Fit for Life: Difference between revisions
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Despite the fact that FFL web site mentioned "clinical trials", the principles and benefits of FFL diet are not supported by scholarly research, and some of the claims have actually been directly refuted by scientific research. In particular, the banning of dairy products makes it difficult to meet the [[recommended daily allowance]] of [[calcium]].<ref name=gale/> Furthermore, a [[dissociated diet]] as that advertised by FFL has no additional benefit for weight loss over a calorie-restricted diet.<ref name="pmid10805507">{{cite journal |author=Golay A, Allaz AF, Ybarra J, ''et al'' |title=Similar weight loss with low-energy food combining or balanced diets |journal=[[Int. J. Obes. Relat. Metab. Disord.]] |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=492–6 |year=2000 |month=April |pmid=10805507 |doi= |url=http://www.nature.com/ijo/journal/v24/n4/abs/0801185a.html |laysummary=http://www.webmd.com/news/20000407/diets-combination-balanced|laysource=[[WebMD]]|laytitle=It's the Calories That Count, Not the Food Combinations|laydate=2009-02-09}}</ref><ref name=gale/> |
Despite the fact that FFL web site mentioned "clinical trials", the principles and benefits of FFL diet are not supported by scholarly research, and some of the claims have actually been directly refuted by scientific research. In particular, the banning of dairy products makes it difficult to meet the [[recommended daily allowance]] of [[calcium]].<ref name=gale/> Furthermore, a [[dissociated diet]] as that advertised by FFL has no additional benefit for weight loss over a calorie-restricted diet.<ref name="pmid10805507">{{cite journal |author=Golay A, Allaz AF, Ybarra J, ''et al'' |title=Similar weight loss with low-energy food combining or balanced diets |journal=[[Int. J. Obes. Relat. Metab. Disord.]] |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=492–6 |year=2000 |month=April |pmid=10805507 |doi= |url=http://www.nature.com/ijo/journal/v24/n4/abs/0801185a.html |laysummary=http://www.webmd.com/news/20000407/diets-combination-balanced|laysource=[[WebMD]]|laytitle=It's the Calories That Count, Not the Food Combinations|laydate=2009-02-09}}</ref><ref name=gale/> |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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*[[Dr. Hay diet]] |
*[[Dr. Hay diet]] |
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*[[Alkaline diet]] |
*[[Alkaline diet]] |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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Revision as of 06:06, 11 February 2009
Fit for Life (FFL) is a diet and lifestyle, stemming from the principles in natural hygiene, an offshoot of naturopathic medicine. It is promoted mainly by the American writers Harvey Diamond and Marilyn Diamond.[1] As the title of the 1985 book suggests, Fit for Life claims that one can lose excess body weight and maintain good health via long term dietary and lifestyle practices, rather than short term dieting. In the Fit for Life book series many dietary principles are recommended including eating only fruit in the morning, eating predominantly "live...high-water-content" food, and if eating animal protein to avoid combining it with complex carbohydrates.
While the diet has been praised for encouraging the consumption of raw fruits and vegetables, several other aspects of the diet have been disputed by dietitians and nutritionists.[1]
Description
The diet is based on Diamond's theories on how eating foods in the correct combination and avoiding the wrong combinations can bring about weight loss without calorie counting or exercise. In the first version of the diet Diamond claimed that if one eats the foods in the wrong combination they "rot" in the stomach. He also categorized foods in "dead foods" that "clog" the body, and "living foods" that "cleanse" it. Dead foods were meats and starches; living foods were raw fruits and vegetables. Some of the rules were:[1]
- Fruits are only healthy if they are eaten alone
- Carbohydrates and proteins should never be put in the stomach at the same time
- Water should never be drank at meals
- No dairy foods should ever be eaten
In the 2000s, the Fit for Life system added the Personalized FFL Weight Management Program, which employs proprietary protocols called Biochemical "Analyzation", Metabolic Typing and Genetic Predispositions. The Diamonds claim that these protocols allow the personalization of the diet, which thus customized is effective only for one individual, and can be used for that person's entire life. This version of the diet also puts less emphasis on "live" and "dead" foods, and instead talks of "enzyme deficient foods." The Diamonds argues that enzymes that digest proteins interfere with enzymes that digest carbohydrates, justifying some of the rules above. They also began to sell nutritional supplements, advertized as enzyme supplements, many of which are strongly recommended in the newest version of FFL.[1]
Publications and marketing
The diet came to public attention in the mid-1980s with the publication of Fit for Life, a New York Times best seller[2][3] which sold millions of copies,[1][4] over 12 million according to Harvey Diamond.[5] Harvey Diamond has also appeared on dozens of television talk shows promoting his theories.[1] In Fit for Life II (1989) the Diamonds warned against eating artificial food additives such as hydrogenated vegetable oil, which at the time was being promoted by the food industry as a healthy alternative to saturated fat. Tony Robbins promotes the Fit for Life principles and veganism to increase energy levels in his book Unlimited Power.
In contrast with other programs, such as Weight Watchers and Body for life, FFL sample meal plans and approved food lists are not available until one signs up for the program at a substantial fee.[1]
Book series
- Fit for Life (1985) - by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond ISBN 0-446-30015-2
- Fit for Life II (1989) - by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond ISBN 0-446-35875-4
- Fit for Life: A New Beginning (2001) - by Harvey Diamond ISBN 1-57566-718-5
- Living Without Pain (Fit for Life) - by Harvey Diamond ISBN 0976996103
Controversy
Harvey Marilyn's competence to write about nutrition has been contested because his doctoral degree came from the American College of Life Science, a non-accredited correspondence school founded in 1982 by a high-school dropout. FFL's personalized diet program has been criticized for providing a "Clinical Manual" that is heavily infused with alternative medicine claims about how the body works, which are scientifically questionable and not accepted by conventional medicine.[1]
Despite the fact that FFL web site mentioned "clinical trials", the principles and benefits of FFL diet are not supported by scholarly research, and some of the claims have actually been directly refuted by scientific research. In particular, the banning of dairy products makes it difficult to meet the recommended daily allowance of calcium.[1] Furthermore, a dissociated diet as that advertised by FFL has no additional benefit for weight loss over a calorie-restricted diet.[6][1]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Tish Davidson (2007). "Fit for Life diet". The Gale Encyclopedia of Diets: A Guide to Health and Nutrition. Thomson Gale. p. 383–385. ISBN 1414429916.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|editors=ignored (|editor=suggested) (help) - ^ "BEST SELLERS". New York Times. 1986-01-05. Retrieved 2009-02-09.
- ^ "Best Sellers From 1987's Book Crop". New York Times. 1988-01-06. Retrieved 2009-02-09.
- ^ Fein, Esther B. (1993-02-01). "THE MEDIA BUSINESS: Publishing; Where literary lightning hits, book houses often hope for a second strike". New York Times. Retrieved 2009-02-09.
- ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=1bagUcM87rYC&pg=PA82&dq=%22fit+for+life%22+%2212+million%22
- ^ Golay A, Allaz AF, Ybarra J; et al. (2000). "Similar weight loss with low-energy food combining or balanced diets". Int. J. Obes. Relat. Metab. Disord. 24 (4): 492–6. PMID 10805507.
{{cite journal}}: Explicit use of et al. in:|author=(help); Unknown parameter|laydate=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|laysource=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|laysummary=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|laytitle=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)