Diets Don’t Work

There are vast amounts of misinformation that I like to term “nutribabble” out there. So here are just 5 common pearls I share with my patients when it comes to “diets”:

1. Why are you going on a “diet”? Get healthy? Feel better? Lose weight? Always worth repeating: the tired mantra “eat less, move more” is no longer an accepted stand-alone treatment for the complex disease of obesity.

2. Where is the diet advice coming from? If you are worried about your or your family’s diet for health reasons, or are considering elimination diets, consider getting qualified advice (and this is doubly imporant for children/teens!). The recognised qualification in Ireland to be a dietitian is INDI and CORU registration, though the law still allows for literally anyone to call themselves a nutritionist. TikTok is simply not a good source of health information.

3. Do you want to make diet changes? In short, if this isn’t a good time for you to do this now, don’t. It won’t work, and can be stressful and discouraging. 1/1/24 is just another day in the calendar. You’re more likely to succeed when you are ready.

4. To make a long-term impact on health – and that is what we should be aiming for! – we want to plan on making small, long-term changes that we build on. Crash or highly restrictive or forced diets don’t work, and can lead to disordered eating and weight cycling, among other problems.

5. If you are making dietary changes to look after blood pressure, reduce weight, or planning a family, consider getting expert medical advice at the beginning – not end – of your journey. Input from your GP, another qualifed physician, and/or registered dietitian can probably save you lots of stress and €€€€ (you probably don’t need that smoothie maker or powdered supplement or detox tea…)