The Ducan diet is one of the most advertised weight loss methods. Understand how dieting works, what is the "right" weight, and why eating according to Dukan can be dangerous.
Who is Pierre Ducan?
The creators of the popular diet are not nutritionists, but therapists. Pierre Dukan was in general practice when an obese patient came to see him in 1970. The man admitted that, in order to lose weight, he was willing to sacrifice anything but meat. Doctors develop a diet based on lean meats, non-starchy vegetables and a minimum amount of fruit. A prerequisite is the refusal of sugar.
Ducan argued that such a diet was best for natural metabolism: primitive humans ate meat, seasonal vegetables and fruits. Sugar in our understanding is inaccessible to it and therefore must be abandoned now.
After 30 years of experimenting and observing, Pierre Ducan released the book I Can't Lose Weight, which became a bestseller in 32 countries. The new method promises the ability to lose 5 kg in one to two weeks, without limiting yourself in the amount of food.
Celebrities who openly praised this new method added to the popularity of Ducan's design. Jennifer Lopez and Gisele Bündchen use diet to lose weight after pregnancy and childbirth. Welsh singer Catherine Jenkins says she is fit by following Ducan's plan.
In 2012, the French Council of Physicians indicated that nutritionists violated ethical principles by turning the drug into a commercial enterprise. In 2014, Pierre Ducan was removed from the list of doctors for advertising and promoting the method.
How diets work
The Ducan diet implies a protein diet with a minimum of carbohydrates and fats. The scheme includes 100 edible products in any volume in the first weeks.
This method largely mirrors the ketogenic diet and other low-carb eating plans, in which the body rebuilds itself to get energy from fat and protein. The high protein content of the food helps balance insulin production and reduces the production of ghrelin, the hunger hormone. We fill up faster and eat less. However, the Ducan diet limits not only carbohydrates but also fats. The safety and benefits of this approach are not supported by research.
Before switching to the Ducan meal plan, you need to calculate your "correct" weight. This can be done using a special calculator. Calculations are based on data on height, maximum and minimum weight, age, structural features of the body. The calculator was developed by Pierre Dukan, so the results should be scientifically verified and consult your doctor.
The Ducan diet is divided into four phases:
- Attack.
- Alternation.
- retainer.
- Stabilization.
Significant weight loss already begins in the attack phase, which motivates you to continue eating according to the Ducan method. The reason for rapid weight loss is dehydration, due to a lack of carbohydrates, the body loses fluids. However, experts do not confirm the long-term effectiveness of the method and the health benefits of the diet. Let's find out how the diet works and why it has many contraindications.
Ducan diet stages
The diet consists of four parts, the duration of which depends on the calculated "correct" weight. The first two stages are aimed at losing weight, and the last is aimed at consolidating achievements. During an attack, only high protein foods are allowed. Then add non-starchy vegetables, limited fat, and extra carbohydrates.
The duration of the attack, alternation and strengthening depends on how many kilos you have to lose to reach the "correct" weight. The final stage, which must be adhered to constantly, incorporates a fixation phase diet and weekly protein days in an attack pattern.
1. Attack
This phase lasts from two to seven days. If you need to lose 20 kg or more to reach the "right" weight, the steps may take longer. The meal plan includes 68 protein meals and a few extras:
- meat: beef, veal, venison and other game, pork, lean meat and soy, liver, kidney, tongue;
- poultry: chicken liver and fillet, turkey, wild duck, quail, low-fat turkey and chicken sausage;
- fish and seafood: no limits, including canned tuna in water;
- vegetarian protein: seitan - plant-based protein, meat substitutes made from wheat gluten, veggie burgers and soy products, tofu and tempeh;
- eggs: chicken, quail, duck;
- low-fat dairy products: milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, ricotta - no more than 1 kg per day.
The daily diet should include 1. 5 tablespoons of wheat bran and at least 1. 5 liters of water. You can also add a tablespoon of goji berries, sweetener, shirataki noodles, and unlimited food gelatin.
Every day you need to devote 20 minutes of physical activity.
2. Substitution
The period of achieving the correct weight gradually takes from a month to a year. The diet of the previous phase alternates daily with a more gentle and extended menu - 32 types of vegetables are added:
- spinach, kale, lettuce, and other green vegetables
- broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts;
- paprika;
- mold;
- celery;
- asparagus;
- artichoke;
- zucchini;
- tomato;
- mung beans;
- Onion;
- pumpkin and pumpkin spaghetti;
- turnip;
- cucumber;
- carrot;
- bits.
Allowed one teaspoon of olive oil for salad dressing or cooking in a pan and two tablespoons of bran. The duration of physical activity is 30 minutes.
3. Retainer
The duration of the stage is determined at the rate of ten days for each kilogram lost. The goal is to prevent a return to the initial weight. You can mix any of the products from the first two stages, and add a limited amount of fat and carbohydrates:
- fruits: chopped berries or melons (100 g), medium-sized apples, oranges, pears, peaches, nectarines or two kiwis, plums or apricots;
- two slices of whole wheat bread a day;
- cheese, 40 g per day;
- starchy foods, 225 g per day: pasta, corn, beans, beans, rice or potatoes
- meat: roast beef, pork, or ham once or twice a week.
Twice a week you can enjoy a festive meal: an appetizer, a main course, a glass of wine and a dessert. One day a week should be protein (attack pattern). Bran - 2, 5 tablespoons, physical activity - 25 minutes.
4. Stabilization
The final step to help maintain the "right" weight. There are no strict dietary restrictions, but you should follow a few principles:
- the products of the fixation phase should be taken as a nutritional basis;
- save one day of protein a week;
- walk at least 20-30 minutes a day;
- drink 1. 5 liters of water and eat at least 30 g of bran a day.
The final step involves following your meal plan at all times with a list of 100 foods with little extra.
Menu for early stage
Attack
- Breakfast: low-fat cottage cheese mixed with bran and cinnamon, coffee or tea, water. Skim milk and sweeteners can be added to tea and coffee at every meal.
- Lunch: chicken breast in a wok, shirataki noodles in broth, diet gelatin, iced tea.
- Dinner: steak and shrimp, diet gelatin, coffee or tea, water.
Alternation
- Breakfast: scrambled eggs from three eggs, sliced tomato, coffee, water.
- Lunch: Fried chicken and salad with French dressing, Greek bran yogurt, iced tea.
- Dinner: grilled salmon fillet, steamed broccoli and cauliflower, diet gelatin, decaffeinated coffee or tea, water.
holder
- Breakfast: three-egg omelet with cheese (40 g) and spinach, coffee, water.
- Lunch: a serving of turkey with two slices of whole-grain bread, 80 g of cottage cheese mixed with bran and cinnamon, iced tea.
- Dinner: pork in a skillet and grilled zucchini, small apples, decaf coffee, water.
The effectiveness of the Ducan diet
No diet alone has a long-term weight loss effect, and diets can be unhealthy. After temporary weight loss, people return to their previous state, and sometimes they recover stronger than before the dietary change. A safe and effective way to achieve the desired weight and maintain good health and physical shape is with the help of specialists to choose an appropriate lifestyle and diet that can be realistically observed on a regular basis.
. . .There are many scientific publications that focus on the efficacy of high-protein and low-carbohydrate diets. However, there are few studies that qualify according to the Ducan method.
In 2015, data on 50 women aged 19-64 were collected in Poland who followed the Ducan meal plan and consumed about 1, 000 calories per day, including 100 g of protein. The study participants lost 15 kg in 8-10 weeks.
In January ASNews & World Report, one of the top three US weekly on economics, politics and health, published a diet ranking of 23 experts. The Ducan diet is last on the list, receiving 1. 9 points out of 5. Experts rate the diet's efficacy at 2. 5 and health benefits at 2. According to doctors, there is no evidence that losing weight with the Ducan method is long-lasting and safe. , while the product list is very limited, and the diet rules are too complicated. One expert openly called the diet "idiot".
This diet is effective in the first few weeks. There is no scientific research to support sustainable weight loss, and the long-term health effects of the diet have not been studied.
Dangers of the Ducan diet
This diet may be suitable for healthy people over the age of 18. This method is not recommended for chronic gastrointestinal diseases, metabolic disorders, hormonal disorders, pregnancy, lactation.
This diet has all the disadvantages of a low-carb diet, as well as certain side effects, as many healthy foods are excluded from the meal plan.
Fast weight loss
The main disadvantage of the Ducan diet, according to British nutritionists, is that it can be harmful to health:
- Initial weight loss occurs through dehydration;
- The diet is unbalanced, so you need to take additional vitamins;
- Keep in mind the daily amount of water and servings of oat bran needed to ensure a minimum of fiber.
Disease risk
Due to the lack of useful vitamins and trace elements, the diet can provoke:
- osteoporosis;
- problems with the digestive system and digestive tract;
- diseases of the heart and blood vessels;
- hormonal disorders;
- disorders of the nervous system.
"Ketogripp"
When changing the diet, painful conditions are possible, which are characteristic of the early stages of a diet with a large amount of protein. The reason for feeling unwell is a change in metabolism, as the body rebuilds itself to receive energy from fat and protein. Fatigue, increased hunger and thirst, problems with attention and sleep, mood swings, headaches, indigestion and bouts of tachycardia may be present for several days.
Scientists speculate that avoiding this diet could lead to health problems in the future. And because diets are limited, most people eventually stop eating according to plan - they get bored and uncomfortable with their list of 100 foods and their rotation rules.
The Ducan diet is probably suitable for most healthy people, but has serious contraindications. Such a diet can provoke diseases of the cardiovascular, digestive and nervous systems, as well as hormonal disorders.
Key facts about the Ducan diet:
Per
- the Ducan method helps to lose weight quickly;
- in the first two weeks, you can not count calories and eat allowed foods with almost no restrictions;
- a large amount of protein dulls hunger and helps to eat less;
- diet provides for mandatory physical activity.
Oppose
- rapid weight loss occurs due to dehydration of the body;
- the list of foods is limited, so the body does not receive the necessary nutrients. During protein days, there are no vegetables in the diet, at a later stage the amount of carbohydrates is limited;
- dietary fiber content below the daily norm - 5 g instead of the recommended 25–38 g;
- there is no scientific evidence that such nutrition leads to sustainable weight loss;
- there are no data on the effects of diet on long-term health.
Doctor's comments
"The Ducan diet is one of the most famous ways to lose weight. And this diet is tried in due course by most of the patients who come to me for consultation.
A reasonable question arises: why, then, do they need the professional help of a nutritionist? The answer is simple: the majority of those who lose weight return to their previous eating habits, that is, to their original weight within a few years. Unfortunately, this is the flip side of most diets that people follow to slim down. And the Ducan diet is no exception.
But this is not the most important argument, therefore I would not recommend switching to this diet.
The main disadvantage of this type of nutrition is the lack of essential macro and micro nutrients for a long time. Deficiency of vitamins and minerals can be compensated for by special biologically active complexes, but this does not replace the natural intake of natural macro- and microelements. Such deficiency conditions lead to a decrease in immunity, a decrease in the work of all organs and systems of the body.
The Dukan diet increases the load on the excretory system, the liver, therefore it is categorically contraindicated for people with chronic renal and hepatic insufficiency, for pregnant and lactating women, for those with disorders of protein metabolism, gout, urolithiasis and cholelithiasis. And also during exacerbations of chronic diseases - gastritis, ulcers, pancreatitis, cholecystitis, pyelonephritis.
The Ducan diet is a serious stressor to the body, the potential harm far outweighs the benefits, and the results are very unstable in the long run.
Follow the principles of optimal nutrition, engage in adequate physical activity, and monitor your sleep and drinking patterns. The desired result will not be long in coming, and your health will be in order. "