From models injecting vitamins through IVs, to the regular dude sitting next to you eating butter for lunch; adding charcoal to your food, to eating only watermelon for weeks on end; wellness industry has gone so over the top, someone needs to inject some sanity. “Is there such a thing as too much wellness?,” You ask, innocently. And to that, we say, “Have you tried anema and colon cleansing for weight loss?”
There are some health trends that people need to take down a notch in 2019.
Keto Diet
It had to be the most popular diet trend ever. Everyone, from union ministers, to celebrities, to the regular Rahul in your office, were on a diet plan called ‘Keto or Ketogenic’ diet. Like all wellness trends, this one is also based on some scientific principle that sounds sane enough.
A low-fat, high-carb diet, it essentially works on the principle that if you drastically cut down carbs, it will put your body in metabolic state called ketosis. At this stage your body starts burning fat for energy. It turns fat into ketones in the liver and that in turn supplies energy for the brain.
But here’s the problem. Keto was never meant to be a weight loss tool. It was used as a treatment for epilepsy in kids and to be administered only under clinical setting, so that insulin, blood sugar and ketoacidosis counts could be carefully monitored and controlled.
Nutritionist Kavita Devgan says it’s incredibly hard to keep up.
If you are not finding it hard, you are probably not doing it right. It is an incredibly strict diet and incorporates 60-75% fat, 15-30% protein, and 5-10% carbs - a ratio most people don’t get right
A colleague described eating coconut oil and butter for weeks on end. WHY!
Also, as an aside, we are so done with the demonizing of carbs. What’s wrong with good old roti and bread anyway?
Keto Must GO!
Bhaiya, 1 kilo Celery dena
Said every weight conscious person to their baffled sabziwala in 2018. Celery juice was a thing. Cold pressed juice were a thing. Everyone everywhere was sipping green tasteless drinks, as if held hostage by the wellness industry. And since Stockholm syndrome had set in, they smiled through the ordeal and said it tasted great.
That ajwain seeds have benefits is something your grandma has been telling you all your life. But will it suddenly make you the healthiest person ever? The answer to that is a big NO. Also juicing any vegetable or fruit means it has lost all its fiber value. Your body naturally detoxifies. That’s just how it functions. Rest is expensive pee.
'Clean Eating'
Apparently whatever you have been eating till now wasn’t quite ‘clean.’ ‘Detoxing’ and ‘clean eating’ have to be the most abused words of 2018. Now there is nothing wrong with eating clean. You should make better food choices for your health.
But our obsession with eating clean has become so extreme, every morsel of cake or a French fry you bite into is being equated to a moral flaw.
Not to mention the more serious implications for those who battle eating disorders and equate every food item as ‘good’ or ‘bad.’ The constant bombardment of ‘clean’ eating sends them into a mental trauma.
Food is not just a means of survival. It is eaten in a cultural and social setting. Don’t kill the joy one gets out of sharing good tasting food with friends and family.
Activated Charcoal
Sorry, what??
Yes, even charcoal became a thing this year. Activated charcoal. Which basically means your regular charcoal that has been oxidized. As if that makes it more palatable. The reason for its popularity was the belief that it traps chemicals in your food and prevents their absorption.
At one time it was used to treat drug overdose, poisonings, reduce flatulence, lower cholesterol levels, prevent diarrhea etc according to WebMD.
Now it’s in your lunch. Healthy with a sprinkling of black stool and constipation. Oh, it can also slow or block your intestinal track and mess with your medication.
Appetite Suppressant Lollipops, trendy supplements
Sometime in May, global reality star Kim Kardashian put out an Instagram post sucking on a lollipop. Except this wasn’t a regular pop - it apparently helps suppress your appetite. While it created a media storm, with many doctors calling her out for supporting questionable products, the product itself flew off the shelves.
A simple google search show it’s available online here in India. Way to kill the joy out of candies we had as kids.
No people. Appetite suppressant pops is not the way to go when trying to lose weight. Neither is supplements peddled by influencers on social media. Despite numerous studies that say they are nothing but expensive pee, supplement industry has boomed. All combinations of them are sold online and in your pharmacy. And since they don’t require the level of approvals required for medication, it’s left to the manufacturer to disclose all information. Omega 3 tablets, vitamins, protein powders – everyone is on it.
Talk to your doctor if you really need a supplement. Stop popping pills for no reason whatsoever. Just don’t.
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