Buzz
Every now and then, we all feel the need to lose a few pounds. For many, the secret is simple: consume fewer calories than you burn, and weight loss is virtually guaranteed. This approach is often why many French people stay slim — they indulge in rich foods like butter, cream, and chocolate, but in moderation. Unfortunately, the diet industry is big business, leading to a constant stream of strange and unconventional weight loss methods. This list examines ten of the most peculiar diets that have gained widespread attention, leaving out those with eccentric eating habits that don’t quite fit the mainstream.
10. Macrobiotic Diet
The macrobiotic diet has ancient roots. It primarily focuses on grains, which serve as the main food, supplemented by vegetables, beans, and avoiding heavily processed or refined foods. Although it might seem one of the least unusual diets on this list, it has a rather odd characteristic: some prominent figures in the macrobiotic community suggest that smoking is actually beneficial for health. They claim that it’s the non-macrobiotic foods, rather than smoking, that are responsible for cancer. Michio Kushi, who introduced macrobiotics to the United States, underwent colon surgery in 2004. His son noted: "[I]n spite of years of his smoking, a fact well-known to many, recent x-rays of Michio’s lungs were surprisingly clean, like that of a twenty-year-old (remarked his physician)."
9. Cabbage Soup Diet
The Cabbage Soup Diet is a severe weight loss regimen that revolves around consuming a low-calorie cabbage soup daily for seven consecutive days. Despite being deemed a fad, it has gained significant attention over the years and has inspired many similar diets. The origins of this regimen remain unclear, though it gained notoriety in the 1980s, spreading quickly through fax machines as part of an early form of viral ‘faxlore.’ Health professionals generally disapprove of the diet, citing its lack of essential nutrients and the fact that any weight loss is likely to be temporary, mostly involving water loss rather than fat. The diet is often mistakenly associated with heart surgery patients in hospitals; however, this claim is false. Many participants experience fatigue, dizziness, and, notably, excessive flatulence.
8. Paleolithic Diet
This diet is inspired by the eating habits of our ancient ancestors. It's based on the presumed dietary choices of early humans who lived during the Paleolithic era, which lasted approximately 2.5 million years and ended around 10,000 years ago with the advent of agriculture. Advocates of the Paleolithic diet argue that early humans were healthier and free from modern diseases, and that adopting this diet could protect us from similar ailments. The modern version of the Paleolithic diet revolves around easily accessible foods such as lean meats, fish, vegetables, fruits, roots, and nuts, while excluding grains, legumes, dairy, salt, refined sugars, and processed oils. From a diet rooted in evolution to one rooted in creationism:
7. Fruitarianism
Fruitarianism is a lifestyle that centers solely around fruit, though some individuals who don’t consume exclusively fruit may still identify as fruitarians if 75% or more of their diet consists of fruit. Some fruitarians believe that fruitarianism mirrors the original diet of humanity, citing Genesis 1:29 from the Bible: “And God said: Behold I have given you every herb bearing seed upon the earth, and all trees that have in themselves seed of their own kind, to be your meat.” They view returning to this diet as a way to achieve a simple, holistic, and health-focused lifestyle, similar to the Edenic paradise. However, this diet can lead to nutrient deficiencies in calcium, protein, iron, zinc, vitamin D, most B vitamins (especially B-12), and essential fatty acids. Additionally, the Health Promotion Program at Columbia notes that restrictive diets may contribute to hunger, cravings, food obsessions, and even social isolation. Mahatma Gandhi experimented with a fruit-only diet on occasion, but eventually discontinued it due to its unsustainable nature. And, if that isn’t enough of a curveball, how about the Bible Diet?
6. Bible Diet
The Bible Diet (also known as the Maker’s Diet) follows the idea that God has designated some foods as clean and others as unclean. Its chief advocate, Jordan S. Rubin, asserts that this diet helped him recover from Crohn’s disease at the age of 19. In 2004, the FDA ordered Rubin’s company, Garden of Life, to stop promoting unverified health claims about some of their products. The diet incorporates daily prayers of thanksgiving, healing, and petition, along with performing 'Life Purpose' exercises to keep stress at bay. On partial fasting days, the diet encourages prayers whenever hunger strikes for spiritual enhancement. Phase One of the diet excludes certain meats like pork, ostrich, and processed meats, as well as many types of seafood like fried fish, shark, and lobster.
The Shangri-La Diet offers a flexible approach for food lovers, allowing individuals to eat their preferred foods while maintaining a healthy weight. According to its creator, Seth Roberts, the body has a set weight point it tries to maintain, and appetite adjusts to keep this in balance. Roberts claims that by consuming 100-400 calories of flavorless substances, such as extra light olive oil or sugar water, the body’s set point can be lowered, which eventually reduces appetite and aids in weight loss. The method is simple: drink these flavorless calories within a two-hour window without exposing yourself to any flavors, including cigarette smoke. Despite some skepticism about its scientific basis, the diet is generally considered harmless by many doctors.
The Shangri-La Diet is an appealing option for those who love to eat but want to manage their weight. It centers around the idea that the body maintains a set weight point, and appetite adjusts to keep it at that level. The diet’s creator, Seth Roberts, suggests that you can lower your body’s set point by consuming 100-400 calories of flavorless food, such as light olive oil or sugar water, within a two-hour window. During this time, no other flavors should be consumed, including those from cigarette smoke. While the diet has faced criticism due to a lack of scientific proof, it remains harmless and largely accepted by medical professionals as an effective way to lose weight.
4. Fletcherizing
Horace Fletcher coined the phrase, 'Nature will castigate those who don’t masticate.' These words were his marketing slogan for a revolutionary diet in the early 1900s: Fletcherizing. The diet required individuals to chew every bite 32 times while tilting their heads forward. After chewing, they would tilt their heads back, allowing the chewed food to naturally slide down the throat. Any food that didn’t slide down was to be spit out. Fletcher also recommended chewing liquids and eating only when in a calm state of mind, avoiding meals while angry or sad. Fletcher passed away at the age of 69, having amassed a fortune largely through promoting this widely popular diet.
3. Tapeworm Diet
This diet lives up to its unsettling name. The plan involves swallowing a tapeworm cyst, allowing the worm to grow inside your body until it matures. Once fully developed, the worm is expelled from your system through natural bodily functions. Proponents of this method claim that you can lose between 1 to 2 pounds weekly. Due to the illegal status of importing tapeworms into the United States, some businesses in Africa and Mexico operate 'tapeworm farms,' where tourists can intentionally infect themselves under controlled conditions. These farms deliberately infect cows with tapeworms, which are then harvested for human use. The diet supposedly works because the worm attaches to the intestines, absorbing nutrients from the food you consume.
2. Sleeping Beauty Diet
True to its name, this diet revolves around sleeping – a lot of it. The fundamental idea behind this approach is: 'if you aren’t awake, you aren’t eating.' As a result, followers of this method take heavy sedatives to fall into long, extended sleeps in order to shed pounds. While the diet certainly leads to weight loss, it is incredibly unhealthy and dangerous, making it an absurd approach to managing weight. Originating in the 1970s, the plan was notably used by Elvis Presley, who struggled to bend down and tie his iconic blue suede shoes.
1. Breatharianism
Breatharianism is a practice where individuals claim to live on nothing but air. Yes, you read that right: survival by breath alone. This concept is rooted in esoteric beliefs, with some followers asserting that they are nourished by the sun’s energy or a mystical force known as 'prana.' The Breatharian Institute of America is a major promoter of this lifestyle, offering an introductory workshop for a staggering $10,000—no, that price isn’t a mistake. The courses are led by Wiley Brooks, who once charged a whopping $25 million for similar teachings. On occasion, Wiley consumes a cheeseburger and a Diet Coke, explaining that eating such junk food balances out his exposure to 'junk culture.' However, it’s worth noting that at least three people have died while attempting this extreme way of life. If you’ve tried it and survived, we’d love to hear about your experience in the comments.
Last Chance Diet
The Last Chance Diet isn't exactly a traditional diet—it's more of a fasting method, which is why it's considered a bonus entry. Developed in the 1970s by Dr. Robert Linn, it involved complete food abstinence. However, the fast was interrupted multiple times a day by small servings of a specially created drink known as Prolinn. This liquid protein provided less than 400 calories daily and was made from pulverized animal parts like horns, hooves, hides, tendons, bones, and other byproducts from slaughterhouses. These were processed with artificial flavors, colors, and enzymes. [Source: CBC News]
