Grapefruit Diet Information: The Diet

The Grapefruit Diet has been around since the 1930s and its notoriety soared in the 70s, remaining popular to this day – celebrities like Brooke Shields and Kylie Minogue are reportedly fans. Also known as the Hollywood Diet, the Grapefruit Diet has gained cult fad diet status thanks to its promise to help you lose 10 pounds in just 12 days.

There are several versions of the Grapefruit diet, but it’s basically a very low-calorie, low-carb diet accompanied by half a grapefruit or grapefruit juice with each meal. The theory is that grapefruits contain a special calorie-burning enzyme that speeds up the metabolism, resulting in rapid weight loss – however critics say that the paltry 800 calories a day food allowance accounts for the weight loss with or without the grapefruit. Plus, weight loss is mostly down to loss of fluids. Doctors say its calorie allowance is far too low to be healthy, but followers tout the Grapefruit Diet as a short-term solution that offers quick weight loss.

Grapefruit Diet Information: How It Works

The rules of The Grapefruit Diet

• Drink eight glasses of water a day

• At meals, always eat until you are feeling full

• Eat 3 meals a day. No snacking or eating between meals is allowed

• You must eat half a grapefruit or drink grapefruit juice with every meal to assist the calorie burning process
• You are restricted to 3 cups of coffee a day with meals, as coffee messes with your insulin levels

• You can eat as much salad, vegetables and meat as you want, but you must completely cut out bread, desserts, potatoes and white vegetables

• Eat all of the food combinations suggested without eliminating any foods as they are selected as they work together to burn fat. It’s especially important to stick to the bacon and salads

• You can eat limited amounts of butter, seasonings and dressings

• You must follow the diet for 12 days, have a 2 day break and then return to the diet for another 12 days. The original version of the diet followed an 18 day plan

Grapefruit Diet Information: Good Foods

• Grapefruit and grapefruit juice

• Vegetables like peppers, red onions, broccoli, cucumbers, carrots, lettuce, spinach, beans, tomatoes and radishes

• Meat and sausages

• Eggs

• Cheese

• Coleslaw

• Mayonnaise and salad dressings

• Butter

• Nuts

• Limited condiments like salt, pepper, ketchup and mustard

Grapefruit Diet Information: Banned Foods

• Potatoes and sweet potatoes

• Bread

• Pasta

• Pretzels

• Cereal

• Corn

• Starchy vegetables

• Chips

• Peas

• Low fat salad dressings

• Jam

• Peanut butter

Grapefruit Diet Information: Pros

• Experts say that eating grapefruit as part of a normal healthy, balanced diet does help to reduce insulin levels, lower cholesterol and aid weight loss. One 2004 study found that people who continue eating normally but add half a grapefruit to eat meal lose around 3.6 pounds over 12 weeks, with some people losing up to 10 pounds. Some studies have also shown that grapefruit also helps you to feel full for longer.

• Grapefruit contains high levels of vitamin C to boost health and your immune system

• Grapefruit could increase your metabolism, helping you to burn energy faster

• Drinking eight glasses of water a day is recommended to help aid weight loss and flush out toxins

Grapefruit Diet Information: Cons

• The calorie restrictions are worryingly low – just 800 calories a day – which could prove dangerous and commonly reported side effects include dizziness and stomach problems

• This diet is far from balanced and won’t give you all of the nutrients, vitamins, minerals and fibre you need to stay healthy

• The focus on eating large amounts of meat may not be healthy

• If the Grapefruit Diet does help you to lose weight, it’s only temporary as it doesn’t help you to change your lifestyle or adopt healthier eating patterns, so you’re likely to gain the weight back when you start eating normally again

• Grapefruit could react badly with certain medications, reducing their effectiveness and causing possible negative side effects

• Exercising while on this diet is not recommended due to the extremely low calorie intake

Grapefruit Diet Information: What the Experts Say

'The Grapefruit Diet does not represent a sensible, healthy way to lose weight and it is certainly not sustainable,” says Blue Skies www.blueskiesfitness.co.uk nutritionist and KeeptheDoctorAway.co.uk resident nutritionist expert Sam Howells.

“Any diet that requires the participant to eat so few calories is likely to result in dramatic initial ’weight loss’ but the majority of this loss will not be due to ’fat loss’. Additionally, eating so few calories makes it extremely hard to gain the vital nutrients that the human body needs on a daily basis.”

She says that although the diet does allow the participant to eat a variety of vegetables, the rest of the ’allowed foods’ are high in saturated fat which may lead to health problems such as elevated cholesterol levels.

“The fact that our main sources of carbohydrate are ’banned’ in this diet will lead to a reduction in the body’s main fuel source and will ultimately negatively influence mental and physical performance,” Howells adds. “One other factor to consider is the high acidity of grapefruit which may have a detrimental impact upon dental health.'