The paleo diet claims that you should eat the same foods that your hunter-gatherer ancestors ate before agriculture developed. The theory is that most modern diseases can be linked to the Western diet and the consumption of grains, dairy, and processed foods.While it’s debatable whether this diet really provides the same foods your ancestors ate, it is linked to several impressive health benefits. How it works: The paleo diet emphasizes whole foods, lean protein, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and seeds, while discouraging processed foods, sugar, dairy, and grains.Some more flexible versions of the paleo diet also allow for dairy like cheese and butter, as well as tubers like potatoes and sweet potatoes.
The vegan diet restricts all animal products for ethical, environmental, or health reasons.Veganism is also associated with resistance to animal exploitation and cruelty. How it works: Veganism is the strictest form of vegetarianism.In addition to eliminating meat, it eliminates dairy, eggs, and animal-derived products, such as gelatin, honey, albumin, whey, casein, and some forms of vitamin D3.
Low-carb diets have been popular for decades — especially for weight loss.There are several types of low-carb diets, but all involve limiting carb intake to 20–150 grams per day.The primary aim of the diet is to force your body to use more fats for fuel instead of using carbs as a main source of energy. How it works: Low-carb diets emphasize unlimited amounts of protein and fat while severely limiting your carb intake.When carb intake is very low, fatty acids are moved into your blood and transported to your liver, where some of them are turned into ketones.Your body can then use fatty acids and ketones in the absence of carbs as its primary energy source.
The Dukan diet is a high-protein, low-carb weight loss diet split into four phases,two weight loss phases and two maintenance phases.How long you stay in each phase depends on how much weight you need to lose. Each phase has its own dietary pattern. How it works: The weight loss phases are primarily based on eating unlimited high-protein foods and mandatory oat bran.The other phases involve adding non-starchy vegetables followed by some carbs and fat. Later on, there will be fewer and fewer pure protein days to maintain your new weight.
An ultra-low-fat diet restricts your consumption of fat to under 10% of daily calories.Generally, a low-fat diet provides around 30% of its calories as fat.Studies reveal that this diet is ineffective for weight loss in the long term.Proponents of the ultra-low-fat diet claim that traditional low-fat diets are not low enough in fat and that fat intake needs to stay under 10% of total calories to produce health benefits and weight loss. How it works: An ultra-low-fat diet contains 10% or fewer calories from fat. The diet is mostly plant-based and has a limited intake of animal products.Therefore, it’s generally very high in carbs around 80% of calories and low in protein at 10% of calories.
The Atkins diet is the most well-known low-carb weight loss diet.Its proponents insist that you can lose weight by eating as much protein and fat as you like, as long as you avoid carbs.The main reason why low-carb diets are so effective for weight loss is that they reduce your appetite.This causes you to eat fewer calories without having to think about it How it works: The Atkins diet is split into four phases. It starts with an induction phase, during which you eat under 20 grams of carbs per day for two weeks.The other phases involve slowly reintroducing healthy carbs back into your diet as you approach your goal weight.
The HCG diet is an extreme diet meant to cause very fast weight loss of up to 1–2 pounds (0.45–1 kg) per day.Its proponents claim that it boosts metabolism and fat loss without inducing hunger.HCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) is a hormone present at high levels during early pregnancy.It tells a woman’s body it’s pregnant and maintains the production of hormones that are important for fetal development. It has also been used to treat fertility issues. How it works: The diet is split into three phases. During the first phase, you begin taking HCG supplements.During the second phase, you follow an ultra-low-calorie diet of only 500 calories per day, along with HCG supplement drops, pellets, injections, or sprays. The weight loss phase is prescribed for 3–6 weeks at a time.In the third phase, you stop taking HCG and slowly increase your food intake.
The Zone Diet is a low-glycemic load diet that has you limit carbs to 35–45% of daily calories and protein and fat to 30% each.It recommends eating only carbs with a low glycemic index (GI).The GI of a food is an estimate of how much it raises your blood glucose levels after consumption. The Zone Diet was initially developed to reduce diet-induced inflammation, cause weight loss, and reduce your risk of chronic diseases How it works: The Zone Diet recommends balancing each meal with 1/3 protein, 2/3 colorful fruits and veggies, and a dash of fat — namely monounsaturated oil, such as olive oil, avocado, or almonds.It also limits high-GI carbs, such as bananas, rice, and potatoes.
Intermittent fasting cycles your body between periods of fasting and eating.Rather than restricting the foods you eat, it controls when you eat them. Thus, it can be seen as more of an eating pattern than a diet. How it works: Intermittent fasting is commonly used for weight loss because it leads to relatively easy calorie restriction.It can make you eat fewer calories overall — as long as you don’t overcompensate by eating much more during the eating periods.