Diets Nutrition
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New diet trends pop up almost every day. A celebrity or fitness influencer is always endorsing a new way of eating that produces excellent results. Sometimes these diets work, and sometimes they don’t. 

Whether a diet plan will work for you depends on your specific needs. For example, a diet plan consisting of mostly dairy won’t be ideal if you’re lactose intolerant. 

Finding the proper diet for you takes time, and you’ll have to experiment. While some diet plans are better, most diets will be effective if you follow them correctly. So, what’s trending now in 2023? Is there a diet plan you should know about? 

Keep reading to learn about new diet trends in 2023 and whether they may be for you.

What Is The New Diet Trends

Fad diet trends spread like wildfire across social media. Below are 10 of the most popular diet trends of 2022 on social media:

  1. Keto
  2. Calorie counting
  3. Low carb
  4. Vegan
  5. Vegetarian
  6. Gluten-free
  7. Intuitive eating
  8. Holistic Health
  9. Intermittent fasting
  10. Dairy-free

Many of these new diet trends for weight loss focus on health needs. Dairy-free and gluten-free diets, for example, cater to people with milk and gluten allergies. Vegan and vegetarian diets cater to those who are heart health conscious or have personal beliefs against eating animal products.

What Is the Latest Diet Trend?

One of the newer diet trends is intermittent fasting. The trend became popular in recent years primarily from the influence of fitness gurus on social media. Intermittent fasting involves irregular periods of fasting followed by eating. Some methods for intermittent fasting may include:

  • Daily fasting: Using this method, you are allowed a short window to consume your calories for the day before fasting until the next day. A standard intermittent fasting plan restricts eating to only 8 hours daily, such as 12-8 pm. Other plans call for even shorter eating periods of 6 or 4 hours per day. For the remaining hours, you may drink water or non-caloric beverages. 
  • Eat-Stop-Eat: This fasting technique has you fasting 24 hours once or twice a week. You can normally eat the rest of the week. 
  • Semi-fasting: With the semi-fasting method, two days a week, you restrict your calories to only 500-600 calories. You eat as normal for the remainder of the week.

Intermittent fasting is popular because it claims to help people lose weight without changing their diet. There are no specific diet rules with intermittent fasting, just rules on when you can eat. 

Intermittent fasting benefits weight loss because it inevitably restricts your calories. There is only so much food you can eat in each eating period unless you are intentionally binge eating. 

Other health benefits of intermittent fasting include lower insulin levels, increased human growth hormones (which help facilitate weight loss), and decreased inflammation. However, intermittent fasting might not be the most realistic diet plan to follow for everyone. 

If you are on the go or work full-time, you might find sticking to a specific eating window difficult. The diet may also backfire if you binge eat during your eating window, thus negating the weight loss effects of the diet.

According to social media, the Keto diet will take the spot as the most popular diet trend in 2022. The keto diet has been around since the 1920s and was initially created to help treat patients with epilepsy. The keto diet is like the paleo and Atkins diets because it involves eating very low carbs. Instead, you get most of your calories from fat and protein. 

The general ratio of nutrients for following the keto diet is 70-80% fat, 10-20% protein, and 5-10% carbs. By reducing your low-carb intake, a process called ketosis is achieved. Ketosis is a process where your body burns fat and ketones for energy instead of carbohydrates. The idea behind the keto diet is that your body will become more efficient at burning fat for fuel instead of carbs. 

The keto diet does seem to work for many people, but some dieticians warn it may not be the healthiest diet. It is incredibly unhealthy for you if you are worried about high blood pressure. Many keto foods are high in saturated fat and salt. You would be much better off following the DASH diet. On the DASH diet, you consume foods that help lower blood pressure. 

Also, the most weight loss experienced while trying the keto diet is due to a calorie deficit. Eating fewer carbs means less sugar in your body that turns to fat, and when you consume more protein and fat, you stay fuller longer. Thus, you eat fewer calories.

New Diet Trends That Work

Calorie Counting

Calorie counting is hardly one of the newest diet trends, but it will always remain popular. Why? Because calorie counting works. Calories are a measurement of energy in your food. When you consume too much energy and don’t burn it off through exercise, it gets stored as fat. To lose fat, you must burn more calories than you eat.

Tracking your calorie intake is the most fundamental scientific approach to losing weight. You do this by eating fewer calories, burning more calories through exercise, or both. When you accurately track your calorie intake, you can be sure you are eating the correct number of calories to lose weight. You can determine your weight loss calorie needs by using an online calculator. 

While calorie counting does work, it may not be suitable for the long term. However, calorie counting can be pretty tedious and frustrating for some. It may even be triggering if you have had a past with disordered eating. 

Low Carb

Low-carb diets such as Atkins, South Beach, and the Keto diet are based on the logic that eating fewer carbs will result in less fat storage. Carbohydrates are what your body burns as fuel, but if you have fewer carbs in your bloodstream, your body will burn fat for energy instead. 

Eating a low-carb diet also means you consume more protein and fat. Protein and fat are both nutrient-dense, which keep you feeling fuller longer, thus leading to fewer calorie intake. Protein is also a significant component of building muscle. Muscle is more metabolically active than fat tissue, meaning you burn more calories daily while at rest. 

You can increase your muscle mass by consuming more protein and lifting weights regularly. The more metabolically active muscle you have, your metabolism will be more active. 

Higher insulin levels are linked to obesity and diseases like diabetes. Additionally, eating fewer carbs and sugars means more occasional insulin spikes. By controlling your insulin levels, you can improve your health and reduce your risk of obesity.

What Is the Most Effective Diet Today?

Though not included on the list of the most popular diet trends in 2022, the Mediterranean diet is a famous diet that has been around for decades. The Mediterranean diet is effective because it is more sustainable than most fad diets. Tips for eating the Mediterranean diet include consuming lots of whole grains, fish, and healthy fats like olive oil, vegetables, and fruits. 

The Mediterranean diet mimics what those who live in the Mediterranean eat daily. It became an ideal diet plan to follow due to its healthy ingredients and health benefits. According to research, those who consume the Mediterranean diet (such as Spaniards, Italians, and Greeks) have a much lower risk of disease and health problems. The Mediterranean is also not likely to be obese. 

There are no concrete diet rules other than eating healthy, delicious meals. Following the Mediterranean diet is more sustainable because it allows you to eat various foods. The Mediterranean diet is void of fried and processed foods as well as low in refined sugars. All of which have contributed to obesity and disease.

The Bottom Line

Diet trends come and go, but one constant will always remain, eating healthy is better for you. Eating healthier should be a priority for you regardless of what diet trend you partake in. A healthy diet is different for everyone—experiment with what foods work for you and make you feel your best. The diet you should stick to is the diet that makes you thrive. 

William Read - Nutrition Consultant

William is from Canada, he is passionate nutrition & wellness writer. William understands that the topic of wellness is still not well understood, so his goal is to enlighten and teach people how to live healthier and happier in their bodies.