Useful Health Tips

Some of us consistently look for and try new diets, but often, the first one we try isn’t the one we stick with as finding the “best” diet takes trial and error. When searching for a new diet, we often aim for the one that leads to the best results the quickest and isn’t too restrictive in terms of the foods we like to eat.

While it may seem easy to find a diet that is both relevant for us and provides results, it’s easier said than done. Not only are some people more mentally suitable for taking on certain diets, especially ones that are very restrictive, but everyone might respond differently on a physical level.

Likewise, some individuals might opt for a diet not because they want to lose weight but because they want to gain general health benefits or eliminate current health problems. That said, it isn’t fair to say that there is one diet out there that is suitable for every individual out there.

Before you commit to a new diet, however, it’s important that you conduct research to decide which one may be best for your body, your lifestyle, and for you on a personal level. Scoping through the following eight diets, you will find a plethora of great options that are currently popular in the diet world.

Types of Diets: The most popular ones

1. Mediterranean diet

It’s said that the Mediterranean diet is one of the world’s healthiest diets. This diet, which is inspired by the 1940s and 1950s diets of the Southern Italians, Greeks, and Spanish, mainly consists of consuming plant-based foods: fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts, and whole grains. Replacing unhealthy fats with healthy fats is also vital.

Along with the latter, those on the Mediterranean diet are instructed to limit their consumption of red meat to a few times a month and add plenty of herbs and spices to their foods for flavor rather than salt.

Apart from potentially aiding in weight loss, the Mediterranean diet can boost your heart health, reduce your risk of dealing with muscle weakness, protect against cancer and type two diabetes, cut your risk of developing Alzheimer’s in half, and increase your longevity by 20 percent, according to HelpGuide.

2. Elimination diet

The elimination diet or exclusion diet is exactly what it sounds like: it involves eliminating foods from your diet. One might choose to go on an elimination diet not to lose weight but to find out what food allergies, sensitivities, or intolerances they may have whether it be a result of dairy, wheat, soy, or other common allergy-causing foods.

Participants of the elimination diet will eliminate allergy-causing foods from their diet until allergy symptoms subside. Then, the dieter must begin adding those foods back into their diet one at a time, which will communicate to them which food or foods are causing their immune system to overreact.

After engaging in the elimination diet and figuring out what foods are causing an adverse immune system reaction, one should continue restricting those specific foods from their diet going forward if they wish to continue to reduce or eliminate symptoms.

3. DASH diet

For those suffering from chronic high blood pressure, the DASH diet may help. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches for Hypertension and is promoted by the U.S. National, Lung, Heart, and Blood Institute.

On the DASH diet, the goal is to reduce the amount of sodium from your diet and instead include foods rich in vitamins and minerals that are great for heart health including potassium, magnesium, and calcium. Additionally, portion size is an integral component of the DASH diet.

It’s said that by sticking to the DASH diet for at least two weeks, you should start to notice a drop in your blood pressure. As a result, this diet can reduce your risks of diabetes, osteoporosis, cancer, heart disease, and stroke.

4. Flexitarian diet

Before explaining what the flexitarian diet is, it’s important to freshen our memory on the vegetarian diet. As many are aware, vegetarianism involves eating no meat and consuming mostly plants. Vegetarianism is not to be confused with veganism where the dieter not only doesn’t eat meat but any animal products including eggs and milk.

The flexitarian diet, which sounds similar to the vegetarian diet, is essentially a relaxed version of vegetarianism where the diet is still primarily plant-based, however, where meat and other animal products are consumed in moderation. This is a great diet for those who admire the vegetarian or vegan diet but don’t want a diet that’s too restrictive.

U.S. Food Pyramid-wise, the USDA in 1992 suggested that grains be the primary source of our diet, followed by fruits and vegetables; dairy and meat; and then fats, oils, and sweets. However, with the flexitarian diet, this should instead be fruits and vegetables followed by grains; dairy; fats, oils, and sweets; and lastly, meats.

5. Ketogenic diet

The ketogenic diet, or simply the keto diet for short, consists of consuming low-carb, high-fat foods. This means consuming approximately 70 percent healthy fats, 25 percent protein, and just 5 percent carbohydrates (e.g., starches, grains, sugars).

As a result of sticking to the keto diet, the dieter goes through ketosis as their body begins to use fat, rather than carbs, as a main source of energy. In turn, the person on the diet loses weight, which is typically the main goal with this diet. Individuals with diabetes are also often fond of the keto diet.

It is important to note, however, that the keto diet can dehydrate the body. Thus, it is vital to drink plenty of water; take vitamin supplements; and intake extra electrolytes including magnesium, potassium, and calcium. Without the latter, participants may struggle with muscle pain and tingling, weakness, joint pain, and other symptoms.

6. Nordic diet

In truth, the Western diet or the standard American diet is one of the unhealthiest diets on the planet. It consists of high consumption of red meat, sugar, processed foods, refined grains, fried foods, and bad fats. However, with the Nordic diet, one eats like those in Nordic countries: Iceland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark.

Via this diet, one should consume more whole grains, fruits and vegetables, organic foods, homemade meals, food sourced from the wild and bodies of water, and in-season foods. Those on the Nordic diet should also consume less meat, sweets, and processed foods.

While the Nordic diet can certainly aid in weight loss, the main reason someone might want to give this diet a go is if they want to achieve better health. The Nordic diet is said to help decrease bad cholesterol, protect against heart disease and type two diabetes, and reduce inflammation.

7. Atkins diet

Individuals wanting a slimmer figure might turn to the Atkins diet. Many enjoy that this low-carb diet plan involves eating right rather than consuming less, which tends to be easier for many folks to adapt to. Likewise, this diet offers some flexibility with eating the foods you love the most, including dark chocolate and bacon.

Like the ketogenic diet, the goal with the Atkins diet is to, rather than get your body to burn sugar as a source of fuel and store fat, burn fat as fuel, and in turn, help the dieter drop weight. However, unlike the keto diet, the Atkins diet is divided into four phases: induction, balancing, fine-tuning, and maintenance.

Someone on the Atkins diet would want to consume mostly protein and vegetables; some fruit; few oils, dairy, nuts, and legumes; and very small amounts of whole grains. Likewise, the consumption of sugar should also be restricted.

8. Whole30 diet

With the Whole30 diet, one must completely eliminate artificial foods, MSG, sulfites, carrageenan, dairy, legumes, grains, alcohol, and both real and artificial sugars from their diet and instead focus on a lot of vegetables and natural fats; moderate portions of meats, eggs, and seafood; and small amounts of fruit.

Generally, the idea behind the Whole30 diet is to eat as many whole, natural foods as you can get your hands that contain as few ingredients as possible. While many might not be fond of how restrictive this diet is, the good news is that it only is designed to last a total of 30 days; it’s a reset diet, not a permanent diet.

This diet is suggested for individuals suffering from various health ailments like fatigue or lack of energy, trouble losing weight, unexpected aches and pains, chronic pain, seasonal allergies, digestive setbacks, and the like, especially if different treatment plans have not been successful for their ailments.

Conclusion

The truth is, there is no perfect diet that is best for everyone. We all have various lifestyles, desires, nutritional requirements, health-related needs, and DNA sequences that make it impossible for a single diet to be effective for each and every one of us.

However, the latter eight diets are some of the most popular and most effective diets to date according to both dieters and diet experts themselves. Conducting deeper research on the diets that stand out to you from this list, you may be able to find a suitable diet that truly works for you.