How Extreme, Short-Term Diets Have Lasting Effects

No Jell-O Daniel Bissonnette had never seen Goldfish, Fruit Loops, or blue Jell-O until they were placed right in front of him in his preschool class. He thought they were art supplies and even started to smear the Jell-O over his napkin as if it was water. This is because, like many other kids, his mother started him off with a raw, vegan, non-GMO, and unprocessed diet, also known as the paleo diet. This is only one of many extreme diets.

Extreme diets can be very unhealthy. They cause people to lose lots of weight fast but can cause one to fall behind on the nutrition their body needs. Some people do diets such as the paleo diet where one eats foods thought to have been eaten by early humans. Some people do a juice cleanse, and only eat fruits and vegetables for up to 10 days. Some people even do something called the tapeworm diet. That is where one eats a tapeworm or the larvae of a tapeworm, and lets it grow inside of them.

It lives inside of the body and eats the food and nutrients that the body needs. Not all diets are bad but if taken to an extreme measure then they can be very unhealthy. Many parents start their kids off with diets such as the paleo diet thinking that it is the healthiest way for their kids to live.

Parents such as Ilana Bissonnette only let their kids eat raw vegetables and fruit and unprocessed food such as meat, eggs, fish, nuts, seeds, and spices.

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She states “That story may seem incredible, but for the first six years of his life, she says, Daniel was raised on a raw, vegan, non-GMO, unprocessed diet, which means he only ate uncooked, unprocessed foods, and no meat or products of animal origin” (Hutchins, Aaron) Kids with diets such as these have never had food such as grains and most dairy products. Paleo, low-carb, and gluten-free diets are very unhealthy for growing kids and teens. Kids need the carbs from the food they eat to build bones and need the vitamins, minerals, and fiber from gluten instead of processed gluten-free food. Anorexia nervosa and Bulimia nervosa are whole other issues, both result in extreme dieting. Anorexia nervosa is a fear of being fat. Sometimes people with Anorexia nervosa will starve themselves or throw up the food they eat. They are always weighing themselves trying to burn the few calories they consume. Bulimia nervosa is when one goes through phases where they eat a lot all at one time. People with bulimia nervosa usually can not control how much they eat. After they try to lose all the unwanted carbs through vomiting, laxatives, fasting, or excessive exercise.

Both of these are very unhealthy, not only how they lose the weight but losing that much weight then gaining it again. According to Kevin Hall, who studies weight regulation at the National Institutes of Health in Maryland “For every kilogram of weight loss a person experiences, their metabolism slows down around 20 to 30 calories” (). When one loses weight their metabolisms and appetites change. If the weight is regained the weight their metabolisms will not go back up so their body burns fewer calories per pound. Little did Ilana Bissonnette know that her son needed the snacks most kids ate. Extreme diets are very unhealthy, especially for growing kids and teens. They don’t get the vitamins and materials they need. They don’t carbs they need to build bones. The way people lose weight is also very unhealthy. Vomiting, laxatives, fasting, or excessive exercise are the worst way to lose weight. Losing lots of weight causes one to change their appetites and metabolism. Then they burn fewer calories per bound. Diets are a great way to lose weight but extreme diets are not healthy. Extreme diets can affect the rest of a person’s life.