Liquid Diets
No one wants weight loss to be a prolonged exercise but cutting corners to achieve instant results will only end in disappointment.
Case in point: Liquid diets. While they have seen a spike in popularity lately among those looking for a quick fix, liquid diets are not a good idea if you want to achieve long term weight loss.
So, don’t be fooled by ads promising that you can drink your way to a slimmer figure by avoiding real food, and detoxify your body at the same time.
Why don’t liquid diets work?
Sure, you will lose weight quickly on liquid diets, simply because you have dramatically reduced your calorie intake by replacing meals with fruit and vegetable drinks or diet shakes, but that weight loss will be short lived.
Remember with rapid weight loss comes dramatic weight gain once you start eating normally again. This is because your body goes into starvation mode on low calorie liquid diets slowing down your metabolism to conserve energy which means you’ll just gain the weight again once you go back to solid foods.
What about the detox benefits of liquid diets?
Sorry, no benefit here either. The claim by some liquid diet advocates that they can detox the system by cleansing it of impurities is simply wrong. The body is a very sophisticated machine that has its own system of detoxifying through internal organs like the liver and the kidneys. It certainly doesn’t need a fad diet to get it to work properly.
Are liquid diets nutritious?
Not surprisingly, with liquid diets you are not getting the nutrients you need for long term good health. Side effects like fatigue, constipation, dizziness, muscle cramps, anaemia, menstrual abnormalities gall stones and hair loss are not uncommon.
Best to eat real food as part of a balanced diet. We do not recommend replacing meals with liquid diets however, if you think you need a helping hand to lose weight, try a supplement shake with added fibre before or during meals to curb your appetite. Just make sure you continue to eat a balanced diet as well.
