A diet is a way of food consumption associated typically with certain restrictions. The reasons for going on a diet vary, but some of them include losing weight, cultural, religious or ethical reasons, health issues and improving general well-being. When we think of a diet, what usually comes to mind is vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free or low glycemic index diet. However, nowadays there are also many other less standard diets being created. Because of that, I would like to present to you some of the less known ones.
1. The Lion Diet
As the name suggests, in the Lion Diet you try to eat like a lion. Therefore, you eliminate all foods except water, salt and meat from ruminant animals, such as sheep, cows, and deer. This means that the diet is fat saturated and can often lead to nutritional deficiencies. Some more extreme variations of the diet involve intermittent fasting practices during which you only eat twice or three times a week, like lions do. Most people alter it and fast completely one or two days a week and eat only one big meal for the rest of the week. The main aim of this diet is to remove all nutrients that may contribute to health issues or food sensitivities. You should follow the diet until your symptoms subside and then reintroduce slowly other types of food. As a result, you should be able to identify which foods trigger your symptoms, and then you can eliminate them from your diet completely.
2. The Air Diet
The Air Diet involves eating nothing except from air. It is a way of tricking your brain into thinking that you have actually eaten a meal when you have not. The main concept is that you can prepare every meal you like, even if it is junk food, and keep it right in front of you and ‘eat’ the air above the plate. As a result, you don’t even taste the meal - you just eaten the steaming air. The aim is to lose weight, however, continuous fasting can lead to various health problems, both mental and physical, so it is better to consult a dietician before going on it.
3. The Baby Food Diet
In the Baby Food Diet you replace one or two meals or snacks a day with baby food jars, which range from 20 to 100 calories. However, the aim of the diet is not to lose weight, but rather maintain the one that you have and discourage you from overeating. The diet involves consuming usually 14 jars of baby food during a day and a full-sized dinner in the evening. Though 14 jars may seem a lot, small portions of baby food will reduce your calorie intake. Moreover, the taste of pureed baby food discourages you from eating more than a few spoons. Exercise during the diet is not required, however, it is recommended. Its limitation is that it has usually short term effects, as the majority of people start to exceed the number of allowed jars per day after they get used to their taste.
4. The Cotton Ball Diet
The Cotton Ball Diet involves eating cotton balls before each meal. In extreme cases, you only eat a cotton ball without any meal at all. The idea is that you fill your stomach, so you are no longer hungry and you don’t overeat. Cotton balls can be soaked in juices or smoothies in order to make you feel full while restricting calories. Therefore, it is easier to lose weight. Although cotton balls have no nutritional value, they can damage your digestive tract, so this diet is not recommended by dieticians.
5. The Twinkie Diet
The diet was created by a bakery manager, Mark Haub, who invented Twinkies. Twinkies are golden sponge cakes with a creamy filling. Haub believed that he could lose weight by eating nothing by Twinkies. Oddly enough, he succeeded and lost 27 pounds in 10 weeks. Twinkies have 150 calories each, so even if you eat 10, that’s only 1500 calories. All you need to do is control the number of calories that you burn and be careful that you don’t exceed that boundary. After some time Haub introduced Doritos chips, Oreos and sugary cereals to add some variety to his diet. The benefit of the diet is that you don’t need to get rid of junk food when losing weight. On the other hand, your health suffers. You overeat bad cholesterol and are at risk of nutritional deficiencies. However, according to Mark, it doesn’t matter whether he eats healthy or unhealthy when trying to lose weight, but rather pure calorie intake.
6. The Fat Black Diet
The diet was outlined by the Silicon Valley entrepreneur Dave Asprey. He believed that a 460-calorie blend of espresso, yak butter and oil would help to lose weight, boost energy and promote brain power. Asprey came up with this idea during trekking in Nepal and managed to lose 36 kg throughout the whole diet. Nepalese people have been using yak butter in their diet for years. The calorie-rich coffee contributed to euphoric feeling during a trek. Asprey brought the diet to Silicon Valley and it became popular among professionals who believed that it increased their work efficiency.
7. The Fork Diet
The diet involves eating meals that can only be prepared and eaten with a fork for dinner each night. The idea might sound a bit ridiculous, however, it has a deeper sense. The diet was created by French consultants whose aim was to change the ‘dietary rhythm’ typical for the French. French way of eating usually involves a big breakfast, a hearty three course lunch, and a light dinner. Moreover, French cuisine is rich in creamy products and meals, such as butter, cheese and chocolate soufflé. Therefore, the diet ensures that the last meal of the day includes lean proteins like fish, vegetables, starch, and grains. These types of products require the use of a fork rather than a spoon, which is more typically used for breakfast and lunch. The diet seeks to promote light, low-fat dinner, which helps to sleep better and wake up hungry for a big breakfast. The concept behind the Fork Diet seems to be reasonable as it creates a healthy relationship with food, and does not actually involve unnecessary rules. It was however criticized in the French press for the lack of sense because of the fork method of eating as it does not actually ensure that the meal that you eat is light and simple. Nevertheless, the diet became widespread especially among Parisian women.
8. Fletherism
Fletherism is a diet which involves chewing each mouthful of food at least 32 times before swallowing it. It was promoted by Horace Flether who believed that eating slowly can curb your appetite. The idea was to turn the food into a state close to liquid so that it would slip down the throat easily and would make you feel full quickly. Anything that wasn’t able to slip gently down the throat was not allowed. The most devoted participants would just spit it out. Flether also recommended eating only when you are hungry and not when you are depressed. It might seem very obvious nowadays, however, this concept was fairly ahead of his time (late 1800s). His philosophy did indeed contribute to weight loss, minimizing the amount of consumed food and facilitating digestion.
To sum up, there are hundreds of thousands of diets all around the world which might be unfamiliar to most. They prove that a diet doesn’t always simply get rid of certain products and promotes consuming others. It might be a completely innovative idea behind which stands a greater philosophy, or in some cases an unpopular belief. It often has a hidden sense that we might be even not conscious of.
Kalina Mitraszewska
References
- Martin, J. (2016). SBS. ‘The 12 most bizarre diets from around the world’
- Orenstein, B. (2011). Everyday Health. ‘Outrageous Diet Fads’
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