Why Diets Don't Work

By Tracy Narins Welchoff, Ph.D.
It is no secret that our society is obsessed with dieting an losing weight.  Magazine covers, billboards, television and radio commercials, and fitness centers popping up on every corner remind us almost constantly that we need to lose weight, even if we don’t.  This is not to deny that there is an obesity epidemic that must be addressed.  However, dieting is not the answer, and here’s why:

• The vast majority of studies show that 90-95% of dieters regain lost weight, most within five years and many within a matter of months.  This does not mean that the dieter has failed.  Rather, it is the concept of dieting that is flawed.
• Decreasing food consumption to the degree recommended by most diets causes metabolism to drop because the body is biologically programmed to avoid starvation.  Simply put, you eat fewer calories but also cause the body to need fewer calories to function.   This means that body functions must slow down to accommodate having less fuel with which to operate.
• Dieters who gain weight (which is almost everyone) tend to regain even more weight than they have lost.  In fact, dieting is a consistent predictor of weight gain and likely plays a large part in the obesity epidemic.
• Dieting contributes to the myth that there are “good foods” and “bad foods”.  All kinds of food should be included in a healthy food plan.  As Julia Child liked to say, “everything in moderation, even moderation.”
• Avoiding entire categories of food, such as fats or carbohydrates, sets dieters up for both physiological deprivation (as the body requires all food groups for healthy functioning) and psychological deprivation (never allowing yourself treats which often leads to overindulging later.)

 
“So what do I do if I am overweight?”

• Learn to eat intuitively, which means eat when you are hungry, stop when you are full, and don’t eat (or not eat) for emotional reasons.
• Incorporate all food groups, and don’t deprive yourself of treats.
• Exercise regularly, preferably doing something active that is also FUN.  Boring exercise routines will not be followed.
• Ditch the diet plans, diet products, supplements, and anything else not included in the above three points.  Period.
• If your eating has become confusing, chaotic or out-of-control, seek professional help. 
• Although the above advice is simple, it is not easy to follow in this diet-crazed world we live in.  Diets and exercise gimmicks just don’t work except to benefit a billion-dollar diet industry.