Diets and Their Impact on Human Health

People diet for many types of reasons as there is no issue with wanting to live a healthier life. There are also a wide variety of options when it comes to selecting a diet that might work for you. Humans are effected mentally and physically by ideas around food restriction, calorie counting and specific eating plans. We dive into diets, their history and how you can find what works for you.

History of Diets

One of the first recorded “diets” came around in 1918, it discussed calories and weight loss. In the 60s and 70s restriction diets became popular and women were known to eat only a small amount of grapefruit, boiled eggs and some oats during the day. Diets have come a long way, as we now understand the importance of calories for energy.

Ideas around food composition and how to set up your meals has been a huge part of our culture for a long time. Let’s discuss the various types of diets and how you can find what lifestyle works best for you.

What Type of Diet Works Best for You

Listed below are some of the most popular diets in the world. We dive into their components as well as how you can implement them. We truly believe no diet is right for every single person. The main goal should be to eat high quality foods, including fruits, veggies and good meat sources. From there, you can find a diet that aligns with your habits, goals and day-to-day life.

• The Paleo Diet is a natural way of eating, one that abandons most sugar intake. The only type of sugar in a Paleo diet comes from fruit, processed foods and grains are also taken out of your diet when participating in the Paleo diet. So what can be eaten? A Paleo diet consists of fish, chicken, beef, vegetables, fruits, nuts, oils, sweet potatoes, eggs and meat, so long as that meat is grass-fed and not grain-fed.
  
• The Vegan Diet is a form of the vegetarian diet as it eliminates meat and animal products. One of the primary effects of this diet is that it reduces the intake of cholesterol and saturated fat. It takes some planning, but if a vegan diet is planned out properly, it can have many positive effects. Studies have shown that those who practice a vegan diet minimize their overall risk of coronary heart disease, obesity and high blood pressure. To compensate for a lack of meat, vegans must find a way to incorporate more sources of protein and vitamin B-12 into their diets.
  
• The Blood Type Diet is based on the premise of matching people with their common dietary needs based on their blood type. For example, people with type O blood are recommended to eat foods that are high in protein. In order to lose weight, spinach, red meat, seafood and broccoli are suggested while dairy should be avoided. Those with type A blood are told to avoid most meats and place an emphasis on turkey, tofu, and fruit while weight loss is contingent on eating a diet that consists primarily of soy, seafood and vegetables. Individuals with type B and AB blood also have dietary restrictions and recommendations, including lower caffeine amounts and increasing amounts of greens.
  
• The South Beach Diet is the concept of changing one’s eating habits by balancing and controlling your every day diet with certain criteria. Certain carbohydrates are completely avoided. This often leads to developing a healthy way of eating so that it will be sustainable for the rest of people’s lives. The diet includes a selection of healthy fats, lean protein, as well as good carbs. It is similar to a ketogenic style diet, but the goal is not to enter ketosis.
  
• The Raw Food Diet completely eliminates uncooked and unprocessed foods. The diet also takes out the ingestion of any foods that have been pasteurized or produced with any kind of synthetics or additives. The diet is intended to create a surge in energy, a decrease in inflammation, while intending to lower the number of carcinogens in one’s diet. This diet is maybe the hardest to follow as you are pretty much eating everything in its natural form. If you have a passion for avoiding the big food industry as well as keeping everything in your body completely natural, this may be for you.
  
• The Mediterranean Diet is another vegetable-heavy diet that avoids a lot of meat. This diet has been proven to help with depression, in addition to controlling blood sugar levels and helping with weight loss. The Mediterranean diet recommends the use of oil as much as possible as the main source of fat for salad dressings or marinades. It also emphasizes adding vegetables to each meal and favors fish over any other meat source. Whole grains, nuts and herbs are also used in larger amounts. With this diet, you think of how people eat in places like Greece and Italy.

How Diets Effect Us

Diets can help us live a healthier, longer life, if we implement them correctly. Nowadays, we have a lot more research on what works to ensure you are living in the most effective state, so it is important to understand what your body needs by listening to cues you get internally. From the way you feel after eating certain things and the energy levels you have based on your diet, you get an understanding of what your body needs and tailor your body to those signals. Work to implement the best habits for you and the diet culture will impact you positively.