Need some help shedding those Christmas pounds? Google's recent list of the trendiest diets could inspire you
Christmas and New Year are over, and empty boxes of Quality Street have been sadly binned in households across the land. Now is the traditional time for slimming down - but with seemingly more diets than ever before available, it's becoming harder and harder to choose an approach.
Luckily, Google's recently published “Zeitgeist” lists for 2013 include the US’s 10 most searched-for diets– so, if you’re looking to a shed a few pounds this January, there might be no better place to start. Just don’t try the really wacky ones. Please.
Paleo diet
The most Googled diet last year is also known as the “caveman” or “hunter gatherer diet”, because it’s based on the idea of eating what our Paleolithic ancestors would have enjoyed. So, instead of chomping miserably on lettuce leaves, paleo dieters are allowed to feast on meat, vegetables, nuts and fruits. Off the menu are legumes, dairy products and grains.
The benefits, aside from losing those excess pounds, are said to include a reduced chance of diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Of concern however is the emphasis on fat-laden meat at the expense of the whole host of good things (calcium, vitamin D, fibre and antixoxidants among them) which are found in dairy and grains. Rumours that adherents also start to wear loincloths and growl instead of speaking are unfounded.
Juice cleanse diet
If your friends and family have been wandering around with glasses of what looks like green sludge since New Year, then you can be pretty sure they’re on the juice cleanse diet. A celebrity favourite, this controversial diet involves limiting your diet to pureed fruits and vegetables for days, or even weeks. Fans say the regime “detoxes” the body and leaves dieters full of energy: critics say the diet is a fad that can actually have negative affects, such as slowing your metabolism. Still, at least you’ll definitely get your vitamins.
Mediterranean diet
n a list dominated by fads, who would have thought the good old Mediterranean diet would have snuck in at number three? Our cousins on the continent love to eat fish, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and a moderate amount of dairy, all washed down with olive oil and a splash of wine.
The diet is said to be low in saturated fat, and – according to a study last year - results in a 30 per cent lower risk of heart disease and stroke. It’s also spookily close to NHS recommendation for a balanced diet.
Master cleanse diet
For those who think a juice diet is just too easy, there's always the master cleanse. Supposedly the favourite of Beyoncé, this rather odd regime involves eschewing food for short periods and drinking primarily lemonade mixed with maple syrup and cayenne pepper (plus a nice laxative before bed). Like the juice diet, this is meant to “detox” you – but also carries a risk of fainting, tiredness and a Jammie Dodger binge the second you’re off it.
Ketogenic diet
Ketogenic diets are basically high-fat, low-carb diets that induce ketosis – a starvation state when your body starts to burn fat instead of carbohydrates. The diet first became popular in the 1920s, when it was was used to treat children with epilepsy: although anticonvulsant drugs are now a more popular treatment, the diet still appears to be significantly reduce seizures in some cases. In the form of diets like Atkins (the induction phase of which is ketogenic), it is popular with bodybuilders and dieters too.
Okinawa diet
The people of Okinawa in Japan's Ryukyu Islands have one of the highest life expectancies in the world, and their diet – low in calories but bursting with nutritional value – is often thought to be the cause. Vegetables are a mainstay, with fish consumed around three times a week, plus plenty of wholegrains, a little meat and seaweed. Rice, unusually for Japan, plays second fiddle to sweet potatoes, which are rich in antioxidants and other goodies.
Omnivore
An omnivore diet is essentially what might be considered to be a normal, healthy diet – eating both plants and meat – so quite why it’s Googled so much is a mystery. The website Paleo Movement theorises that there is a school project “that requires every English-speaking 13 year-old” to research it, or maybe a lot of vegans are having second thoughts about their life choices. Answers on a postcard, please.
Fruitarian diet
If the idea of an apple a day fills you with dread, the fruitarian diet is not for you. Followers of this regime only eat foods that naturally fall from a plant without harming it – mainly fruit, but also nuts and seeds for the more liberal. Critics warn that the diet can cause serious deficiencies in vitamins (especially B12), calcium, iron and essential fatty acids, as well as a lack of energy. Still, Apple founder Steve Jobs was a dabbler – and you certainly couldn't call him unproductive
Flexitarian diet
If you like the idea of giving up meat, but can’t resist the smell of a bacon sandwich, the flexitarian diet could be for you. Adherents try to mainly eat a plant-based diet, but allow themselves the occasion meat lapse without the guilt. Which means your hallowed weekend fry-up is safe.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/healthy-recipes/10556104/New-Year-10-most-popular-diets-to-follow-this-January.html
