Effectiveness and health impacts of fad diets in the short and long term: a review

Fad diets emerged as a way to lose weight and improve appearance. Some fad diets work by cutting one or multiple elements from dietary intake, being restrictive to different extents. Fad diets have gained enormous popularity, while it remains unknown whether the claimed benefits of a fad diet have scientific support. This review examines past studies on different fad diets, or tools, and presents these statistics to analyze the effectiveness of measures, coupled with proper instructions. This review further shows extreme fad diets can be correlated with multiple side effects, including dehydration, malnutrition, cardiovascular diseases, impaired well-being, and even eating disorders.