Weight Loss, Dieting & Obesity

Silly Fad Diets :
The Grapefruit Diet,  a.k.a. The Hollywood Diet - Comments and Review.

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The Grapefruit Diet has seen regular reincarnations since it was first touted as a weight loss miracle in the early 1930s, when it was originally known as "The Hollywood Diet".

There is no one exact, specific Grapefruit diet, though the various incarnations all have one factor in common - eating grapefruit before each meal. Some versions combine it with a high protein diet, claiming that enzymes in the grapefruit combine with certain aminos in the proteins to produce a rapid weight loss effect.

All incarnations of the Grapefruit Diet since the 1930s have touted these special enzymes in grapefruits, allegedly not present in other types of citrus fruits. From a scientific perspective, there is a partial truth in that claim - no other citrus fruit contains this special enzyme. The weakness of the case, though, is that nor does grapefruit. No such special enzyme has ever been discovered.

Still, people have for many decades now reported good weight loss results by eating a grapefruit, or half a grapefruit, before each meal. Why? Simple. The various published grapefruit diet plans tend to be very low calorie diet plans of only around 1,000 calories per day. It is the low daily calorie intake, not some magical unidentified enzyme, that results in weight loss.

It seems the idea of grapefruit in a weight loss diet has been incorporated into other, less extreme diets. The Scarsdale Medical Diet, for example, prescribes a half-grapefruit with protein bread toast for breakfast each day. Dr Herman Tarnower, that diet's author, did not make claims about magical enzymes and, in fact, even suggested alternatives such as cantaloupe instead of grapefruit if preferred. It also does not prescribe grapefruit for every meal of the day. It is quite possible that Dr. Tarnower was influenced by his profession as a Cardiologist, as grapefruits, particularly the red variety, are known to reduce cholesterol levels.

In this present era, probably quite distinct from the original idea back in the 1930's when The Grapefruit Diet was also known as The Hollywood Diet, the use of grapefruits actually poses dangers for certain people. Known compounds within grapefruit cause adverse interactions with various modern medications. In some cases, it negates the effects of medications. In other cases, grapefruit or grapefruit juice can boost the effect of certain medications to potentially toxic and deadly levels. To date, the list of medications known to be adversely affected by grapefruit exceeds fifty, and growing. In particular, medications for life-threatening conditions such as heart disease, cancer, organ-transplant rejection, and infection are involved. Therefore, it is advised that you should consult your doctor and your pharmacist for advice on drug reactions to grapefruit or grapefruit juice if you are using medications of any type whatsoever.

Given that the grapefruit diet has now been around for eighty (80) years and that the health benefits and drug interactions of grapefruit have been studied very extensively, it is notable that, in all that time, only ONE scientific study "proves" the weight loss benefits of grapefruits. That 2004 study showed a sample group of people lost between three and four (3 & 4) pounds over a twelve week period by consuming grapefruits AND a controlled calorie intake diet... While the researchers hypothesized the weight loss to be caused by reducing insulin levels, thus assisting weight loss. A skeptic, however, may well question whether the grapefruit had any effect whatsoever given that the weight loss achieved was quiet small and the patients were also on a calorie controlled diet. Furthermore, the potential for bias must be allowed for, given that the study was funded by The Florida Citrus Department, whose entire reason for being and purpose of its existence is to promote and sell grapefruit.

In conclusion, grapefruits have no magical enzymes that promote weight loss. Although healthy in moderation and potentially deadly if consumed with certain medications, in all there is no specific believable weight loss benefit from grapefruit. Diets that emphasize grapefruits every meal, such as The Grapefruit Diet or The Hollywood Diet are, in the end, just more silly fad diets.