Exploring Different Diet Plans

A diet is the foods and beverages you consume on a daily basis. A diet plan is typically designed with a purpose, whether it’s to lose weight, gain weight, control blood sugar or something else.

Not all diets are the same. Some people follow plant-based or low-carbohydrate (carb) eating, while others might cut out red meat or animal products altogether. Then one also finds the opposite side of the spectrum where people only eat meat and no plant-based products.

While a balanced diet of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats and protein is generally encouraged, it’s always best to discuss it with your doctor or health care professional before embarking on a new eating plan.

Why is a diet important?

Following a healthy diet can be a crucial element in leading a healthy lifestyle, with one of the main benefits being lowering risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes or certain types of cancer and maintaining a healthy weight. Consuming a balance of mixed fruits, variety of vegetables, legumes, whole grains, lean meats and fish, can help lower that risk. Some of the unhealthy dietary practices to watch out for include a high intake of salt, sugars and saturated fats.

While the number of diets available are endless, and new ones keep popping up daily, we will be having a look only at a few of the most popular diets:

  • Limited processed foods e.g. DASH/ Mediterranean or MIND diet
  • Plant-based e.g. vegetarian, pescatarian, flexitarian
  • Low-carb e.g. banting, ketogenic and carnivore
  • Fasting e.g. intermittent fasting.

Mediterranean Diet

This diet is inspired by the eating patterns of Italy and Greece and consists mainly of filling your plate with fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, as well as legumes. It also consists of healthy fats (plant-based) such as nuts, seeds, avocado, olives and extra virgin olive oil. It includes moderate amounts of fish as protein with little chicken and limited red meat. Since this diet is rich in nutrients, it is reported to yield health benefits, including an increased life expectancy, reduced risk of chronic disease and an improved quality of life.1

A Mediterranean-style diet has been shown to have a preventative effect against cardiovascular diseases and positively influences cardiometabolic risk. It helps reduce the likelihood of diabetes and other metabolic-related conditions and lowers the risk of certain cancers.2

The Mediterranean diet represents the gold standard in preventative nutrition, probably due to the harmonic combination of many elements with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties which overwhelm any single nutrient or food item according to a review of studies.1 The Mediterranean diet is also easy to adopt due to the variety of foods included, not a lot of preparation is needed, and it is not seen as a diet but more as an eating lifestyle.

DASH Diet

The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet was designed specifically with heart health in mind. It takes a low-sodium approach to eating, and studies show the DASH diet effectively lowers blood pressure and ”bad” LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol.3

The DASH diet mainly recommends meals rich in fruits, vegetables, grains, low fat dairy meat, poultry as minimally processed and low in saturated fat. On the DASH diet, you use a chart to estimate your daily calorie needs, which are then used to figure out how many servings from each food group you should have.

MIND (Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) Diet

The MIND diet combines certain traits of both the Mediterranean and the DASH diets, while emphasising a plant-based plate and limited intake of animal products and saturated fats. So it’s both heart-healthy and again, the moderate carbs could give it a little edge over the DASH diet for diabetes. This diet contains mostly green leafy vegetables, berries and wholegrains.

Research indicates that the MIND diet may substantially slow cognitive decline with age.4 Further studies have also found that the MIND diet is associated with better cognitive functioning independent of common brain pathology, suggesting it may contribute to cognitive resilience in the elderly.5

Vegetarian (& Pescatarian) Diet

The Vegetarian diet is a terrific approach to get more plants into your eating plan, as this is what a lot of the typical Western diet is lacking. This diet includes vegetables, fruits, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds. Whereas the Pescatarian diet includes the above as well as fish and sometimes dairy. The classic vegetarian diet has generally been considered generally safe and helps to support heart health. It has also been used as a particularly healthy option for people with diabetes. Research has found that a lifelong adherence to a vegetarian diet was assosicated with a 35% lower risk of developing diabetes and those who adopted a vegetarian diet after being non-vegetarian, had a 53% lower riisk of developing the condition compared to non-vegetarians.6

A 2020 study found that pescatarians are less likely to be living with obesity and have a lower prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors such a high body mass index (BMI), hypertension, and hypercholesterolaemia (high cholesterol).7

Studies consistently show that vegetarian diets (when followed correctly and not including a lot of processed foods), are associated with a lower risk for diabetes, heart disease and less weight gain/lower weight6,7 than diets that include animal protein/meat.

Flexitarian Diet

The Flexitarian diet is perfect for people who want to reap the benefits of plant-based eating but don’t want to entirely give up animal protein/meat. It includes vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, dairy, eggs and occasional meat. This diet is also referred to as a semi-vegetarian, plant-forward diet. This diet emphasises plant-based foods (fruits, vegetables, legumes and healthy fats), dairy and eggs, and recommends less frequent or smaller portions of meat. This type of eating may have the benefits of the plant-based diets and also assist in weight management and maintenance of muscle mass. The flexitarian diet encourages followers to think about what they can add to their plate instead of having to take away foods.

Banting Diet

The Banting diet is the first of different low carbohydrate programmes and came about due to the weight loss success of a once obese patient called William Banting. Initially, William wrote a pamphlet about his weight loss journey, which is seen as the first diet book to highlight ‚low-carbohydrate high-fat’ (LCHF).

Tim Noakes adapted the original Banting diet and wrote his book version titled ,Real Meal Revolution’. The Banting diet focusses on using fat stores as fuel. Initially the diet consisted of four meals a day that comprised of protein meat/fish – and paired it with a restricted carbohydrate portion plus a fruit as a snack

or dessert.

On the Banting diet, macronutrients are distributed to induce ketosis: 5-10% carbohydrates (depending on the phase and a person’s individual response to carbs), 15-20% protein and 70-75% fats. Sugar and gluten are eliminated. Other grains are very limited, and bread, beans, butter, milk, sugar and potatoes are removed from the diet too.

Most non-starch vegetables (e.g. green vegetables) and animal proteins are included. Highly processed foods should also be removed.

The revised Banting diet by Noakes is divided into four phases. Each phase aims to lead you to a new pattern of eating. The updated version resembles the keto-diet (ketogenic diet), and continues to limit carbohydrates.

This diet is customisable and works differently for each person. You may track your food as you work through this process, but it does not depend on calorie-counting or specific carbohydrates. You can pin-point your hunger cues such as eating when you are hungry and stopping when you are full. Fermented foods are also included in this diet but the use of kombucha should be limited.

Potential benefits of a LCHF diet include: weight loss, better blood sugar control, reduced risk of heart disease, improved appetite control, and improved cognitive function.8

Cons of this diet include that it is not sustainable in the long-term, can be very restrictive and expensive as you mainly have to buy animal-based protein. Some studies conducted in geriatric- and paediatric-age groups have shown that after the first month of following a low-carb diet, long-term adverse effects have been reported.9  These adverse effects include cardiomyopathy, osteopaenia, iron deficiency anaemia, formation of kidney stones and other nurtritional deficiencies.9 Losing weight requires restriction of macronutrients (especially from carbohydrates), for a particular duration which can sometimes be long enough to cause nutritional deficienies.9 Thiamine (vitamin B1), folate (vitamin B9) magnesium, calcium, and iron, have all been reported to be deficient following the inititation of a low-carb diet.9

Ketogenic diet

This diet has been popular due to a process called ketosis.

Ketosis is a metabolic state that occurs when the body uses fat to fuel its functions. Severely restricting the amount of carbohydrates consumed, forces your body to shift to burning fat instead of its preferred option, glucose, which is a type of sugar broken down from the food you eat. The traditional keto-diet is

designed to boost this process: it derives approximately 80% of its calories from fat, 15% from protein, and just 6% from carbs.

When the body uses fat for fuel, it releases a by-product called ketones – which is a trademark of the ketogenic diet. Ketones can be measured in the blood and urine, and for the strictest adherents of the keto-diet, hitting a certain level of these chemicals made in the liver means you’re in the optimal fat-burning zone.

More about the symptoms of ketosis

You can test whether you’re in ketosis and burning fat at a higher rate with at-home test strips. However, there can also be some other, sometimes unplesant, signs and symptoms of ketosis. These include:

  • Rapid weight loss
  • Loss of appetite
  • Bad breath, known as keto-breath
  • The ‚keto flu’ can include headache and brain fog, nausea, mood swings and irritability, cramps and muscle spasms, changes in sleep patterns, increased fatique, and changes in bowel habits.

You should not adopt the keto-diet if you have a history of eating disorders or have any health conditions that affect the thyroid, pancreas, liver or gallbladder. Pregnant people and those who are breastfeeding should also steer clear of this restrictive diet. Children and teens should not adopt the keto-diet unless they are instructed to do so by a health care provider and are carefully monitored.

There is data showing impressive short-term weight loss, but most data suggest that long-term the efficacy of a keto-diet is comparable to other hypocaloric diets.10 At least part of this effect may be due to difficulty with long-term adherence to such a restrictive eating pattern. In addition, some of the weight lost during acute period of following a ketogenic diet may be related to water loss rather than fat loss.10

The keto-diet may negatively affect your health. If any of the symptoms of ‚keto-flu’ or ketosis become too intense or begin to interfere with your daily activities, it’s time to quit.

Carnivore Diet:

The carnivore diet is a restrictive dietary regimen that involves consuming only animal products while excluding all plant-based foods. The diet emphasises eating meat (beef, pork, chicken, turkey, lamb and fish), offal, eggs, and some dairy products (butter, cheese and cream), with no restrictions on quantities.

Given that the carnivore diet consists solely of animal foods, it can be high in saturated fat and cholesterol. A 2019 review study found that cutting down on saturated fat led to a 21% reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease (including heart disease and stroke).11

However, some clinical studies have shown that the link between saturated fat intake and heart disease risk may not be as strong as previously believed.12

Still, consuming high amounts of saturated fat on the carnivore diet may be of concern.13 No research has analysed the health effects of eating animal foods exclusively.13 Therefore, the effects of consuming such high levels of fat and cholesterol are unknown.13

Moreover, some processed meats, especially bacon and breakfast meats, also contain high amounts of sodium.13 Eating a lot of these foods on the carnivore diet can lead to excessive sodium intake, which has been linked to an increased risk of high blood pressure, kidney disease, and other negative health outcomes.13

Red and processed meat intake has also been linked to higher rates of certain types of cancer, including colon and rectal cancers.14

While some may find it appealing, there are strict rules, especially about macronutrients (macros). This diet is different from the keto- and paleo-diets where ‚keto’ is high fat and ‚paleo’ is high in meat but still includes greens, whereas the strict carnivore diet does not include any greens.

Intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting (IF) is currently one of the world’s most popular health and fitness trends and may help with weight loss, improved health or just simplify your lifestyle.15 Some research suggests intermittent fasting can help with weight loss and benefit brain and heart health.15 However, there are a few different ways to do it, so it’s important to choose the right option for you.

IF is an eating pattern that cycles between periods of fasting and eating.15 It doesn’t specify which foods you should eat but rather when you should eat them (even though some people still use IF in conjunction with a diet such as the keto-diet). In this respect, it’s not a diet in the conventional sense but more accurately described as an eating pattern.

Common intermittent fasting methods involve daily 16-hour fasts or fasting for 24 hours, twice per week.

Fasting has been a practice throughout human evolution.15 Ancient hunter-gatherers didn’t have supermarkets, refrigerators or food available year-round. Sometimes they couldn’t find anything to eat. As a result, humans evolved to be able to function without food for extended periods of time.15 In fact, fasting from time to time can be more natural than always eating 3-4 (or more) meals per day.

Fasting is also often done for religious or spiritual reasons, including in Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Buddhism.15

There are several different ways of doing intermittent fasting – all of which involve splitting the day or week into eating and fasting periods.15  During the fasting periods, you eat either very little or nothing at all.

These are the most popular methods:15

  • The 16/8 method: Also called the Leangains protocol, it involves skipping breakfast and restricting your daily eating period to hours, such as 12h00 to 20h00. Then you fast for 16 hours between.
  • Eat-Stop-Eat: This involves fasting for 24 hours, once or twice a week, for example by not eating from dinner one day until dinner the next day.
  • The 5:2 diet: With this method, you consume only 500-600 calories on two non-consecutive days of the week, then eat normally the other 5 days.

By reducing your calorie intake, all of these methods should cause weight loss as long as you don’t compensate by eating much more during the eating periods. The 16/8 method is the most popular and most simplest, most sustainable, and easiest to stick to.

How does IF work?

When you fast, several things happen in your body at the cellular and molecular level. For example, your body adjusts hormone levels to make stored body fat more accessible. Your cells also initiate important repair processes and change the expression of genes.15

Here are some changes that occur in your body when you fast:

  • Increase in Human Growth Hormone (HGH)
  • Insulin sensitivity improves and insulin decreases
  • Cellular repair is initiated
  • Gene expression changes in the function of genes related to longevity and prevention of disease.15

The TREAT study found that time-restriced eating in the absence of other interventions, is not more effective in weight loss and other cardiometabolic benefits than eating throughout the day.16

However, keep in mind that the main reason for weight loss is the reduction in calories. If you fast for a long period and then binge in the times that you do eat, you may not lose the weight at all. The main side effect of IF is hunger.15 You may also feel weak and your brain may not perform as well as you’re used to. This may only be temporary, as it can take some time for your body to adapt to the new eating plan.15

Fasting should not be dangerous if you’re healthy and well-nourished overall, but people who do have any medical conditions or who are pregnant, should consult their doctor first.

Diet plans to avoid

It’s advisable to stay away from any diet that:

  • Restricts calories too severely
  • Restricts entire food groups or macronutrients, like carbohydrates
  • Causes rapid weight loss of more than 2 kg per week (on average). If you lose 2 kg in the first week and none in the second week, it gives an average of 1 kg a week which is still in the healthy weight loss range.
  • Promotes the use of pills, injections or supplements that makes a lot of weight loss and health claims without being specifically prescribed or recommended by a health care professional.
  • Directs users not to use exercise or change their lifestyle together with making dietary changes.

We have to be very careful when considering a new diet plan and we need to weigh all the benefits and disadvantages. Research has shown that an individual following a popular diet plan with food alone, has a high likelihood of becoming micronutrient deficient, a state shown to be scientfically linked to an increased risk for dangerous and debilitating health conditions and diseases.17

If you have a medical condition or are taking any medication, you should consult with your doctor or health care professionals first before trying any drastic new dietary changes.

The information provided in this blog post is based on the professional opinion of Nutrifundi dietitians and is intended solely for educational purposes. It is not meant to replace professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We encourage readers to consult health care providers for personalised advice and treatment options related to their specific health concerns.

References:

  1. Martinez-Gonzalez MA, Martin-Calvo N. Mediterranean diet and life expectancy; beyond olive oil, fruits, and vegetables. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2016;19(6):401-407. doi: 10.1097/MCO.0000000000000316.
  2. Martini D. Health Benefits of Mediterranean Diet. 2019;11(8):1802. doi: 10.3390/nu11081802.
  3. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. NIH-supported DASH diet tops rankings for “heart-healthy” and“healthy eating”. [online; 4 January 2021] [Cited 14 October 2024]. Available from: https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/news/2021/nih-supported-dash-diet-tops-rankings-heart-healthy-and-healthy-eating
  4. Morris MC, Tangney CC, Wang Y, Sacks FM, Barnes LL, Bennett DA, Aggarwal NT. MIND diet slows cognitive decline with aging. Alzheimers Dement. 2015 Sep;11(9):1015-22. doi: 10.1016/j.jalz.2015.04.011.
  5. Dhana K, James BD, Agarwal P, et al. MIND Diet, Common Brain Pathologies, and Cognition in Community-Dwelling Older Adults. J Alzheimers Dis. 2021;83(2):683-692. doi: 10.3233/JAD-210107.
  6. Olfert MD, Wattick RA. Vegetarian Diets and the Risk of Diabetes. Curr Diab Rep. 2018;18(11):101. doi: 10.1007/s11892-018-1070-9.
  7. Wozniak H, Larpin C, de Mestral C, et al. Vegetarian, pescatarian and flexitarian diets: sociodemographic determinants and association with cardiovascular risk factors in a Swiss urban population. Br J Nutr. 2020;124(8):844-852. doi: 10.1017/S0007114520001762.
  8. Kubala J. The LCHF Diet Plan: A DetailedBeginner’s Guide. [online; reviewed 17 July 2023] [Cited 14 October 2024]. Available from: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/lchf-diet-plan-and-menu
  9. Nuwaylati D, Eldakhakhny B, Bima A, Sakr H, Elsamanoudy A. Low-Carbohydrate High-Fat Diet: A SWOC Analysis. Metabolites. 2022 Nov 17;12(11):1126. doi: 10.3390/metabo12111126.
  10. McGaugh E, Barthel B. A Review of Ketogenic Diet and Lifestyle. Mo Med. 2022;119(1):84-88.
  11. Hooper L, Martin N, Jimoh OF, et al. Reduction in saturated fat intake for cardiovascular disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2020;5(5):CD011737. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD011737.pub2.
  12. Siri-Tarino PW, Sun Q, Hu FB, Krauss RM. Saturated fat, carbohydrate, and cardiovascular disease. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010;91(3):502-9. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2008.26285.
  13. Streit L. All You Need to Know About theCarnivore (All-Meat) Diet. [online; updated 29 May 2024] [Cited 14 October 2024]. Available from: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/carnivore-diet
  14. Chan DS, Lau R, Aune D, et al. Red and processed meat and colorectal cancer incidence: meta-analysis of prospective studies. PLoS One. 2011;6(6):e20456. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0020456.
  15. Gunnars K. Intermittent Fasting 101 — The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide. [online; updated 3 May 2024] [Cited 14 October 2024]. Available from: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/intermittent-fasting-guide
  16. Lowe DA, Wu N, Rohdin-Bibby L, et al. Effects of Time-Restricted Eating on Weight Loss and Other Metabolic Parameters in Women and Men With Overweight and Obesity: The TREAT Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Intern Med. 2020 Nov 1;180(11):1491-1499. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.4153.
  17. Calton JB. Prevalence of micronutrient deficiency in popular diet plans. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2010;7:24. doi: 10.1186/1550-2783-7-24.

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