Nutritionist warned about the dangers of dieting

Strict diets with lots of restrictions are harmful. They form an unhealthy attitude towards food and increase anxiety. Karina Gazetdinova, sous chef and nutritionist at Grow Food, told Izvestia on May 31 about why losing weight on diets is harmful to the body and useless.

"The first thing that diets are harmful for is their short—term effect and slowing of metabolism. When a person drastically reduces the caloric intake of food, the body begins to save and the metabolism slows down. Therefore, when we return to the usual caloric intake after the end of the diet, most often the weight returns, and even with excess," she explained.

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The second harmful factor is the lack of nutrients in the body. Any diet is a restriction, because many of them exclude a whole group of foods, such as carbohydrates or fats. Because of this, many nutrients stop entering the body.

"Frequent dieting also leads to eating disorders such as bulimia or anorexia. In addition to them, orthorexia is now very common: the concept appeared not so long ago and means that a person is fixated on proper nutrition. Eating disorders occur due to the fact that a person maintains strict control over their diet. We constantly count calories, weigh food, and avoid prohibited foods," she said.

This creates an unhealthy, obsessive attitude towards food, appearance, and increases anxiety. When dieting, a person experiences an alternation of breakdowns and restrictions. This develops into bulimia or compulsive overeating.

"In addition, diets create a distorted attitude towards the body. Many people idealize thinness. Food restrictions are promoted as a way to achieve the ideal. Therefore, there is a desire to lose weight at any cost. All diets affect the cardiovascular system in one way or another, and the risk of cardiovascular diseases may increase," the specialist said.

According to the expert, you can not limit yourself in food, you just need to observe the percentage of proteins, fats, carbohydrates and total calories. The way out is a balanced diet without restrictions and constant physical activity.

Earlier, on April 25, Andrey Martyushev-Poklad, a market expert at the Helsnet National Technology Initiative, Candidate of Medical Sciences, told Izvestia that poor nutrition increases the risk of serious diseases.