Fad Dieting Essay

The concept of fad dieting has become a popular trend over the past few years. Particularly, in the United States of America, fad dieting has become a sort of Holy Grail for many Americans. The question of whether fad dieting is, in fact, effective in initiating rapid weight loss remains debatable to date. There are those who stand religiously by the concept of fad dieting; whereas there are those who adamantly oppose it as being ineffective and causing more harm than necessary. The fact remains that fad dieting is a major component of the American society’s popular culture. The aim of this paper is to comprehensively analyze the issues of fad dieting and their impact on the America society.

Overview

A fad diet denotes a diet that makes the

According to Taegozs , fad diets are dangerous and risky and hardly offer long-term effectiveness in their outcomes. Usually, many people lose the weight only to gain it and even add more. “Fad dieting helped me go from a size 14 to a size 12, back to a size 16”. Indeed, many arguments assert that fad diets are not long term solutions. Regarding the dangers of fad diets, it has been established that they cause people to lose much-needed water and calories that have necessary body nutrients. “Most of these diets are low in calories and deprive the body of certain nutrients, generating a metabolic imbalance that can be detrimental to health”.

From a general perspective, fad diets enhance poor weight control over the long term. People are more focused on quick weight loss that they fail to learn and develop proper eating plans that would be useful perpetually. Additionally, there is an enhanced risk of developing chronic diseases such osteoporosis, high blood pressure, cancer, and congestive heart failure. Several fad diets remove or limit the intake of whole grains, dairy products, vegetables, and fruits, which are all useful in preventing several chronic

Diets that substantially reduce the intake of carbohydrates often reduce the energy supplies of the body and enhance the symptoms of fatigue. Carbohydrates are crucial for energy supply. A significant reduction in carbohydrates in the body reduces the overall body performance. Subsequently, ketosis is another risk . Ketosis is a metabolic condition that portrays high levels of ketone bodies in the tissues of the body. Ketosis is prominent in medical conditions like diabetes. More importantly, it can result from a diet that has extensively low carbohydrates.

In the American society, fad diets have been widely adopted more than any other place in the world. Particularly among young women and teenage girls, the prospect of eating unhealthy in order to lose weight has a certain unprecedented appeal. Regardless, about 95 percent of individuals who lose weight through fad diets often gain it back and more within a span of five years . Presently, the confusion surrounding fad diets has gripped about twenty five percent of Americans.