Ducan Diet is one of the most widely advertised weight loss methods. Understand how the diet works, what is the "correct" weight, and why the Dukan diet can be dangerous.
Who is Pierre Ducan
The creator of the popular diet is not a dietitian, but a therapist. When an obese patient came to visit him in 1970, Pierre Dukan was receiving general medical treatment. The man said frankly that in order to lose weight, he was going to give up any food except meat. The doctor formulated a diet based on lean meat, non-starchy vegetables and a small amount of fruit. A prerequisite is to refuse sugar.
Dukan believes that such a diet is most conducive to natural metabolism: primitive people eat meat, seasonal vegetables and fruits. In our understanding, he has no access to sugar, so he should abandon it now.
After 30 years of experimentation and observation, Pierre Ducan published the book "I Can't Lose Weight", which became a bestseller in 32 countries. The new method promises to lose 5 kilograms in one to two weeks without limiting the amount of food.
Celebrities who publicly praised this new approach added popularity to Ducan's design. Jennifer Lopez and Gisele Bündchen used this diet to lose weight after pregnancy and childbirth. Welsh singer Catherine Jenkins claimed to be in shape by accepting Dukan's plan.
In 2012, the French Medical Council stated that the commercialization of medicine by nutritionists violated ethical principles. In 2014, Pierre Ducan was fired by the doctor for promoting and promoting this method.
How the diet works
The Ducan diet means that the protein diet contains the least carbohydrates and fats. The plan includes 100 products, which can be consumed in any amount during the first few weeks.
This approach largely reflects the ketogenic diet and other low-carbohydrate meal plans, where the body is rebuilding itself to obtain energy from fat and protein. The high protein content of food helps balance the production of insulin and reduce the production of hunger hormones. We eat faster and eat less. However, the Dukane diet restricts not only carbohydrates but also fats. The safety and benefits of this approach have not been supported by research.
Before proceeding with the Ducan meal plan, you need to calculate your "correct" weight. This can be done using a special calculator. The calculation is based on the data of height, maximum and minimum weight, age, and body structure characteristics. The calculator was developed by Pierre Dukan, so the results should be scientifically verified and consult your doctor.
Ducan's diet is divided into four stages:
- attack.
- alternately.
- Anchored.
- stability.
Obvious weight loss has already started in the attack phase, which will motivate you to continue eating according to the Ducan method. The reason for fast weight loss is dehydration, because the body loses water due to lack of carbohydrates. However, experts have not confirmed the long-term effectiveness of this method and the health benefits of diet. Let us figure out how diet works and why it has many contraindications.
Stages of the Dukane diet
The diet consists of four parts, the duration of which depends on the calculated "correct" weight. The first two stages are to lose weight, and the last two stages are to consolidate the results. During the attack, only high-protein foods are allowed. Then add non-starchy vegetables, limited fat, and additional carbohydrates.
The duration of the attack, alternation, and reinforcement depends on how many kilograms you need to lose to reach the "correct" weight. The final stage, which must be constantly adhered to, combines a fixed-stage diet with a weekly protein day to form an attack mode.
1. Attack
This phase lasts from 2 to 7 days. If you need to lose 20 kg or more to reach the "correct" weight, this stage may take longer. The meal plan includes 68 protein foods and some additional foods:
- Meat: beef, veal, venison and other game, pork, lean meat and soy bacon, liver, kidney, tongue;
- Poultry: chicken fillet and liver, turkey, wild duck, quail, low-fat turkey and chicken sausage;
- Fish and seafood: no restrictions, including canned tuna in the water;
- Vegetarian protein: seitan-vegetable protein, meat substitutes made from wheat gluten, vegetarian burgers and soy products, tofu and tempeh;
- Eggs: chicken, quail, duck;
- Low-fat dairy products: milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese-no more than 1 kg per day.
The daily diet must 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, Shirataki noodles and unlimited edible gelatin.
You need to devote 20 minutes of physical activity every day.
2. Alternate
The time to gradually reach the correct weight varies from one month to one year. The diet in the previous phase was alternated every other day, and the menu was more gentle and expanded-32 kinds of vegetables were added:
- Spinach, kale, lettuce and other green vegetables
- Broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts;
- Bell peppers;
- mushroom;
- celery;
- asparagus;
- artichoke;
- zucchini;
- tomato;
- green beans;
- onion;
- Pumpkin and Pumpkin Pasta;
- turnip;
- cucumber;
- Radish;
- beet.
Allow one teaspoon of olive oil for salad dressing or cooking in a pan and two tablespoons of bran. Physical activity time is 30 minutes.
3. Anchor
The duration of this phase is determined at a rate of ten days per kilogram lost. The goal is to prevent returning to starting weight. You can mix any products from the first two stages and add a limited amount of fat and carbohydrates:
- Fruits: berries or chopped melons (100 grams), one medium-sized apple, orange, pear, peach, nectarine, or two kiwis, plums or apricots;
- Two slices of whole wheat bread a day;
- Cheese, 40 grams per day;
- Starchy foods, 225 grams per day: pasta, corn, beans, beans, rice or potatoes
- Meat: roast beef, pork or ham once or twice a week.
You can enjoy a festive meal twice a week: appetizer, main course, glass of wine and dessert. One day a week should be protein (attack mode). Bran-2. 5 tablespoons, physical activity-25 minutes.
4. Stable
The final step to help maintain the "correct" weight. There are no strict dietary restrictions, but you need to follow a few principles:
- Products in a fixed stage should be used as the nutritional basis;
- Maintain a protein day every week;
- Walk at least 20-30 minutes a day;
- Drink 1. 5 liters of water every day and eat at least 30 grams of bran.
The final step involves always following your meal plan and listing 100 foods that are hardly added.
Initial menu
attack
- Breakfast: low-fat cheese mixed with bran and cinnamon, coffee or tea, and water. Skim milk and sweeteners can be added to tea and coffee in any meal.
- Lunch: chicken breast in a pan, Shirataki noodles in broth, gelatin for weight loss, iced tea.
- Dinner: steak and shrimp, weight loss gelatin, coffee or tea, water.
alternately
- Breakfast: three scrambled eggs, tomato slices, coffee, water.
- Lunch: fried chicken and French salad, Greek bran yogurt, iced tea.
- Dinner: grilled salmon fillet, steamed broccoli and cauliflower, weight loss gelatin, decaffeinated coffee or tea, water.
Anchored
- Breakfast: an omelet with three eggs plus cheese (40 grams), spinach, coffee, and water.
- Lunch: a turkey, two slices of whole wheat bread, 80 grams of cheese mixed with bran and cinnamon, iced tea.
- Dinner: pork and roasted zucchini in a pan, a small apple, decaffeinated coffee, water.
Effectiveness of the Dukan diet
No separate diet can provide long-term weight loss, and the diet may be unhealthy. After temporarily losing weight, people will return to their previous state, and sometimes they will recover more intensely than before changing their diet. A safe and effective way to gain an ideal weight and maintain a healthy and good body shape is to choose a suitable lifestyle and diet with the help of experts and observe regularly
. . .There are many scientific publications focusing on the efficacy of high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets. However, according to the Dukane method, there are few qualified studies.
In 2015, Poland collected data on 50 women aged 19-64 who followed the Ducan meal plan and consumed about 1, 000 calories a day, including 100 grams of protein. Study participants lost 15 kg in 8-10 weeks.
In January, U. S. News and World Report is one of the top three weekly magazines in the economic, political, and health fields of the United States. It published a diet ranking of 23 experts. Ducan's diet ranked last, with a score of 1. 9 (out of 5). Experts rated the efficacy of this diet as 2. 5, and the health benefits as 2. According to doctors, there is no evidence that following the Dukane method to lose weight can be safe in the long term, and the product list is unreasonably restricted and the dietary rules are too complicated. An expert publicly called this diet "stupid".
This diet is effective in the first few weeks. There is no scientific research to support sustained weight loss, and no research on the long-term effects of diet on health.
The dangers of Dukane's diet
This diet is probably suitable for healthy people over 18 years of age. This method is not recommended for chronic gastrointestinal diseases, metabolic disorders, hormonal disorders, pregnancy, and breastfeeding.
This diet has all the disadvantages of a low-carbohydrate diet, as well as some specific side effects, because many healthy foods are excluded from the meal plan.
Lose weight fast
According to British nutrition experts, the main disadvantage of the Dukane diet is that it can be harmful to health:
- The initial weight loss occurs through dehydration;
- Unbalanced diet and need to supplement vitamins;
- Please keep in mind the daily amount of water and oat bran needed to ensure minimal fiber.
Disease risk
Due to lack of vitamins and beneficial trace elements, diet can cause:
- Osteoporosis;
- Digestive system and gastrointestinal problems;
- Heart and blood vessel diseases;
- hormone imbalance;
- Nervous system disease.
"Ketogrip"
Painful situations may occur when changing diet, which is characteristic of the initial stage of a large protein diet. The reason for the discomfort is that the metabolism has changed, because the body is rebuilding to obtain energy from fat and protein. Fatigue, increased hunger and thirst, concentration and sleep problems, mood swings, headaches, indigestion, and paroxysmal tachycardia may last for several days.
Scientists speculate that avoiding this diet may cause future health problems. And because the diet is limited, most people will eventually stop eating as planned-they will feel bored and uncomfortable because they stick to the 100 food list and rotation rules.
The Ducan diet is probably suitable for most healthy people, but it has serious contraindications. This diet can cause cardiovascular, digestive and nervous system diseases, as well as hormonal imbalances.
Key facts about the Dukane diet:
Every
- Ducan method helps to lose weight quickly;
- In the first two weeks, you were unable to count calories and had almost unlimited consumption of permitted food;
- A lot of protein can reduce hunger and help eat less;
- The diet stipulates compulsory physical activities.
be opposed to
- Due to dehydration of the body, weight will drop rapidly;
- The food list is limited, so the body cannot get the necessary nutrients. On protein days, there are no vegetables in the diet, and in the following stages, the amount of carbohydrates is limited;
- Dietary fiber content is lower than the daily standard-5 grams instead of the recommended 25-38 grams;
- There is no scientific evidence that this kind of nutrition leads to sustainable weight loss;
- There are no data on the long-term effects of diet on health.
Doctor's opinion
"The Dukane diet is one of the most famous weight loss methods. Most of the patients who came to me for consultation tried this diet at the appropriate time.
A reasonable question arises: So, why do they need the professional help of a nutritionist? The answer is simple: most people who lose weight have regained their original eating habits within a few years, that is, to their original weight. Unfortunately, this is the flip side of most diets that people seek to slim. The Dukane Diet is no exception.
But this is not the most important argument, so I do not recommend this diet.
The main harm of this kind of nutrition is the long-term lack of necessary macro and micronutrients. The deficiency of vitamins and minerals can be compensated by special biologically active compounds, but this cannot replace the natural intake of natural macro and trace elements. This lack of conditions will lead to a decline in immunity, and the work of all organs and systems in the body will deteriorate.
Dukan's diet will increase the excretion system and liver load, so it is suitable for people with chronic renal insufficiency and liver insufficiency, pregnant and lactating women, impaired protein metabolism, gout, urolithiasis and cholelithiasis. , It is absolutely taboo. And during the worsening of chronic diseases-gastritis, ulcers, pancreatitis, cholecystitis, pyelonephritis.
Ducan diet is a serious stress for the body, its potential harm far outweighs its benefits, and the long-term results are very unstable.
Follow the principles of optimal nutrition, engage in adequate physical activity, and monitor your sleep and drinking status. The expected results will come soon, and your health will be in order. "