Here are the 7 worst diets for weight loss and your health.
1. Junk food version of the Atkins diet
The Atkins diet brand sells shakes and bars full of unhealthy ingredients such as soy protein isolate, soybean oil, artificial flavoring, and polydextrose.
2. Jenny Craig diet
This diet consists of pre-made meals and the “anytime bar” that contains soy protein isolate and concentrated milk protein. Jenny Craig pre-made meals contain synthetic starches such as potato flour, cornstarch, modified food starch, and maltodextrin.
3. WeightWatchers
This diet is based on portion control. WeightWatchers sells a brand called Smart Ones, which makes chicken pasta that contains wheat flour, wheat gluten, maltodextrin, soy protein isolates, and soybean oil—the same ultra-processed ingredients found in junk food.
4. Nutrisystem diet
The Nutrisystem diet claims to be diabetic-friendly but uses the same ingredients, such as polydextrose and maltodextrin. Maltodextrin is 185 on the glycemic index compared to sugar, which is 65.
5. Ideal protein diet
The ideal protein diet is not ideal! Wheat protein isolate is just another name for starch, which is a chain of sugars.
6. Optifast
This medically supervised diet program consists of three main types of food: shakes, bars, and soups. The first ingredient in their chocolate shake is maltodextrin!
7. Medifast
This “scientifically designed” program consists of 6 servings per day. One of their products is called the essential chocolate mint cookie crisp bar. Once again, this bar contains soy protein isolates, sugar, polydextrose, soluble corn fiber, brown rice syrup, milk protein isolates, and rice starch.
If you use these ultra-processed ingredients to lose weight, you will destroy your metabolism! These are very poor quality ingredients that do not promote health. They are the prime contributors to diabetes and obesity, yet they’re in “diet” foods.
To lose weight, consume whole foods and read ingredient lists! Just because a product is labeled “keto-friendly” doesn’t mean it’s healthy.
Dr. Berg’s Healthy Keto and Intermittent Fasting Podcast