There are several effective weight-loss diets. Some may lower your appetite, while others restrict calories coming from carbs and fat.
Though these weight loss diets claim to be effective, it’s difficult to understand which one to follow. However, there is no weight-loss diet that works for everyone.
What works for you may not work for everyone. Some of the most well-researched diets and eating plans include intermittent fasting, vegan diets, low-carb diets, and low-fat diets.
Here are 7 most effective weight loss diets reviewed.
Table of Contents
1. Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern that cycles between fasting and eating times. Rather than limiting the food you consume, it determines when you consume it.
Therefore, it is among the most effective weight-loss diets. The most common method of intermittent fasting is the 16:8 technique. This means skipping breakfast and limiting your regular eating time to eight hours and fasting for the rest of the day’s 16 hours.
Similarly, intermittent fasting leads to calorie restriction and makes the weight loss process very simple. Studies show that it causes 3–8% weight loss over 3–24 weeks, which is a lot compared to other weight loss diets.
It can boost your metabolic rate by up to 14% and increase HGH (human growth hormone). In addition, it can cause less lean muscle loss compared to other diets.
Intermittent fasting effects may also decrease inflammation markers, such as cholesterol, blood triglycerides, and blood sugar (1, 2, 3, 4, 5).
2. The Low-Carb Diets
Low-carb diets, particularly for weight loss, have been common for centuries. There are several kinds of low-carb weight loss diets, but all require a reduction of 150 grams of carbohydrate consumption per day.
The primary goal of this diet is to force your body to use more fat as fuel rather than using carbs as a primary energy source. People on low-carb diets eat more protein and fat while restricting their carbohydrate consumption.
When the intake of carbs is very low, fatty acids are transformed into ketones by the liver. In the absence of carbs, your body can use fatty acids and ketones as its primary sources of energy.
Many studies show that low-carb weight loss diets are helpful, particularly for people who are overweight.
It also appears to be very effective in reducing dangerous belly fat accumulation around organs (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11).
3. The Atkins Diet
The Atkins diet is the most popular weight-loss diet. It is a low-carb, high-fat, and high-protein diet. Therefore, low-carb weight loss diets are very effective and can suppress your appetite. This causes you to consume fewer calories.
However, this diet is divided into four phases. In the first phase, carbohydrate consumption is limited to 20 grams a day for 2 weeks.
Once you have achieved your target, you can slowly return to a healthy source of carbs. The Atkins diet was widely studied and discovered to result in quicker weight loss compared to low-fat diets.
Studies show that low-carb weight loss diets are effective in targeting the most dangerous fat in your abdominal area (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17).
4. The HCG Diet
The HCG diet (human chorionic gonadotropin) is among the restricted diets intended to cause very rapid weight loss of up to 2 pounds (1 kg) per day.
Supporters of this diet claim it increases metabolism and fat loss without causing starvation. HCG is a hormone that flows in early pregnancy at an elevated level.
It means the body of a woman knows she is pregnant and keeps producing hormones essential for fetal development. It was also used to address infertility problems.
Like other weight loss diets, the HCG diet is divided into three phases and prescribed for 6 weeks (18, 19, 20).
You take HCG supplements in the first phase. In the second phase, you pursue an ultra-low-calorie diet of just 500 calories per day along with drops of HCG supplements, pellets, injections, or sprays.
You stop taking HCG in the third phase and slowly increase your food intake.
Many studies conclude that weight loss is because of the ultra-low-calorie diet alone, not the HCG hormone. In addition, it is not clear that HCG reduces appetite (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26).
5. The Paleo Diet
The paleo diet comprises whole foods, lean protein, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and seeds, while discouraging processed foods such as sugar, milk, and grains.
More flexible Paleo weight-loss diet alternatives allow dairy, such as cheese, butter, and sweet potatoes.
A study shows that the Paleo diet can cause substantial weight loss and a decrease in waist size.
The diet also appears to be efficient in decreasing heart disease risk factors such as cholesterol, blood sugar, blood triglycerides, and blood pressure (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34).
6. The Vegan Diet
The vegan diet restricts all animal products and has links to animal protection and cruelty. Veganism is vegetarianism’s most dominant type.
It eliminates dairy, eggs, and products derived from animals, such as gelatin, honey, albumin, whey, casein, and some types of vitamin D3 in relation to restricting meat products.
A vegan diet appears to be very efficient for people who want to lose weight without counting calories, as it has very low-fat content and high-fiber content, which can make you feel fuller for longer.
In comparison with other weight loss diets, they consistently associated vegan diets with reduced body weight and body mass index (BMI) (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40).
A study of 18 weeks showed that people on a vegan diet lost 9.3 more pounds than people in the control group. They allowed the vegan group to consume until they were full, but calories had to be limited by the control group.
Reducing calorie consumption is mainly coordinated with weight loss on vegan diets. Plant-based diets are associated with a lower risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and premature death.
Many vegans who cannot fulfill their dietary requirements by diet alone should take supplements. It’s always best to talk to a healthcare professional before beginning a new vegan diet (41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48).
7. The Dukan Diet
The Dukan diet is a low-carb weight-loss diet divided into four phases. The first two phases are for weight loss, while the remaining two are for maintenance.
The amount of weight you need to lose depends on how long you remain in each phase. Each phase has a nutritional pattern of its own.
These phases are based mainly on eating unlimited high-protein foods. The other phases require adding vegetables that are not starchy.
In one study, females eating about 1,000 calories and 100 grams of protein per day following the Dukan diet lost an average of 33 pounds in 10 weeks.
Also, many other studies show that high-protein, low-carb diets can have significant benefits in terms of weight loss.
These include an increase in metabolic rate, a reduction of the hunger hormone, and an increase in several fullness hormones (49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59 60).
Conclusion
Before diving into weight loss diets, it is crucial to check with your doctor and do the whole body check-up.
What’s more! There are no ideal diets for weight loss. For you, the best diet is the one you can stick to in the long run.