Fast Diet | The Medifast Diet: A Clinically Tested Fasting Program

The Medifast Diet: A Clinically Tested Fasting Program

The Medifast diet is different from many other fast diets and other rapid weight loss plans in the sense that it has actually been clinically tested. The program used to be “by prescription only,” but now you can purchase the products online and/or via other distribution channels.

The diet provides low fat and low calorie vitamin and mineral packed liquid and solid meal replacements, including shakes and bars that dieters are supposed to eat in lieu of actual meals. There are a few different plans that a dieter can follow when using Medifast products. One of the more widely used plans is the 5 and 1 plan, which involves consuming between 800 and 1,000 calories per day, placing users into a mild form of a physical state known as ketosis (a state in which the body burns its own fat as fuel).

This particular 5 and 1 plan involves consuming five of the Medifast meal replacements throughout the day along with one “regular” meal (typically dinner) consisting of a lean protein and steamed vegetables. The manufacturers of Medifast products maintain that by following this plan to a T dieters can lose an average of two to five pounds each week.

During the clinical study conducted at Johns Hopkins University, supervised study participants attended Medifast clinics and lost serious amounts of weight. On average, the men lost 67 pounds and the women lost 57 pounds. Another Medifast study found this program effective for helping to control the symptoms associated with Type 2 diabetes. There have been many success stories associated with this diet over the years.

The catch is that even when people lose a lot of weight by strictly following the Medifast diet plan for a certain period of time, unless they make some serious lifestyle changes by exercising and eating well after they conclude the diet, it can be very hard to keep the weight off for the long term.

So, while this particular fast diet is a healthy one that has been scientifically studied and that contains the optimal level of vitamins and minerals so that people do not become malnourished while on it, it does suffer from the same problem that nearly all rapid weight loss programs suffer from: How do you realistically keep the weight off after the diet comes to an end unless you make some substantial changes in your long term eating and exercising behavior? (The answer is that you can’t.) Indeed, the only way to keep the weight off is to make those genuine lifestyle changes and stick with them (eating lots of fruits and vegetables and fiber-rich foods like whole grains as well as starting and truly sticking with an exercise program.)

Filed Under Clinically Tested Diets, Specific Diets | 7 Comments

Tagged With clinical studies, diet, Diet food, Johns Hopkins University, ketosis, meal replacement shakes, Medifast, type 2 diabetes

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