The Dukan Diet Review :
The Dukan diet is basically a high protein, low fat and low carbohydrate diet. This diet is intended to aid in weight loss by using regular foods as opposed to specially developed shakes, bars and other meal replacements. This healthy diet plan includes a total of 100 food items of which 72 are animal based sources and the rest 28 from plant base. The important aspect of this diet is that it allows the dieters to consume as much as they like in the allowed categories of food. This diet focuses on weight loss and weight maintenance, after achieving the target weight.
Inventor of The Dukan diet:
The Dukan diet was formulated by a French Doctor by name Dr.Pierre Dukan. The diet has been named after him. In the initial phase of his career he was a doctor, who specialized in neurology. He formulated this diet plan, when he found the miracle of rapid weight loss produced by high protein, low carbohydrate diet in his friend. Now he is an expert in the field of nutrition, having more than 35 years of experience in the field of nutrition and diet with several best selling books on the related articles under his name.
Phases of The diet:
The Dukan diet is basically divided in to four phases to help in weight reduction and weight maintenance.
- Dukan Diet Attack Phase: This is the first phase of dieting which prepares the body for the forth coming rapid weight loss phase. During this phase the weight loss in the body is kick started with a pure protein based diet. This phase is for a period of 2 to 10 days depending on the amount of weight to be shed.
- Cruise phase: This is the actual weight reduction phase. This allows a diet of high proteins combined with vegetables. This diet alternates between high protein diet and protein and vegetables diet. This helps in a weight loss of up to 2 lbs or 1 kg per week.
- Consolidation Phase: This phase reintroduces the carbohydrates in limited quantity to the restricted diet followed in the previous phases, without weight gain. This phase also gives a bonus of one special meal per week.
- Stabilization phase: This phase is a unique phase of this diet, where the maintenance of the achieved new weight is targeted. This phase reintroduces carbohydrate in gradual manner. This phase supports one day of pure protein diet per week to maintain the weight lost.
Pros of Dukan diet:
- This diet allows the person dieting to eat unlimited quantity of the food allowed, without any worries of calorie counting.
- The diet is planned from the regular day to day foods we eat and do not include any dietary supplements. So it is easy to follow.
- The diet produces visible weight loss in the initial two phases.
- The maintenance and consolidations help in maintaining the newly achieved weight. This is usually a tough thing, as the body tends to accumulate the lost weight on leaving the diet.
- The simple dieting methods makes it easy to be followed life long.
Cons of Dukan diet:
- The Dukan diet is not well suited for vegetarians as the majority foods of the diet are animal based.
- Nutritional deficiency: As the initial phases target on high protein, and low carbohydrates, the brain is deprived of the essential carbohydrates required for normal functioning. This results in nausea and vomiting. Hence this is not well suited for highly obese people, as they have to stay for long in the attack and cruise phase.
- Liver and Kidney malfunctioning: The low carbohydrates diet produces an insulin level change in the body, which may lead to malfunctioning of liver and kidneys.
- High cholesterol: There is a high chance of increase in cholesterol level, as most of the food items are meat based.
- This diet may sometimes lead to ketosis and gout.
Does the Dukan diet work?
In summary, the Dukan diet is a well suited diet for non-vegetarian people. This diet is unique of its kind by allowing the dieters to eat as much as they want in the allowed food categories without worries of calories. Further this diet also teaches methods to sustain the weight loss.
We highly recommend the Dukan diet, its safe, easy to follow and you can achieve quick results. Any diet that promotes all you can eat (admittedly from select varieties of food) is ok with us!
