Chewing the fat over the great weight debate

It’s a tough choice – do you go for the grapefruit, the pineapple or the pies and cream cakes? – No contest It’s the time of year when we grit our teeth and check the scale of the problem ketones that people use for energy. The diet divided opinion when the first book was released in 1972, and now there are newer, less drastic versions available on the Atkins website. 1980S: BEVERLY HILLS DIET THE Beverly Hills diet book was published in 1981 and advocated eating a lot of pineapple for its apparent “fat-burning” qualities.

Only fruit was allowed for the first 10 days of the plan, after which protein and carbs had to be eaten in separate meals. 1990S: BLOOD TYPE DIET IT was in 1997 that claims surfaced that those with blood type A were thought to be better suited to vegetarianism, while people with blood type B could eat more dairy products.

Dr Stanford says: “This diet works on the premise that blood type, in the ABO blood grouping, will impact the ability to digest lectins if someone eats food that is incompatible with their blood type. To date, there is no scientific evidence that certain foods work better for one blood type over another.” 2000S: RAW FOOD MOVEMENT AS the name suggests, this diet doesn’t just see processed foods banned from the menu, but any cooked food.

Dieters instead stick to raw, natural items for their meals. Dr Stanford says: “[The belief is] that this decreases the risk of diseases, such as cancer. However, there is a risk to infection from uncooked or raw foods.

“There also may be deficiencies, such as vitamin B12. It is challenging to maintain a raw food diet, and as a result, it may be difficult to achieve meaningful and sustained weight loss.”