aids
  such as starch blockers, diuretics, sauna belts,
  body wraps, passive exercise, ear stapling,
  acupuncture, electric muscle-stimulating devices,
  amino acid supplements, unique ingredients, etc
• Fail to provide for weight maintenance after the
  program ends.
• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg 253

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If fad diets don't work, why are they so popular?

• People are often willing to try anything that
  promises to help them lose weight because they
  want to look or feel better, or because they are
  worried about getting weight-related diseases.
  Companies that promote fad diets take advantage
  of this fact. They appeal to people by promising
  weight loss that's very quick and easy. Many
  people prefer to try the quick fix of a fad diet
  instead of making the effort to lose weight
  through long-term changes in their eating and
  exercise habits.
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
  Website http//familydoctor.org/784.xml

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If fad diets don't work, why are they so popular?

• Fad diets also become popular because many of
  them do work for a short time. In many cases,
  this is because when you stop eating certain
  types of food or eat special combinations of
  foods, you are getting fewer calories than you
  normally would. You are also paying more
  attention to what you are eating. However, its
  likely that much of the weight you lose is from
  water and lean muscle, not body fat. Also, most
  people are not able to keep up with the demands
  of a diet that strictly limits their food choices
  or requires them to eat the same foods over and
  over again. People who use fad diets usually end
  up gaining back any weight that they lost.
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
  Website http//familydoctor.org/784.xml

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Top 10 Fad Diets

• Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolutionby Robert C.
  Atkins, M.D.
• Mastering the Zoneby Barry Sears, Ph.D.
• Eat Right For Your Type The Individualized Diet
  Solution to Staying Healthy, Living Longer and
  Achieving Your Ideal Weightby Peter J. DAdamo,
  M.D.
• Sugar Busters! Cut Sugar to Trim Fatby H.
  Leighton Steward, Morrison C. Bethea, M.D., Sam
  S. Andrews, M.D., Ralph O. Brennan, Luis A.
  Balart, M.D.
• Eat More, Weigh Lessby Dean Ornish, M.D.
• The Pritikin Weight Loss Breakthrough Five Easy
  Steps to Outsmart Your Fat Instinctby Robert
  Pritikin.
• The New Cabbage Soup Dietby Margaret Danbrot
• The Grapefruit Dietby originator unknown
• The New Beverly Hills Dietby Judy Mazel
• Neander-Thin Eat Like a Caveman to Achieve a
  Lean, Strong, Healthy Bodyby Ray Audette

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Categories of Fad Diets

• Controlled Carbohydrates
• High Carbohydrate Low Fat
• Controlled Portion Sizes
• Food Combining
• Liquid Diets
• Diet Pills Herbal Remedies

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Controlled Carbohydrates

• Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution
• The Carbohydrate Addicts Diet
• Protein Power
• Sugar Busters
• The Zone
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
  Website http//familydoctor.org/784.xml

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High Carbohydrate Low Fat

• Dr. Dean Ornish Eat More, Weigh Less
• The Good Carbohydrate Revolution
• The Pritkin Principle
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
  Website http//familydoctor.org/784.xml

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Controlled Portion Sizes

• Dr. Shapiros Picture Perfect Weight Loss
• Volumetrics Weight-Control Plan
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
  Website http//familydoctor.org/784.xml

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Food Combining

• Fit for Life
• Suzanne Somers Somersizing
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
  Website http//familydoctor.org/784.xml

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Liquid Diets

• Cambridge diet
• Slim-Fast
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
  Website http//familydoctor.org/784.xml

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Diet Pills Herbal Remedies

• Dexatrim Natural
• Hydroxycut
• Metabolife 356
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
  Website http//familydoctor.org/784.xml

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Other

• Eat Right For Your Type The Blood Type Diet
• American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
  Website http//familydoctor.org/784.xml

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Atkins Diet Carbohydrates are bad
Picture from
http//www.faddiet.com/atkinsdiet.html
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Atkins Diet Timeline

• 1972 Dr. Atkins Diet Revolution
• 1992 Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution

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Whats the difference?
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Whats the appeal?

• Turns current diet recommendations upside down
• Eat as much fat, meat, and dairy as you like
• Ignore fruits, vegetables, and grains
• Steaks without the potatoes, ribs without the
  coleslaw, and meatballs without the pasta.
• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg 251

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Whats the appeal?

• Blame current diet recommendations for our
  obesity epidemic
• Facts
• Obesity has risen
• Fat intake has dropped from 36 to 34 percent
• BUT energy intake increased by 200 kcals a day ?
  actual fat intake has increased by 4 grams a day!
• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg 251

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Why does it work?

• Weight loss results because of a reduction in
  calorie intake
• Protein is the most satiatingpeople feel more
  full they eat less (its the calories)
• Provides a guide eliminating decision making

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What are the risks?

• Nausea
• Fatigue
• Constipation
• Low blood pressure
• Elevated uric acid
• Stale foul taste in the mouth
• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg 252

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What are the risks?

• Shift from lean body mass to fat
• High protein usually means high fat! Diets high
  in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol are risk
  factors for heart disease and atherosclerosis
• Without fruits, vegetables, and grains the diet
  lacks fiber, vitamins and minerals.
• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pg 252

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National Nutrition Month 07
American Dietetics Association www.eatright.org
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Key Messages National Nutrition Month 07

• Develop an eating plan for lifelong health. Too
  often people adopt the latest food fad rather
  than focusing on overall health. Get back to
  basics and use the Dietary Guidelines 2005 and
  MyPyramid as your guide to healthy eating.
• American Dietetics Association www.eatright.org

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Key Messages National Nutrition Month 07

• Choose foods sensibly by looking at the big
  picture. A single food or meal doesnt make or
  break a healthful diet. When consumed in
  moderation in the appropriate portion size, all
  foods can fit into a healthful diet.
• American Dietetics Association www.eatright.org

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Key Messages National Nutrition Month 07

• Food and nutrition misinformation can have
  harmful effects on your health and well-being, as
  well as your wallet. Registered dietitians are
  uniquely qualified to communicate current and
  emerging science-based nutrition information and
  are an instrumental part of developing a diet
  plan that is unique to your particular needs.
• American Dietetics Association www.eatright.org

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Key Messages National Nutrition Month 07

• Learn how to spot a food fad. Unreasonable or
  exaggerated claims that eating (or not eating)
  specific foods, nutrient supplements or
  combinations of foods may cure disease or offer
  quick weight loss are key features of fad
  diets. 
• American Dietetics Association www.eatright.org

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Key Messages National Nutrition Month 07

• Find your balance between food and physical
  activity. Regular physical activity is important
  for your overall health and fitness plus it helps
  control body weight, promotes a feeling of
  well-being and reduces the risk of chronic
  diseases.
• American Dietetics Association www.eatright.org

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Weight Loss Tips

• Emphasize nutrient dense foods
• Eat small portions of foods at each meal
• Share a restaurant meal with a friend or take
  home half for lunch tomorrow
• Make legumes, grains, vegetables, and fruits
  central to your diet plan
• Follow the Dietary Guidelines
• Eat slowly
• Limit high-fat foods
• Limit concentrated sweets and alcoholic beverages
• Drink plenty of water
• Participate in physical activity regularly
• Limit liquid calories choose whole fruits rather
  than juices, and avoid sugary soft drinks and
  alcohol
• Understanding Nutrition, 8th ed. Pgs 268-269

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Metabolism during dietingand fasting