What You Should Know About Very Low Calorie Diets   by Santos Crumrine

in Health    (submitted 2012-02-03)

The definition of a very low calorie diet (VLCD) is a diet where you consume just 800 calories or less each day. Even though everyone has different needs when it comes to nutrition it's safe to say that the majority of people will find it a very difficult challenge to consume such little calories, which is the main reason diet programs give specifically calculated formulas for you to eat. Before starting a very low calorie diet you should think about some of the points in this article.

When it comes to very low calorie diets people often find them hard to stick to. It is not easy to maintain a diet that only lets you consume 800 or less calories a day. People lose weight while on the diet but when they come off it they will start to gain weight again. It is a good idea for you to change your lifestyle and diet for long term with a strategy. With this you can lose all the initial weight with the very low calorie diet and then keep it off by having a modified diet and exercising regularly as well.

A popular diet is the OPTIFAST which is used by lots of hospitals all over the world. This diet started out for people that are about 50 pounds overweight or over 30 on the BMI scale. You should not consider this diet if you are only slightly overweight. The advantage of the OPTIFAST program is that it operates within a medical setting, so your progress is being monitored by trained professionals at all times. Because the program has been around since 1974 loads of people have done it, giving it a solid track record for both effectiveness and safety. On the other hand, if you are considering this program, you have to be committed to it, and be willing to make serious changes to your diet and lifestyle.

A very low calorie diet that was created in the 1970s in England is the Cambridge Diet. Due to you receiving foods that are pre-packaged on this diet, your calorie intake will be low in addition to having all of the essential nutrition you need calculated for you. These can be in the form of meal bars, shakes and soups. Even though this diet has been in existence for a while, and a lot of people have had success on it, it does carry some disadvantages. Exercise can only be done at very low intensity and drinking a lot of water is a must in order to avoid dehydration. A lot of people will also become very bored of eating just meals that are packaged. To find out whether a diet like the Cambridge Diet is safe for you or not you must ask your doctor.

Thanks to this article you should be able to see that there are advantages and disadvantages to very low calorie diets. If you are threatened by a health problem like diabetes, heart disease or hypertension then this diet may be for you. Otherwise you can just do regular exercise and eat a little healthier to lose a bit of weight.

About the Author

Santos Crumrine has been writing exceptional content for a while now. An expert in the field of health and nutritious diets, he has written a wide range of blogs on different issues like MLM success tips and MLM Online Marketing