Are Liquid Diets a Good Idea?

Why would one want to eat a liquid diet when there are lots of solids to choose from?

If you are looking to quickly lose weight, then the answer to that question is easy. A liquid diet will not only help you lose weight but will help you when you have an issue with your digestive system or are recovering quickly from injuries.

But that doesn’t mean that you can eat this diet for a prolonged period of time. If you aim to use it to lose weight, then having a liquid diet for only one day is very beneficial. For once, it will help you detoxify your system and start you off on a weight loss plan.

 

What Is A Liquid Diet?

When you embark on a liquid diet, the import of it is that you are getting all your energy and calorie requirement from drinks. It could be in the form of a vegetable or fruit juice, smoothie, soup or shake taken as a replacement all or any of the three main daily meals.

While you may decide to do a  diet on your own, there are times when a medical practitioner may have to supervise you.

Although it contains very few calories, the liquid diet contains a lot of minerals and vitamins. Some, especially the, shakes also contain some protein. That means you will be able to keep taking in the right nutrients, even as you cut on the pounds.

 

Do Liquid Diets Really Work?

An effective liquid diet is one which is taken as a drink and contains fewer calories than your body needs. With it, you can be sure you are taking the right steps to lose weight. Given its short-term nature, a diet may not give you the results you desire, especially if you go back to your old eating habits.

When all is said and done, an effective diet will ensure you get long-term weight loss benefits. You may want to combine solids and liquids for the best results. If you are overweight, this could be the best way to limit the number of calories you eat.

With a liquid-only diet, you will only be eating up to 700 calories while the inclusion of some solids will afford you up to 1000 daily calories, which is comfortable enough to ensure you lose weight.

Also, liquids get absorbed into the bloodstream quickly, thus supporting proper liver function. When the liver is overtaxed, it finds it very hard to get rid of excess blood cholesterol, leading to weight gain.

With a liquid diet, the liver finds the rest it needs from having to deal with normal diets. Thus it becomes easier for you to efficiently eliminate stored fat from the body. The metabolism levels in your body will also rise to healthy levels even as get over food cravings. That’s how it can help you lose weight.

 

The Best Liquid Diet Types

Before you start doing a liquid diet, what are some of the types you may want to consider doing? Having this knowledge will help you to decide the liquid for weight loss. Given its health implications, it is good to get a physician’s opinion before starting a liquid diet.

The following are some of the best Clear diet types you may want to try:

 

1. Cleansing/Detox Liquid Diet

In recent years, the popularity of cleansing or liquid diets has been on a steady rise. Their function is to help remove toxins that may have built up in your body. Some experts say that going on a detox diet once a week for a month can bring noticeable results within a very short time.

A detox diet could take the form of a fruit or vegetable juice with herbs, taken throughout the day. If you have never tried a this diet, this can be very refreshing. Apart from the Master Cleanse detox diet, the other commonly taken diet is water fasting.

 

2. Meal Replacement Liquid Diet

Choosing this diet essentially means replacing a meal or more with drinks. This could be juices, smoothies, soups or shakes. It doesn’t have to be exclusively composed of liquids. It is possible to include solid foods in your diet plan. Only that the overall liquid diet should be as healthy and nutrient-packed as possible.

The reason for a meal replacement diet is that the drinks contain fewer calories than the other meals you have for breakfast or lunch. That’s while supplying you with adequate fats, proteins, and carbohydrates. No need to mention the vitamins and minerals you will also get.

 

3. Medical Liquid Diet

Don’t get confused. This diet is not meant to promote weight loss. Rather, they are recommended and monitored by a doctor for medical purposes. A doctor may recommend this type of diet to prepare you for surgery or so that you can get over certain digestion issues and recover from injuries. This usually takes the form of clear liquids such as tea, syrup, Popsicle, apple juice, broth, and water.

 

How the Best Liquid Diet Aids Weight Loss

Are you a dieter on a weight loss mission?

The best strategy you can ever have is a liquid diet. Apart from its time-saving abilities, this diet helps to improve the metabolic rate, support digestion, and detoxify the body. The end result is much-desired weight loss.

 

The following are the ways in which this type of diet can help you lose weight:

 

1. Aiding Detoxification

As observed earlier, one of the reasons to take a liquid diet is to help detoxify your body. Whether it is a juice smoothie, broth or juice, it is rich in dietary fiber, minerals, and vitamins. It is due to its antioxidant properties that help a diet to remove the harmful free radicals.

Thus, your DNA is protected from a possible mutation that could result in dysfunction in processes that go into protein synthesis. Dietary fiber also contains a lot of water which helps cleanse your digestive tract. Although not explicit, detoxification will help you lose weight.

2. Low-Calorie Count

No need to repeat. There are very few calories in a liquid diet. Due do a low-calorie intake, your body will be forced to look for alternative sources of energy, which is stored in the body as fat or glycogen. As you burn the fat, you will begin to lose weight.

 

3. Highly Nutritious

One of the biggest reasons for unbridled weight gain is lack of adequately nutritious food. Most foods tend to have very little nutritious value after peeling, washing, and cooking. If you eat a liquid diet, you are likely to get all the nutrients your body has been missing.

This helps raise your metabolic levels for the burning of calories and energy stored in the body as fat or glycogen. Only remember to drink your juice as soon as it comes out of the blender.

 

 

4. Gentle on the Digestive System

It is easy to digest broths, smoothies, and juices compared to solid foods. Thus a liquid diet is a good aid for proper digestion, absorption, and removal of waste. Also, the diet contains substantial amounts of dietary fiber, which helps you stay full for longer apart from preventing constipation. When your digestive system is performing optimally, it becomes easier for you to lose weight.

5. Convenience

Did you know that a liquid diet is very convenient?

Preparing a liquid diet does not involve elaborate recipes and cooking procedures. Once you have decided the ingredients to include in making your broth, smoothie or juice, all you need is to toss them into a blender.

Within no time, your breakfast or lunch will be ready. The convenience afforded by a liquid makes it easy to use for weight loss purposes.

 

Best Foods for a Liquid Diet

To actualize a liquid diet, there are a number of foods you will have to turn into liquid form. It could either be a smoothie, broth or juice meant for body detoxification. If you are onto a meal replacement diet, some of the solid foods should be considered.

The following are the foods to include in a diet:

 

•         Fruits and vegetables
•         Almond, soy or full-fat milk
•         Yogurt or low-calorie frozen yogurt
•         Scrambled or raw eggs
•         Tea or coffee
•         Popsicles
•         Water
•         Cold-pressed juices
•         Syrup or honey
•         Ice cream
•         Sports drinks
•         Broth
•         Flavored water.
•         Creamed soup
•         Sorbet
•         Lean protein such as chicken, fish, beans, lentils, mushroom or tofu
•         Herbs

 

Benefits of a Liquid Diet

Due to its nature, a liquid meal has a number of benefits including the following:

 

•         Detoxifying the systems of the body
•         Improving the rate of metabolism
•         Affording rest to the digestive system
•         Improving your body’s metabolic rate
•         Improving the quality of your skin
•         Helpful to individuals with pain in wisdom teeth
•         Good for individuals suffering from cancer of the gums, esophagus, and the mouth
•         Reducing pain due to stomach ulcers
•         Can be used medically for individuals who have just gone through stomach or tonsil surgery

 

Precaution before Taking a Liquid Diet

A liquid diet is a short-term affair and should not be taken over a prolonged period of time. The following are some of the effects of taking this diet for far too long:

 

•         Weakening the immune system
•         Feeling dizzy and lightheaded
•         Causing a spike in food cravings which may lead to overreactions
•         Weakened bones and possible muscle loss
•         Likelihood of preventing proper brain functioning
•         A possibility of irrational thoughts and mood swings
•         Predisposing you to frequent colds and coughs
•         Leading to nausea

 

When Should You Avoid A Liquid Diet?

Even the best liquid diet will not work very well with some groups of individuals. If you fall in any of the following categories, you should avoid a liquid diet:

 

•         Children
•         Pregnant or nursing mothers
•         Older adults unless recommended by the doctor

 

How to Safely Get On a Liquid Diet

Don’t start a liquid diet before talking to your doctor. It is only a qualified physician who will help you know if it is appropriate for you. What the doctor would be looking out for is whether you are pregnant, a nursing mother, diabetic or suffer from some chronic illness. Where signs of any of these are established, you will be advised not to try even the best liquid diet.

In case your doctor allows you to embark on a liquid diet, then you should seek a dietician’s opinion. Their work would be to find out if the proposed diet will have the ability to supply you with the necessary nutrients and calories. Where the nutritional value of the liquid you are taking is in doubt, then the dietician might just recommend that you take nutritional or vitamin supplement.

You need to know the exact foods you will choose prior to picking a diet plan. Where you choose to use a commercially available liquid diet, check the label for the nutrients and vitamins you expect to get. But don’t insist on an exclusively liquid diet. The liquid diet could just be one that includes some fiber and protein. This could be through a full meal or two in a day to help you feel full and lose weight.

 

Conclusion

Like any other type, a liquid diet requires a lot of discipline and responsibility to pull off. After all, losing weight is not something you can attain overnight. The longer it takes depends on the type of body you have.

Doing a liquid diet for longer than recommended will cause a lot of harm to your body. At every stage of the journey, your doctor and dietician should be involved. If you isolate them, you may end up compromising your immunity.