MAYO CLINIC
The Mayo Clinic Diet is similar in program to The Grapefruit Diet, but did not originate from the Mayo Clinic - it has been in circulation for over 30 years but no one claims ownership. Its status could almost be likened to an urban legend; recipes and guidelines are exchanged among friends, and listed on the Internet, but there is no formal plan or outline. The Mayo Clinic actually refutes the diet on their website because it receives so many questions about it. This ‘diet’ is a high-protein, high-fat and low-carb plan that must be followed for 7 days. Grapefruit is supposed to be eaten with each meal, and, according to most versions, was prescribed for heart patients requiring weight loss pre-surgery.
Foods Emphasized:Green vegetables, red onions, radishes, tomatoes, chili (no beans), mayonnaise, cheese, hot dogs, coleslaw, regular salad dressing, pickles, nuts, and grapefruit
Foods Restricted:Fruit other than grapefruit, white onions, potatoes, celery, peas, cereal, carrots, corn, starchy vegetables, bread, noodles, rice, potato chips, pretzels, and diet dressing
Premise and Guidelines: The Mayo Clinic diet is truly a misnomer as it is not an official Mayo Clinic diet, isn’t approved or affiliated with the Mayo Clinic. The plan calls for a high-protein, high-fat and low-carbohydrate diet that lasts three to seven days. Even though this diet is claimed to have been prescribed to patients with heart issues or preparing for bypass surgery, it isn’t very sound nutritionally, especially for someone with cardiac issues! It is very restrictive and eliminates many food choices, but does result in rapid weight loss. Even with positive results like that, sticking to this diet could prove to be very difficult. The general consensus of this ‘fake’ diet allows a dieter to eat unlimited amounts of grapefruit, meats and vegetables. Carbohydrates are almost completely removed from this plan. While dieters are restricted to eat specific foods, they are able to eat until satisfied. The key to weight loss on this diet is allegedly the combination of foods that trigger fat burning, and consequently, dieters must eat the exact foods recommended and not eliminate any components of the meal plan.
Because this diet is not backed by any expert, nutritionist, or even its own namesake, it should be ruled out as a diet option. A suggestion for filtering out faddish diets is to look at some warning signs: Here are some warning signs that an eating plan is a fad diet: The ruling out of entire food groups; unlimited consumption of any high-fat or sugary/sugar foods; promotion of increased caffeine intake; and little variety or extremely restrictive diet plan.