When it comes to diet, there are so many “experts,” with some recommending the exact opposite of others, there is a tendency to throw up your hands and reject them all. That’s probably not the best answer to the questions, “What should I eat?” and “What should I avoid?” but how can I decide what is the right diet for me?

Start with that question. “What is the right diet for me?” There is no “one size fits all” diet. Popular diet books will advocate for, and give you a host of reasons in favor of, one diet or another.

• One might tout a vegan diet while another might promote an all-meat diet.
• One might be a low carb diet while another might be a low fat diet
• What about the Mediterranean diet?
• The Paleo Diet
• The Adkins diet
• The Keto diet
• The South Beach Diet
• A calorie restriction diet
• An intermittent fasting diet

Some of these diets are better supported scientifically than others, but aside from that, different diets have different goals. Not all diets are primarily weight loss diets. Some are even designed to help an underweight person gain weight. People choose to follow a diet because they want to cause some change in their body, their energy level, or perhaps their mental state. If you are going to adopt a diet, make sure the diet you choose is not only scientifically supportable, but also appropriate for the goal you want to achieve for your body, energy level, and mind. Before starting on a diet, there are several important things to consider:

• If you are thinking of changing your dietary habits, you must believe that your current diet is not the best. What causes you to think that? Are you visibly heavier (or lighter) than you feel you should be? Does your doctor agree with this assessment, and counsel you to change your eating habits?
• People promoting fad diets of questionable value, or even questionable safety, can claim to be authorities and may even hold impressive-sounding degrees. Or they might be celebrities such as Suzanne Sommers, or Oprah Winfrey. Celebrities always look fabulous, so whatever diet they are promoting must be a good one, right? Not necessarily. They probably looked fabulous before they started on their favorite diet. Some promoters may have a financial interest in getting people to adopt the diet they are promoting. Just because a diet promoter can make the results of following the diet sound miraculous, does not mean that it will work that way for you. Remember the old saying, “If a claim seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
• Whatever diet you adopt, it is important that it provide all the nutrition that your body needs, and that it does not disrupt the state of balance that your body is in when it is functioning at its best. This is why it is important to listen to qualified people who have your best interests at heart, such as your personal physician, or the nutritionist employed by your health maintenance organization or health insurer. Your insurer has a vested interest in keeping you healthy.

It’s important to get past the hype and learn what a specific diet will do for you (or do to you). Next week I will discuss one of the diets that has become very popular, including the most important pros and cons. See you then. If you believe that these posts have value, please tell your friends about them. They can subscribe here on the Creating Health web site, or contact me at allen.taylor@ieee.org, to be added as subscribers.

Bio:

Allen G. Taylor is a 30-year veteran of the computer industry and the author of over 30 books, including Develop Microsoft HoloLens Apps Now, Get Fit with Apple Watch, Cruise for Free, SQL For Dummies, 8th Edition, Crystal Reports 2008 For Dummies, Database Development For Dummies, Access Power Programming with VBA, and SQL All-In-One For Dummies, Second Edition. He lectures internationally on astronomy, databases, innovation, and entrepreneurship. He also teaches database development and Crystal Reports through a leading online education provider. For the latest news on Allen’s activities, check out his blog at www.allengtaylor.com or contact him at allen.taylor@ieee.org.