How to Rate Fad Diets

It seems as if every week, there is a new diet that claims to be the definitive program to help you lose weight and keep it off forever. Whether they call for fasting or advocate exclusively consuming one miracle food or beverage, fad diets are often based on pseudoscientific evidence. Sorting through the various options can be difficult for the novice dieter and therefore, it is important to have a framework from which to work.

Instructions

• 1

  Ask yourself, "Does this program sound too good to be true?" Often, your initial instinct about a diet turns out to be accurate. If the diet sounds unreasonably promising, it is probably not worth considering.

• 2

  Determine if the diet emphasizes eating a particular food in excess. Many fad diets promote consuming a "miracle" food that is purported to speed up weight loss, while advocating the elimination of other food groups. While eliminating certain calorie-rich foods and drinks is common advice for losing weight, the best weight loss plans advocate maintaining a reasonable balance in your diet and encourage consuming healthy foods from each food group. If a diet advocates balance in eating, it is likely valid.

• 3

  Ask yourself if the diet guarantees significant and unrealistic weight loss in a short period of time. Some diets make overinflated, blanket statements about the amount of weight followers are guaranteed to lose in a specified period, especially in the first few weeks. Weight loss results will typically vary between individuals, however. Any diet that makes absolute guarantees about results should be viewed with a skeptical eye.

• 4

  Decide if the diet emphasizes adopting a long-term healthy lifestyle mentality. The most valid weight loss plans are those that advocate proper lifestyle changes that continue after reaching your goal weight, while fad diets often stress short-term solutions. If you cannot make a diet work in your life after you have lost weight, it is best to find a more suitable one.