Wow, worst "diet" ever!

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thinking_thinly
thinking_thinly Posts: 143 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Yesterday, while spending Easter dinner with family, I got to catch up with my Aunt who has struggled with her weight her entire adult life; even going so far as to have bariatric surgery over ten years ago. In spite of the surgery, and being told she needed to make drastic changes to her diet, she continued her same eating habits and regained all the weight. Last fall, she had a major car accident and resulted in terrible complications that almost cost her her life. During this time she lost a considerable amount of weight, unsurprising considering how injured she was. Well, over dinner last night, we got on the topic of weight loss, and she mentioned her new "diet": She eats nothing but jars of pickles and then takes her diuretics for the water retention! I'm pretty sure my jaw visibly dropped. Also, there was sooooooo much ignorance to her statements like "pickles don't have any calories". Um, I'm pretty sure all food has calories! Secondly, I'm pretty sure this is the most dangerous diet I have ever heard of! However, she didn't want to here any sane advice, and ate pickles the rest of the evening... Good luck with that, I guess. Some people.....
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Replies

  • MikeInAZ
    MikeInAZ Posts: 483 Member
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    Yep, pretty much the worst diet I've ever heard of. You can't change someone who doesn't want to change. You can try, but it's not going to happen. Good luck with that. Sorry to hear a loved one is so ignorant about their health.
  • jaimrlx
    jaimrlx Posts: 426 Member
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    My mom bought this diet book that was written in the 70s, before a lot of scientific studies were out. It explains how, as a busy woman, you only need 430 calories per day - and even that was pushing it. I don't remember the name of the book, but it's horrible. She'll eat maybe 300 calories per day, and then get upset when she suddenly gains weight because she ate like a normal person.

    Sometimes, health ignorance is hard to watch.
  • JazzyTimmy
    JazzyTimmy Posts: 8
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    Wow. You mentioned that she didn't want to hear any sane advice ... sounds like she *really* wants a quick-fix. Maybe when she sees that you're maintaining while she's re-gained, then she'll listen to reason.
  • jazzedorange
    jazzedorange Posts: 184 Member
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    How do you not get physically sick from eating the same thing, like pickles every day? I couldn't do that. But I wish her the best.
  • PayneAS
    PayneAS Posts: 669 Member
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    Probably as bad, if not worse, than the cabbage soup diet.
  • Briko3
    Briko3 Posts: 267 Member
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    Some pickles don't have calories. The sugars found in normal cucumbers are broken down in the pickling process and the fiber isn't digestible.
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,583 Member
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    Some pickles don't have calories. The sugars found in normal cucumbers are broken down in the pickling process and the fiber isn't digestible.
    you forgot the "april fools!" and the "LOL"
  • hollyk57
    hollyk57 Posts: 520 Member
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    10389.jpg
  • AwesomelyAmber
    AwesomelyAmber Posts: 1,617 Member
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    Some pickles don't have calories. The sugars found in normal cucumbers are broken down in the pickling process and the fiber isn't digestible.

    I have read this myself... and have seen the nutrician labels on the jars to back it up. Most jars now state 5 calories for 3 mini pickles or something like that.
  • mariapuhl
    mariapuhl Posts: 529 Member
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    While I could live (taste wise) on my aunt's homemade pickles, because they are just so delicious.... no. Just no... that's insane.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
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    Yesterday, while spending Easter dinner with family, I got to catch up with my Aunt who has struggled with her weight her entire adult life; even going so far as to have bariatric surgery over ten years ago. In spite of the surgery, and being told she needed to make drastic changes to her diet, she continued her same eating habits and regained all the weight. Last fall, she had a major car accident and resulted in terrible complications that almost cost her her life. During this time she lost a considerable amount of weight, unsurprising considering how injured she was. Well, over dinner last night, we got on the topic of weight loss, and she mentioned her new "diet": She eats nothing but jars of pickles and then takes her diuretics for the water retention! I'm pretty sure my jaw visibly dropped. Also, there was sooooooo much ignorance to her statements like "pickles don't have any calories". Um, I'm pretty sure all food has calories! Secondly, I'm pretty sure this is the most dangerous diet I have ever heard of! However, she didn't want to here any sane advice, and ate pickles the rest of the evening... Good luck with that, I guess. Some people.....

    Sounds legit
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    I probably shouldn't be, but I'm actually shocked by the lack of just general, basic knowledge of nutrition. This is a prime example, but I see a shockingly low level of knowledge about even the most basic aspects of nutrition and fitness on display here at MFP daily. It's pretty pathetic really.
  • mlrodgers381
    mlrodgers381 Posts: 71 Member
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    Even with the "calories" issue aside...she would definately be ingesting too much sodium, if that's all she's eating. Sadly, I've known people like this too, and like others here have said, you can't change some people, you can only pray for them...
  • VoodooLuLu
    VoodooLuLu Posts: 636 Member
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    :sick: pickles ewww
  • Trechechus
    Trechechus Posts: 2,819 Member
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    Pickles are vile.
  • NaomiJFoster
    NaomiJFoster Posts: 1,450 Member
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    So much sodium! I love pickles like a crazy person, but I know enough to keep it in balance with other things in my diet. And overuse of diuretics is dangerous too, isn't it? She might lose a few pounds, but she's asking for a heart attack.
  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,229 Member
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    Pickles are extremely low in calories but high in sodium. She will probably end up with high blood pressure and a slew of other health issues.
  • thinking_thinly
    thinking_thinly Posts: 143 Member
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    She definitely has a lack of basic understanding about human physiology. I tried to share with her what I did/am doing, but she says she is "happy" with what she is doing. The thing is... her scale weight is going down, but everytime I see her, her BF% has gone up... she looks heavier than before :\
  • sunnyhlw77
    sunnyhlw77 Posts: 204 Member
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    Okay, I LOVE pickles. I love sour, sweet, garlic, no garlic, cucumber, cauliflower, onion, beans, etc. I love them but as a snack. I'm not sure how any one food no matter how low in calories could be healthy enough to eat it all the time to lose weight. The body needs its vitamins, minerals, proteins, sugars etc. I think personally, there is no better diet than healthy fresh foods in moderation and plenty of exercise. What I love about this site is I think we're all facing the same struggle, the struggle to get healthier, live longer and feel better over all. There are a lot of crazy diets out there, actually this morning in fact I heard that British scientists are developing a "microchip" to help with weight loss and that they are going to start testing it on animals soon and in a few years on humans. Really? Unless that microchip is designed to get a person moving and stop them from overeating or eating junk, its going to be the same "quick" fix like all of the others that have failed. Sorry about my tangent, lol.
  • iuew
    iuew Posts: 624 Member
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    eating only pickles = not good.

    if you think that's bad, check out this diet :

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/944039-pototae-cleanse-pruven-methods

    lol

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