The Dukan diet is one of the most advertised methods of weight loss. To understand how the diet works, what is the "right" weight and why it is dangerous to eat according to the store.
Who is Pierre Ducan
The creator of the popular diet is not a dietitian, but a therapist. Pierre Ducan was a common practice when a fat patient came to see him in 1970. The man admitted that in order to lose weight, he is ready to give up any food except meat. The doctor developed a diet based on a minimal amount of lean meat, non-starchy vegetables and fruits. The precondition was to give up sugar.
Duke argued that such a diet is best for natural metabolism: primitive man ate meat, seasonal vegetables and fruits. In our understanding sugar was inaccessible to him and therefore he should now be abandoned.
After 30 years of experimentation and observation, Pierre Ducan has released the book I Can Lose Weight, which has become a bestseller in 32 countries. The new method promises the ability to lose 5 kg in one to two weeks, without limiting the amount of food.
Celebrities who openly praised the new method made the design of the shop popular. Jennifer Lopez and Gisele Bandchen used diet to lose weight after pregnancy and childbirth. Welsh singer Katherine Jenkins says she is in shape by eating Dukan's plan.
In 2012, the French Council of Physicians noted that a nutritionist had violated ethical principles by turning medicine into a commercial enterprise. In 2014, Pierre Ducan was expelled from the register of doctors for promoting advertising and the method.
How the diet works
The Dukan diet includes a protein diet with a minimum of carbohydrates and fats. The scheme includes 100 products that can be eaten in any volume in the first few weeks.
The method largely reflects the ketogenic diet and other carbohydrate-rich diet plans where the body recovers to receive fats and proteins. High protein content helps balance insulin production and reduces ghrelin production, the hunger hormone. We are satisfied faster and eat less. However, the Dukan diet restricts not only carbohydrates but also fats. The safety and benefits of this approach are not supported by research.
Before moving on to the Dukan nutrition plan, you need to calculate your "correct" weight. This can be done using a special calculator. The calculation is based on data on height, maximum and minimum weight, age, structural characteristics of the body. The calculator was developed by Pierre Ducan, so the result should be scientifically verified and consult a doctor.
The Duke diet is divided into four phases:
- Attack.
- Alternative.
- Attachment.
- Stabilization.
Noticeable weight loss begins already in the attack phase, which pushes you to continue eating according to the Dukan method. The reason for rapid weight loss is dehydration because the body loses fluid due to lack of carbohydrates. However, experts do not confirm the long-term effectiveness of the method and the health of the diet. Let’s figure out how the diet works and why it has so many contraindications.
Stages of the Dukan diet
The diet consists of four parts, the duration of which depends on the calculated "correct" weight. The first two stages are aimed at weight loss, and the final - consolidation of achievements. Only high protein foods are allowed during the attack. Then add non-starchy vegetables, limited fats and extra carbohydrates.
The duration, alternation and strengthening of the attack depends on how many kilograms you need to lose in order to achieve the "correct" weight. The final stage, which must be constantly observed, combines the fixation phase diet and the weekly protein days in the attack pattern.
1. Attack
The phase lasts from two to seven days. If you need to lose 20kg or more to achieve the "correct" weight, the stage may take longer. The nutrition plan includes 68 protein foods and some additional foods:
- Meat: Beef, veal, meat and other game, pork, lean and soy bacon, liver, kidneys, tongue;
- Poultry: chicken fillet and liver, turkey, wild duck, quail, lean turkey and chicken sausage;
- Fish and Seafood: No restrictions, including canned tuna in water;
- Vegetarian proteins: Seitan - vegetable protein, meat substitute wheat gluten, vegetarian burgers and soy products, tofu and temp;
- Eggs: chicken, quail, duck;
- Low-fat dairy products: milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, ricotta - no more than 1 kg per day.
The daily diet should include 1. 5 tablespoons of oat bran and at least 1. 5 liters of water. You can also add a tablespoon of goji berries, sweeteners, whey fermented and unlimited diet gelatin.
You should devote 20 minutes of physical activity every day.
2. Alternative
The period of gradual attainment of correct weight lasts from one month to one year. The diet of the previous phase changes every other day with a more gentle and extended menu - 32 types of vegetables will be added:
- Spinach, cabbage, lettuce and other green vegetables
- Broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts;
- Bulgarian pepper;
- Mushroom;
- Celery;
- Asparagus;
- Artichoke;
- Pumpkin;
- Tomatoes;
- green beans;
- Onion;
- Pumpkin and pumpkin spaghetti;
- ტურნიკი;
- Cucumber;
- Carrots;
- Beets
A teaspoon of olive oil for salad dressing or pan preparation and two tablespoons of bran are allowed. The period of physical activity is 30 minutes.
3. Reinforcement
The duration of the phase is defined as ten days for each kilogram lost. The goal is to avoid returning to your original weight. You can mix any product from the first two stages, as well as add a limited amount of fats and carbohydrates:
- Fruits: berries or chopped melons (100 g), medium-sized apples, oranges, pears, peaches, nectarines, or two kiwis, plums or apricots;
- Two slices of whole grain bread a day;
- Cheese, 40 g per day;
- Foods containing starch, 225 g per day: pasta, corn, beans, beans, rice or potatoes
- Meat: Grilled beef, pork or ham once or twice a week.
Twice a week you can enjoy a festive meal: appetite, main course, a glass of wine and dessert. One day a week should be protein (attack pattern). Bran - 2 5 tablespoons, physical activity - 25 minutes.
4. Stabilization
The final step that will help maintain a "correct" weight. There are no strict dietary restrictions, but you should follow a few principles:
- The products of the fixation phase should be taken as the basis of nutrition;
- Keep one protein a day a week;
- Walk for at least 20-30 minutes a day;
- Drink 1. 5 liters of water and consume at least 30 g of bran per day.
The last step is to follow your meal plan at all times with a small list of 100 foods.
Menu at the initial stage
Attack
- Breakfast: low-fat cottage cheese mixed with bran and cinnamon, coffee or tea, water. Skim milk and sweeteners can be added to tea and coffee at any meal.
- Lunch: chicken breast in a pan, fermented whey in broth, diet gelatin, iced tea.
- Dinner: steak and shrimp, diet gelatin, coffee or tea, water.
Alternative
- Breakfast: scrambled eggs with three eggs, tomato slices, coffee, water.
- Lunch: fried chicken and salad with French dressing, Greek kato yogurt, iced tea.
- Dinner: baked salmon fillet, steamed broccoli and cauliflower, diet gelatin, caffeinated coffee or tea, water.
Attachment
- Breakfast: three egg omelet with cheese (40 g) and spinach, coffee, water.
- Lunch: a portion of turkey with two slices of whole grain bread, 80 g of cottage cheese mixed with bran and cinnamon, iced tea.
- Dinner: pork in a pan and fried zucchini, small apples, caffeinated coffee, water.
The effectiveness of the Dukan diet
None of the diets have a lasting effect on weight loss and the diet can be unhealthy. After temporary weight loss, people return to their previous state and sometimes they recover more strongly than before changing their diet. A safe and effective way to achieve the desired weight, health and good physical shape is to choose a suitable lifestyle and diet with the help of specialists, which can be realistically followed regularly.
. . .There are many scientific publications that focus on the effectiveness of protein and low carb diets. However, there are several qualified studies according to the Dukan method.
In 2015, data were collected from 50 women aged 19-64 in Poland who followed the shop diet plan and consumed about 1000 calories per day, including 100 g of protein. Study participants lost 15 kg in 8-10 weeks.
In January, US News & World Report, one of the weekly economics, politics and health lists of the US for three weeks, published a diet rating of 23 experts. Dukan's diet hit the bottom of the list and got 5 out of 1. 9 points. Experts have evaluated the effectiveness of the diet 2. 5 and the health benefits 2. According to doctors, there is no evidence that weight loss according to the Dukan method can be long-term and safe, while the list of products is unreasonably limited and dietary rules are very strict. One expert openly called the diet "idiotic. "
The diet is effective for the first few weeks. There is no scientific research that supports weight loss and the long-term health of the diet has not been studied.
Harm of the Dukan diet
The diet is probably suitable for healthy people over the age of 18. The method is not recommended for chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, metabolic disorders, hormonal disorders, pregnancy, lactation.
The diet has all the disadvantages of a low carb diet as well as a few specific side effects as many healthy foods are excluded from the diet plan.
Rapid weight loss
The main disadvantage of the Dukan diet, according to British nutrition experts, is that it can be harmful to health:
- Initial weight loss occurs through dehydration;
- The diet is not balanced, so you need to take extra vitamins;
- Remember the daily amount of water and the required portion of oat bran to ensure a minimum amount of fiber.
Risk of disease
Due to the lack of vitamins and useful trace elements, the diet can provoke:
- Osteoporosis;
- Problems with the digestive system and gastrointestinal tract;
- Cardiovascular diseases;
- Hormonal disorders;
- Nervous system disorders.
"Ketogri"
Changing the diet can lead to a painful condition characterized by large amounts of protein in the early stages of the diet. The cause of unpleasant sensations is a change in metabolism as the body rebuilds itself to get energy from fats and proteins. Fatigue, increased hunger and thirst, attention and sleep problems, mood swings, headaches, digestive disorders, and tachycardia attacks can be felt for several days.
Scientists suggest that avoiding this diet could lead to future health problems. And because the diet is limited, most people eventually stop eating according to plan - they get bored and awkwardly follow the 100 food list and their rotation rules.
The Dukan diet is probably suitable for most healthy people, but has serious contraindications. Such a diet can provoke diseases of the cardiovascular, digestive and nervous systems, as well as hormonal disorders.
Key Facts About Dukan Diet:
per
- The Dukan method promotes rapid weight loss;
- In the first two weeks you can not count calories and eat the permitted food with almost no restrictions;
- Large amounts of protein quench hunger and help in eating less;
- The diet provides for mandatory physical activity.
Against
- Rapid weight loss occurs due to dehydration of the body;
- The list of foods is limited, so the body does not receive the necessary nutrients. On protein days, there are no vegetables in the diet, the amount of carbohydrates in the next stage is limited;
- Dietary fiber content is below the daily norm - 5 g instead of the recommended 25-38 g;
- There is no scientific evidence that such a diet leads to sustained weight loss;
- There are no data on the impact of diet on health in the long run.
Doctor's comment
"The Dukan diet is one of the most well-known ways to lose weight. And this diet was tried in time by most of the patients who came to me for a consultation.
A reasonable question arises: So why do they need the professional help of a dietitian? The answer is simple: Most people who have lost weight have returned to their former eating habits, which means they have lost their original weight for several years. Unfortunately, this is not the only part of the diet that people turn to for fun. And the Dukan diet is no exception.
But this is not the most important argument, which is why I do not recommend following this diet.
The main disadvantage of this type of food is the lack of essential macro and micronutrients for a long time. Lack of vitamins and minerals is compensated by special biologically active complexes, but this does not replace the natural intake of natural macro-and micronutrients. Conditions of such deficiency lead to a decrease in immunity, deterioration of the functioning of all organs and systems of the body.
The Dukan diet increases the load on the excretory system, the liver, so it is categorically contraindicated for people with chronic renal and hepatic insufficiency, pregnant and lactating women, those with impaired protein metabolism, gout, urolithiasis and cholelithiasis. Also in the exacerbation of chronic diseases - gastritis, ulcers, pancreatitis, cholecystitis, pyelonephritis.
The Dukan diet is a serious stress for the body, the potential harm from it far outweighs the benefits and the result is very volatile in the long run.
Follow the principles of optimal nutrition, have adequate physical activity and control your sleep and drink regime. The desired result will not take much time and your health will be in order. "