Weight Loss
Fad diets: Why people struggle to lose weight and keep it off with quick fixes
A new study* has found more than half of UK adults (56%) have followed a fad diet to lose weight and, of those, 35% stuck to it for only six days or less. Almost 71% of those polled who’d tried a fad diet said they didn’t get the weight loss they wanted, or didn’t lose any weight – and 11% actually gained weight.
What’s a ‘fad’ diet?
A fad diet is a plan that promotes rapid weight loss without robust scientific evidence to support its claims. Popular ones include eating a very restrictive diet with a limited range or an unusual combination of foods. Sadly these quick fixes and ‘miracle’ trends, so widely available on social media, prove to be a big pull for people desperate to lose weight.**
The most common fad diets include:
- weight loss supplements (29%)
- apple cider vinegar (21%)
- a juice diet (19%)
- skinny tea (16%)
- vitamin water (15%)
- cabbage soup diet (14%)
In a Slimming World survey, of the 1,123 people who’d tried a fad diet, more than a third (38%) felt they’d wasted their time scrolling on social media for quick weight loss solutions.
Slimming World members can read more about ‘quick fix’ diets here
The welcome news is that 93% of Slimming World members surveyed say that, since joining, they feel better equipped with the tools and strategies needed for long-term weight loss.
With our mindset-shifting support system in group and online, members learn to create healthy habits to lose weight, and keep it off for good.
Discover two ways to join Slimming World for weight loss success that lasts!
The quick-fix appeal
When we’re bombarded with ‘miracle’ trends and claims of fast weight loss, they can be hard to ignore. Dr Amanda Avery, Slimming World’s health and research consultant dietitian says: “It’s easy to fall for quick fixes when social media is flooded with misinformation, especially when we’re desperate to lose weight. When it comes to lasting weight loss, we can see from our research how important it is to follow an effective, healthy and sustainable approach.”
Amanda Hetherington, who lost a mind-blowing 15st 7lbs (98kg) at her Slimming World group in Runcorn, Cheshire, says:
“I’d tried every weight loss method under the sun before I joined Slimming World. I used to scour social media for hours to see who’d lost the most weight in the shortest time, and that would be the diet I’d follow. It would start well, but it would be so restrictive that I’d only last two weeks before I’d have to give it up. Then I’d be back at square one and make myself so upset for failing at another diet.
I remember one time, when we went to see Michael Bublé in concert. Instead of going for a lovely meal beforehand, I had a meal replacement shake in our hotel room… Life was so limiting.
Food Optimising is completely different. You’re never hungry, and it’s easy to adapt our family meals and all eat the same thing. Most of all, it’s sustainable and works long term.
I just love Slimming World – and I’d never want anyone to have to go through what I did.”
The Slimming World difference
A plan that helps you make mindset and lifestyle changes can be much easier to stick to, shows a study published in Clinical Nutrition Open Science. The study found that three in four respondents who received support in building healthy habits at a weekly Slimming World group remained lighter up to three years after joining, even if they’d stopped attending.
Amanda Avery says: “It’s completely understandable that people want to believe there’s a miracle quick fix to weight loss, but, quite simply, there isn’t one. Losing weight and keeping it off isn’t easy – it requires change, which can be challenging. That’s why choosing an evidence-based approach, and making sure you have support along the way, is so important. Staying on track and committed until your efforts become everyday habits is the secret to long-term weight loss. Getting support to do that is exactly what Slimming World provides – and has done for 55 years.”
*The research was conducted by Censuswide, among a sample of 2,004 nationally representative consumers across the UK (aged 18+), along with a self-selecting sample of 1,380 Slimming World members via Slimming World’s member website.
** ‘Fad diet’ definition by the British Dietetic Association (BDA)
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