Cabbage soup diet facts for kids
The cabbage soup diet is a very strict eating plan. It involves eating a special low-calorie cabbage soup for seven days straight. People try this diet to lose weight quickly. However, most health experts consider it a fad diet. This means it's designed for fast, short-term weight loss, not for long-term healthy eating habits.
People often claim you can lose about 10 pounds (4.5 kg) in just one week on this diet. But nutrition experts say it's almost impossible to lose that much body fat so quickly. Most of the weight lost is actually water, not fat.
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What is the Cabbage Soup Diet?
This diet focuses on eating a lot of a specific cabbage soup. You can usually eat as much of the soup as you want. Besides the soup, the diet plan allows a few other low-calorie foods each day. These might include certain fruits, vegetables, or a small amount of lean protein. The main idea is to eat very few calories overall.
Where Did This Diet Come From?
The exact start of the cabbage soup diet is a bit of a mystery. It became popular in the 1980s through things like fax messages and photocopies shared among friends. It often went by different names, trying to sound more official. Some names included the "Sacred Heart Diet" or the "Military Cabbage Soup." However, all the groups mentioned have said they have nothing to do with this diet.
Why Experts Don't Recommend It
Many doctors and health professionals have concerns about the cabbage soup diet. They point out several reasons why it's not a healthy way to lose weight.
Health Concerns to Know About
- Temporary Weight Loss: As mentioned, most of the weight you lose is water, not fat. This means the weight often comes back quickly once you stop the diet. It's not a lasting solution for weight management.
- Too Few Calories: The diet provides far fewer calories than your body needs each day. For growing teens, this can be especially harmful. Your body needs enough energy to function properly, learn, and grow.
- High Sodium: The soup recipe often contains a lot of salt. While salt makes the soup taste better, too much sodium can be unhealthy. It can lead to problems like high blood pressure for some people.
- Lack of Protein: For several days, the diet offers almost no protein. Protein is super important for building and repairing muscles. It also helps you feel full and gives you energy. Without enough protein, you might feel weak.
- Feeling Unwell: Many people on the diet report feeling weak, dizzy, or light-headed. This is often because they are not getting enough nutrients or calories.
Is It Easy to Follow?
On a practical level, many people find the cabbage soup diet very difficult to stick to. The soup itself is often described as bland or boring. Even with spicy versions, eating the same soup for seven days can be tough. Many people don't finish the full week. They might even start to feel sick just by smelling the soup towards the end of the diet. Another common side effect of eating so much cabbage is gas.
