This article was meant to be an overview of the most popular diets for 2024. You know the ones – Mediterranean, Paleo, Keto, Dash (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) and the most talked about newcomer on the block – intermittent fasting.
And while some diets such as Dash (low in red meat, salt, added sugars and fat with an emphasis on fruit and vegetables and lean protein) are backed up by scientific studies to support their use for medical reasons, many diets force people to change their eating habits so drastically that they can’t keep it up.
One 2020 review of popular diets in the British Medical Journal found that while many restrictive diets resulted in modest weight loss after six months, the weight loss diminished at 12 months.
Interestingly, many Irish dieticians advise people to say no to dieting. So, read on to devise your bespoke simple rules for healthy eating instead.
The first thing to keep in mind is that, although you might have gained a few pounds over the Christmas period, January is just about the worst month to deprive yourself of nutritious food as cold dark mornings and back-to-work blues will tempt even the most determined dieters into tasty treats to lift their mood.
[ Healthy plant-based diet can eliminate many type 2 diabetes cases, study finds ]
Dietician Sarah Keogh of Eatwell advises people to avoid big changes to their eating habits and crash diets. “Try picking two areas of food to really work on,” says Keogh. “You might decide to get more fruit and vegetables into your diet. You might decide now is the time to make sure you are getting enough calcium and vitamin D in your diet. Make a plan, buy the foods and do one or two things at a time. Once you have one good habit bedded down, you can move on to the next one.”
If you are already eating plenty of fruit and vegetables, check that you have good sources of protein with each meal. Protein foods leave you feeling fuller and less likely to reach for sweet treats…