The weight loss industry continues to boom as more and more people are searching for a quick answer to losing pounds and inches of body fat. Here is a look at the five most popular fad diets that tout claims of rapid weight loss, but also usually severely limit caloric intake as well as the type of foods that one is allowed to eat.
The Lemonade Diet
Made popular in Hollywood, the Lemonade Diet, also known as the Master Cleanse Diet, is used for shedding large amounts of weight in very short period of time. 50 calories per day is all that’s allowed on this particular plan, and dieters must only drink water with lemons, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper added to it. This fasting type of diet is used anywhere from 10 to 40 days and is said to detoxify the body and promote rapid weight loss.
The Atkins Diet
This diet named after the doctor who created it calls for the severe limitation of most types of carbohydrates. There are those that question the long term efficacy and safety of this type of diet as the body actually needs a certain amount of carbohydrates in order to function properly. During the first phase of the Atkins Diet known as the Induction Phase, dieters are limited to 20 carbs per day, and then increase that number with each ensuing level, ending with the maintenance phase which may contain as many as 60 carbohydrates per day.
The Hollywood Diet
Also referred to as the 48-hour Miracle Diet, the Hollywood Diet has gained plenty of both negative and positive attention in the last decade. This diet consists of claims of a 10 pound weight loss in just two days by eating no foods at all and instead drinking the “miracle” juice. This juice is said to contain vitamins, minerals, and a specially formulated blend of essential oils and antioxidants designed to detoxify and cleanse the system.
Much like many diets that promote rapid weight loss, most of the pounds lost are usually only water weight rather than fat, and will quickly return as soon as the dieter begins eating normally again. However, many people use this type of diet as either a temporary fix, as a way to lose a significant amount of weight in a short period of time, or to simply rid their body of the toxins that are released while fasting.
The All Liquid Diet
The All Liquid Diet features a ridiculously low amount of calories, usually only one to three hundred per day, and replaces meals with certain liquids, such as protein shakes, juices, and of course, plain water. Due to the severe caloric restrictions, medical supervision is usually a necessity for most people when following this type of diet for more than a day or two.
The Apple Cider Vinegar Diet
The scientific reasoning behind this particular type of fad diet is two-fold. Some claim that the pectin in the vinegar binds to the cholesterol within the body, and then helps to remove it before it has a chance to turn into fat, while others insist that it is effective because the apple cider vinegar causes fat to be burned for fuel, rather than stored in the body as extra weight.