Different Diets: Which Ones Work and Which Ones Don't - Essay Example

Different Diets Diet is a vital element in the life of every individual since its essential for the body to be provided with the entire nutrients in a balanced and planned manner. Healthy diets that work are defined as foods containing all nutrients for the proper functioning of the body while those do not work make the body fall ill since they do not contain sufficient nutrients. The diet plans that work depends on an individual’s health condition and body. Researchers suggest that drinking water on a daily basis is one main key in maintaining a healthy living. The recommended capacity is six to eight glasses of water every day. Moreover, the combination of exercises such as walking and jogging among others and dietary plans provides good health results. The diet plans also work better if sugar, excess spices and alcohol are avoided. Therefore, the paper will seek discuss the diets that work and those that do not. Many different dietary plans that work have been proposed and in use. Volumetric, raw food, zone, low carb, 3 day diet, the DASH (Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension) and weight watcher diets among others, are some of the diet plan that have been considered healthy for the human body. Therefore, in the process of choosing the right dietary plan, the above mentioned can be recommended. Low carb diets are considered the most popular diets for individuals who want to reduce weight (Raymond 1). These types of diets require people to avoid any kind of food that is white in nature. The foods that should be avoided include: white flour, sugar white rice, potatoes, pasta and any other kind of white food that has carbohydrates as a nutrient. Consumption of white foods that have carbohydrates is believed to cause imbalanced insulin levels and may result in the development of diseases such as obesity. Therefore, in order to overcome consumption of these foods, other protein rich sources have been recommended. Eggs, turkey, tuna and chicken breasts provide protein nutrients in the low carb diet. Moreover, mushrooms, carrots, cucumber and lettuce vegetables contain little amount of carbohydrates in this type of diet and are fit for consumption. Raw food dietary plan is another recommended for the healthy living of people and has been proven to work (Raymond 1). This type of diet contains foodstuff that has not been processed or cooked in any form. According to this type of diet, uncooked foods have enzymes that play a vital role in the digestion system and ensure healthy living among people who use them. This means that enzymes die when raw foods are processed or cooked. The types of foods in this diet mostly consist of vegetables that are fresh, nuts and fruits. Coconut milk, almonds, tomatoes, sprouts, pineapples, apples and oranges among others, are some of the raw foods that ensure optimal health and fast digestion. Additionally, raw milk, cheese and raw eggs can be included in this type of diet. Whilst fruit juices can be sweetened using honey and also included in the dietary plans. The DASH diet plan is also another food combination system that has been proven to work. It has been termed one of the healthiest and the best diets because helps in the reduction of diseases like high blood pressure and heart attacks (Raymond 1). In this type of diet, healthy eating patterns are considered the main way of reducing heart related problems such as hypertension. The dash diet emphasizes on important body nutrients like: calcium, potassium, fibre and protein in order to fight these diseases. Eating of vegetables, fruits, low fat foods, whole grains and lean protein are essential in this dietary plan. People should avoid calories, red meat, sweets and salt in order to get positive results. In essence, dash diet prevents cardiovascular and heart dieses meaning it can prolong an individual’s life. Additionally, 3 day diets are normally used on cardiac patients before surgery and only limited to three days. The diet includes: vegetables, grapefruit, lean meat, eggs and no sugar is allowed. Volumetric dietary plan can also be considered to work. It is one of the diets that effectively help in the reduction or loss of body weights (Orvis 20). This type of dietary plan puts emphasis on the consumption of foods that contain low calorie levels. Volumetric diet can effectively be recommended for people who like eating too much and wish to lose their weight. Consumption of mainly vegetables and fruits works best in this diet plan. This is because these types of foods contain low amounts calories and can be eaten a lot. The types of foods that can be consumed in this dietary plan include: low fat chicken, beans, legumes and pasta among others. Additionally, foods such as cabbages can be included in the diet because they contain low calories and give a sense of fullness (Raymond 1). On the other hand, there also exist foods that do not work. These are diets that do not target a person’s behavior and eating habits hence, making them not to have optimal health. Very low calorie diets, cleanses, supplement based and delivery diets are among the diets considered not to work. Very low calorie diets enable an individual not to exceed the consumption of eight hundred calories in a day. One can only take between five hundred to eight hundred calories per day. This quantity of calories takes advantage of the human built mechanisms that is unique and based on evolution (Nolan 1). This type of human mechanism reduces the energy level of people since it is limited in quantity. Therefore, this type of type does not work because of the enough food is not consumed necessary for the body’s metabolic reactions. Cookie diets, grapefruit and cabbage soup diets are examples of foods that are very low in calories (Zelman 1). Another diet that has been considered not work is known as the supplement based diet. This type of diet involves the use manufactured pills to boost the body’s metabolic system. They do not use natural supplements to help in improving mineral deficiencies in the body or vitamins. The manufactured drugs suppress a person’s appetite, which could only last for short time periods and is unhealthy to the human body. They do not work because it has been proven that they are not effective in the loss of body weight (Owen 43). Hydroxycut and Herbal magic are some of the examples of supplement based diets that do not work. Cleanses is also another diet that has been considered ineffective. These types of diets mainly consist of diets that are liquid in nature and were mainly manufactured to detoxify the human body. It is a short term approach of losing body weight that is also not fit for the health of the human body since weight loss should be a gradual and natural process. Diet Detox, Lemonade Diet and Master Cleanse are examples of cleanses that are considered unfit for the body. Diet being a very essential to human health, it is the initiative of every person to choose the right kind of diet to use. From the above discussions there are very many types of diets that consumed by individuals to ensure a healthy living. Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension (DASH), raw food and volumetric diets among others, provide good sources of healthy living among individuals. For example, dash diet helps in preventing cardiovascular and heart related problems when fruits and foods rich in potassium, fiber, proteins and vegetables are taken in the right quantity. On the other hand, it has been noted that diets that focus on limited food groups such as cabbage soup and grapefruits, supplement based and very low calorie diets are not recommended dietary plans. Furthermore, water is also very essential elements in the diet plans people make. Therefore, balancing of recommended diets and regular exercising are the key components of staying fit or living healthy. Works Cited: Nolan, Tara. Best Health. 2014. Web. 25 April 2014. http://www.besthealthmag.ca/get-healthy/weight-loss/5-diets-that-dont-work Orvis, James. Weight Training Workouts and Diet Plan that Work. NY: Ideal pub, 2008. Print. Owen, Ruth. When the Diet Don’t Work. Chicago: Author House, 2010. Print. Raymond, The Diets That Work. 2013. Web. 25 April 2014. http://www.the-diets-that-work.com/ Zelman, Kathleen, M. Webmd. 2014. Web. 25 April 2014. http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/worst-diets-ever-diets-that-dont-work Read More