Drop the kilos, not your health

Brides and grooms going on crazy diets a few months before their wedding is not something new. And even the Royals (or those related to them) are not immune to it. Take for instance, Pippa Middleton, whose wedding is coming up in two months.

Middleton, who has a fit frame, is reportedly on a diet called the Sirtfood regimen, which involves sticking to 20 foods like dark chocolate and red wine that are rich in the protein sirtuin, apparently crucial for burning fat and reducing one’s appetite. The diet consists of a three-day period of eating just 1,000 calories per day, made up of green juices and one sirtfood meal, and later upping the calorie intake to 1,500 from the fourth to seventh day. But experts caution against going on any kind of ‘wedding’ diet, and are urging people to avoid these fads altogether.

Interestingly, Pippa’s sister Kate also hit the headlines when she started the Dukan Diet just before her wedding, which experts had again dismissed as being unhealthy.

Holistic nutritionist Sridevi Jasti says that 1,000 calories and anything less than that is quite dangerous for one’s health. “1,000 calories a day is not sufficient; and the ingredients of this particular diet are definitely not good. People should be healthy enough to enjoy their wedding and also be able to deal with the stress that comes with it. The Sirtfood Diet (like most other diet fads) will make your body’s medium acidic, leading to different body pains and lethargy,” says Sridevi.

Pippa is reportedly on a diet called the Sirtfood regimen.

Though fad diets promise quick results, the effects on the body are far too damaging. Most fad diets advocate the intake of less calories per day to control one’s weight. But Sridevi says, “A minimum of 1,200 calories a day from clean and wholesome food is a basic necessity, which again depends on your height. Not having this will lead to metabolic disorders, thyroid and other nutritional imbalances.”

While new diets crop up every second day, the General Motors (GM) diet plan, that focuses on limiting the weekly diet to fruits, vegetables, brown rice, and chicken, is very popular here. Karen Campos Bhatia, nutritionist, exercise physiologist and lifestyle consultant further adds, “In India, the GM diet is very popular before special occasions or people simply run off to wellness retreats where they are starved and put on liquids and very limited food, all of which are very bad for you.”

So how can one get into shape in a healthy way within two or three months? Says Karen, “You can lose eight-12 kgs of weight in three months healthily through balanced eating and moderate exercise based on your lifestyle. Weight loss is about your mind too — people who get caught up with fad diets don’t address their primary issues as to why they are overweight, in which case it all comes back with a vengeance.”