The pineapple diet is not a safe way to lose weight. Here’s why:
When we try to lose weight, we tend to turn to fad diets. However, these kinds of diets promise fast results using questionable methods. Without being a standard dietary recommendation, these also make unreasonable claims for fast weight loss or health improvements. Just like other fad diets, the pineapple diet attracted the interest of uneducated consumers.
The pineapple diet remains a fad diet created in the 1970s used to shed excess body fat.
According to Jillian Kubala’s research on the pineapple diet, this diet isn’t a healthy one. Promising to help people slim down, the diet consists of eating nothing but pineapple for two days out of the week. Then, you can continue to eat normally for five days. In her research, the plan allows you to consume other foods during the 2 pineapple-only days. So long as the food provides fewer than 500 total calories.
Danish psychologist Sten Hegeler created the Sexy Pineapple Diet. He admitted that the diet wasn’t based on any scientific evidence. He simply liked pineapple. So, he thought that creating a diet based on consuming large amounts of pineapple was a good diet. Additionally, some sources share that if you’re allergic to pineapple, they suggest eating fruits like apples, pears, or bananas instead.
So, why is the pineapple diet not a healthy way to lose weight?
First of all, eating nothing but pineapple for two to seven days is absolutely necessary for weight loss. Limiting calorie intake using any method, including unhealthy ones, will promote weight loss. Jillian even gave an example:
“If you’re used to consuming 2,000 calories per day and then follow a 5-day plan that involves eating nothing but pineapple, you’ll be taking in significantly fewer calories, which will create a calorie deficit.”
When you eat normally, a single meal may contain 500 calories or more. It also depends on energy needs. This also points out that any diet that significantly cuts calories and creates an extreme calorie deficit will induce weight loss. However, this doesn’t mean that this will remain effective for long-term weight maintenance.
If you try to eat nothing but pineapple for two days or longer, you could experience side effects.
Studies show that diets that significantly restrict calories for two days per week can be safe. However, chances are you will remain extremely hungry, irritable, and tired. Since pineapple is so acidic, it will bother your stomach, and side effects include:
- Dizziness
- Passing out
- Headaches
- Hunger pains
- Insomnia
- Weakness
- And, extreme hunger
Pineapple contains less than one gram of protein and 165 grams of fat per cup. It also lacks many vitamins and minerals. These include Vitamin B-12 and Vitamin E. Your body also won’t get the nutrients it needs to function optimally. Even then, you won’t even feel full. Aside from that, you can also put yourself at risk of developing a nutrient deficiency.
Pineapple lacks many important nutrients. And, it’s never a good idea to engage in such restrictive eating habits. So, it can lead to long-term complications involving your relationship with your body and food.
