Red Flags to Help you Recognize it When you See It

Many people fall victim to trends and fad diets when they’re trying to improve their health without the realization that it can do more harm than good in the long run-both mentally and physically. My approach to improving your health through diet is one focused on self care. It starts with awareness of where you are and where you want to go, education, and aligned action steps with accountability and continual self reflection. The truth is, eating healthy foods doesn’t have to be complicated, but it can take effort to really dive into your patterns and create lasting change. There is no one-size-fits all to what you should eat. There is no “right” way. You know your body better than any program out there. The key is learning how to listen to it and work with, rather than against it. So let's explore some signs that a program or recommendations may be a fad diet. 

Black and white thinking patterns:

If you’ve labeled foods as good and bad, this is a sign of fad diet mentality. All foods can fit. Yes, we may need to eat more of some than others, but completely depriving yourself of certain foods or food groups, can create a restrictive/ binge cycle followed by weight cycling also known as yoyo dieting when you reintroduce “forbidden” foods because you haven’t learned how to let yourself enjoy them in moderation. In addition, this can also create guilt around eating the “bad”  foods which starts to hurt your self-confidence and leads to an all or nothing mentality. 

Rigid plans:

Sometimes there is an appeal to this. You are told exactly what to eat and don’t have to think about it. To top it off, you may even lose weight. What's the problem? The problem is, you’re out of touch with listening to your body. You’re trusting a program to tell you when and what to eat without exploring what really works for you. When you get burnout from doing this, and go back to your old patterns, you’re left feeling like you just weren’t motivated enough-that you don’t have enough willpower when, in reality, it’s just because you haven’t really changed your habits, you’ve just forced a drastic change upon yourself. 

Promise of rapid weight loss:

Diets that promise rapid weight loss are relying on one of two or both things. Those are one- extremely restricting calories or two- losing water weight from dehydration or eliminating carbohydrates. The issue with this is, very low calorie diets put your body in starvation mode. You may lose fat but you will also likely lose muscle because you are not taking in the energy needed to power the basic functions and our bodies are smart. They will do what is needed to power the essential systems even if it costs you some muscle mass and slows your metabolism. If the diet is relying on ketosis and very little carb intake, the initial weight loss is water weight. In addition, excessive high protein/fat foods, especially those from animal sources, can be damaging to your cardiovascular health, increase the risk of certain cancers, decrease bone mineral density, impair kidney function, cause deficiencies in certain vitamins and minerals, be constipating, and can decrease diversity of the gut microbiome. 

Selling something:

If a program requires you to buy a certain product, they may not have your best interest at heart. There is no miracle solution or product that you need to do this. If you are told to buy a certain product for best results, ask yourself, what their motives may be. 

Sounds scientific but is lacking solid evidence:

This one can be tricky because some of the most convincing lies are mixed with truths. Fad diets will promote the benefits while overlooking the downside because they are biased. For instance, yes you may lose weight by following it, but at what cost, what are the side effects- immediate and long term? Have you really changed your patterns in a sustainable way that will be adaptable to all of life’s situations? If you look hard enough, you can provide “evidence” for almost anything you want to. The best advice here is to check the sources, check the other point of view. Question things that sound “too good to be true.”

With all this being said, achieving your goals and finding a healthy path for you doesn’t have to be hard but it will require you to be intentional with your choices, aware of your habits, and committed to progress and self care. Having someone on your side to educate based on science, help you discover your patterns, guide you to a sustainable plan, provide accountability and encouragement through your journey is an invaluable resource and I’d love to help!

Victoria Chouklina, RDN