Weight-loss shock: Pakistani actor loses 8 kilos in just 7 days; experts explain what crash diets do to your body
The weight loss journey of Pakistani actress Nimra Khan will leave you shocked, as she lost 8 kg in just one week through a crash diet. But is a crash diet healthy for you? Expert explains the side effects and their impact on health.?
Nimra Khan, the popular Pakistani actress, recently opened up about her unbelievable weight loss journey, revealing how she lost 8 kilos in just one week by following an extreme crash diet.
While candidly speaking in an interview that surfaced on the internet, she revealed her unconventional diet plan. In the interview, she explained, "To lose weight, you need to set clear goals first." Let’s understand how she managed to achieve the drastic weight loss in such a limited time.
A diet consisting only of egg whites, apples, and green tea: is it healthy?
She further discloses that her diet only consisted of two egg whites, apples, green tea, and vegetable juices. During the weight loss journey, she completely avoided taking carbohydrates. She continued that she had an apple every three hours and green tea every two hours a day and repeated the same routine the next morning, afternoon, and evening for a straight seven days.
Nimra further shared that she started the day with lukewarm water mixed with honey, lemon, and chia seeds. However, it was not an easy task, highlighting that fact she noted, "It was a 7-day diet plan, and no one has ever completed it for more than 4 days. Most people remain consistent for the first 3 days but give up by the 4th day." But is this type of diet plan healthy for you?
What are crash diets?
Intending to lose weight in no time and without working hard for it, people often choose crash diets, which are extreme eating plans that aim to help people lose a lot of weight quickly by severely restricting the amount of calories.
Crash diets are also known as total diet replacement (TDR) programs that involve the consumption of 800-1200 calories each day for a few weeks. This is often considered unhealthy due to reasons like eating disorders, muscle loss, weight fluctuations, lost motivation, and more.
What do crash diets do to your body?
Although crash diets involve strict reductions in calorie intake for speedy weight loss, they can be tremendously cruel to the body. While they supposedly work magic in inducing fast weight reduction, they mainly lead to muscle loss rather than that of fat, which reduces one's power. Dr. Shrey Srivastav, MD (Internal Medicine), Sharda Hospital, explains, "The body enters starvation mode; that's when the metabolism decides to slow down in an attempt to conserve energy. It becomes, therefore, harder to maintain weight loss from then on since there will be the need to eat so much to "please" the metabolism for an effective fat-burning process."
One set of crash diets often leads to the lack of certain vital nutrients, which can cause a bunch of different problems such as extreme fatigue, a weakened immune system, hair thinning leading to baldness, and skin disorders.
Crash diets may lead to low-energy fatigue and dizziness. "It can cause nutrient deficiencies and malnutrition, leading to loss of muscle mass and bone density. At times it can also have an impact on hormones and mental health. Slowed metabolism and weight gain also occur. In addition, changes in the food consumption pattern shock the body, which leads to an increased level of cortisol in the blood, a hormone that is usually directly associated with stress or fat gain," says Ms. Bharathi Kumar, dietician, Fortis Hospital, Nagarbhavi, Bangalore.
Side effects of crash diets
A crash diet might lead to weight regaining as per normal eating, causing cycles of yo-yo dieting. According to Dr. Srivastav, "Crash diets are known to put a strain on the heart and other important organs, hence long-term damage. For longer-lasting results, a more sensible approach of eating normally and exercising is both safer and provides more fruitful results on the health continuum."
Crash diets may lead to low-energy fatigue and dizziness. "It can cause nutrient deficiencies and malnutrition, leading to loss of muscle mass and bone density. At times it can also have an impact on hormones and mental health. Slowed metabolism and weight gain also occur," concludes Dr. Kumar.
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