Diets short on fruits, vegetables, fiber or basic food groups may be unhealthy and even dangerous, according to the British Dietetic Association (BDA). As reported by Wales Online, the health authority has released its annual Five Worst Diets list.
Topping the list was the Dukans diet, which involves eating large amounts of protein and, often, little else. The BDA said that the regimen results in weight loss almost entirely by restricting calories, rather than by improving nutrition.
Similarly, the so-called maple syrup diet appears on the list due to its almost complete lack of vitamins and minerals, the news source reported. Eaters on this particular regimen consume a mixture of lemonade, cayenne pepper, water and maple syrup.
The BDA declared this diet potentially unhealthy for its extremely low calorie count, as it did for the blood type diet, which it specified is based on pseudo-science. Humans with different blood types A, B, AB or O do not break down nutrients any differently from each other.
Other diets on the BDAs list included the baby food and cabbaged diets, neither of which is reported to contain much flavor or dietary sustenance.
A nutritional expert told the online news organization that eating moderate portions from all five food groups can result in slow, healthy weight loss, particularly when combined with daily exercise.