What TikTok diets work — and what to avoid — per an expert

health

by Emily Lefroy

April 13, 2023 | 06:00

Lemon water, apple cider vinegar, and shots of ginger in the morning — there’s no shortage of wild and bizarre diet ideas on TikTok.

“Finally Full, Finally Slim,” Lisa Young, a registered dietitian at New York University and author of Finally Full, told the Post.

Young advises to “pick and choose” what works for you from different dieting approaches but don’t go too far down the rabbit hole of any of them.

She warned that many of the diets you see on TikTok can create eating disorders and sometimes even slow down your metabolism.

“There is a loss when we try every diet and fail,” she said. “Failure is when you gain it back, lose the weight not success – keeping it off is success.”

Take a look at some popular TikTok diets and Young’s thoughts on each.

Calorie counting

With 1.8 billion views on the video-sharing app under the hashtag #CalorieCounting and 8.7 billion views for #CalorieDeficit, this classic approach is one of the most popular online.

Women are usually advised to consume 1,200 to 1,500 calories per day, while men are advised to eat 1,500 to 1,800 calories.

While Young said this can be an effective way to lose weight, there are a lot of downsides to it.

“It reinforces the feeling of deprivation,” she said.

The dietitian explained that people can indulge in the total number of calories of what they consume, rather than thinking about proper nutrition.

“[People] We often lose sight of the big picture of eating more fruits, vegetables, protein, and healthy fats, and they just focus on counting calories,” Young said.

Chlorophyll water

On TikTok, the hashtag #ChlorophyllWater has garnered 254.5 million views, with people convinced that adding the plant compound to your glass of water helps lose weight, detoxify the body and even improve complexion.

Young is skeptical.

“There’s nothing magical about it that you can’t get from eating real foods,” she said, calling the fad “ridiculous.”

If you eat plants, you get chlorophyll. [but] If you want to drink chlorophyll, go ahead and take it.” “It’s not magic and people need to be aware of that.”

One benefit Young notes is that it actually increases some people’s water intake.

“You’re actually thinking about the fact that you’re drinking more water.”

Baby food

On TikTok, there are more than 17 million views on clips about eating baby food for weight loss, and many are suggesting giving up all adult meals in favor of consuming about a dozen jars of baby food throughout the day.

Young wouldn’t go gaga for goo goo.

“You lose weight if all you eat is baby food but it’s not sustainable,” she said. Traditionally, baby food would be low in protein and fibre [and] It may not give you the right nutrients.”

Jung also believes that it is not good for mental health.

She said, “You will take control of your life.” “Where do you want to go out to lunch?”

Military diet

The hashtag #MilitaryDiet has 31.2 million views on TikTok and promises fast weight loss — up to 10 pounds per week.

Proponents take turns restricting calories to 800 to 900 calories per day for three days and then eating normally for four days for a month.

The name comes from the dedication to sticking to the diet, “just like the willpower and discipline needed to survive in the military,” notes the site.

On the three days of restricted eating, the only foods allowed are caffeinated coffee or tea, grapefruit, bananas, apples, green beans, broccoli, carrots, peanut butter, eggs, canned tuna, sausage, meat, whole wheat bread, and salty crackers. And cottage cheese, cheddar cheese and ice cream in limited quantities.

Young said that although people lose weight, it’s primarily water weight. She thinks it is an unhealthy approach.

“It’s designed to help you lose a lot of weight, you know, in a short period of time, which you’re not going to avoid,” she said. “It may actually lead to more weight gain than you initially lost.”

Cabbage soup diet

The popular ’80s diet is back on TikTok – with 7 million views on the app under the hashtag #CabbageSoupDiet.

Some people use the diet — which includes eating soup made with white cabbage and other low-calorie vegetables, along with eating some low-calorie foods on their own — to start their diet or eat healthy.

Others use it as a crash diet to lose a few pounds.

“One of the benefits of the cabbage diet is that you get fluids and you get fiber,” said Young. “You lose weight quickly but it’s not sustainable.”

She added that the diet was “malnourished”.

“You don’t get protein, you don’t get fat — it’s low in calories,” she said. “So it’s not something you want to do long-term. It’s also very restrictive.”

Lemon coffee

Squeezing half a lemon into your morning coffee is trendy.

Hashtag #LemonCoffeeChallenge has 6.9 million views on TikTok, while #LemonAndCoffee has 5.8 million views.

Users swear it helps burn fat and reduces bloating, but experts say not all influencers promise this.

“If you’re having coffee with lemon instead of a frappuccino or instead of a pumpkin spice latte [then] Young said. “But you’ll also lose weight if you have Greek yogurt with blueberries.”

Bottom line: “There is no magic in coffee or lemon that will lead to weight loss on its own.”