Diets don’t work… including the Ketogenic Diet

In Psychology Today Dr. Carolyn Ross, in my opinion, offers the best common sense approach when talking about the Ketogenic Diet. I think she is incorrect and is citing old information but at least I think she is taking a more reasoned approach to some valid criticisms of all diets.

Here is a summary of a couple of these studies on limiting carbohydrates:

A 2003 study showed that short-term (3-6 months) weight loss was better on a low carbohydrate diet but the benefit did not hold. At one year, there was no difference between the two groups.

In individuals with a BMI of over 43, a low-carbohydrate diet was compared to a low-fat diet. The low-carb dieters lost 12.76 to 31.68 pounds and the low-fat dieters lost 4.18 up to 13.42 pounds. However, the study lasted only six months.

These typify the studies that are being done to “evaluate” different diets. There are many more but what they all have in common is:

· The amount of weight lost in all the studies is very small for both groups of dieters
· The length of the studies is very short; most are 12 weeks, with some going for six months and a rare few lasting up to one year.

These points are worth reading again. And if you have been a chronic dieter, you know that while it may be easy to lose weight in the short-term, keeping the weight off is almost impossible, even if you’re highly motivated. In the past you may have blamed yourself. “Why can’t I stay on a diet?” “Why can’t I lose weight when other people can?” There is no reason to blame yourself. But it is time to tell the truth: DIETS DON’T WORK. They never have and they never will.

Psychology Today