What is the pineapple diet, and should you try it?

Pineapples are rich in vitamin C, calcium, and potassium

New Delhi | December 16, 2022 01:20 PM IST

3 min read

Here is why you should not try pineapple diet (Source: Pexels)

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Losing weight is not a day’s job, it requires an immense amount of patience, hard work, and dedication. However, in an attempt to lose maximum weight in minimum time, people often fall for fad diets that can lead to numerous health issues in the long run. One such diet is the ‘pineapple diet’.

“When trying to lose weight quickly, people turn to fad diets that promise fast results using questionable methods. One such fad diet is the pineapple diet that has been used to shed excess body fat,” Lovneet Batra, a nutritionist, wrote on Instagram, highlighting the negatives this diet comes with.

Agreed Rachna Agarwal, a nutritionist, and said, “It is a mono diet where people just eat one fruit — the pineapple — the whole day. Since pineapples are rich in sugar, surviving the whole day on them becomes easy and there is also no restriction on the quantity.”

If the pineapple diet is practiced for a long period of time, it can lead to problems in the intestine (Source: Pexels)

However, she added that this diet, if at all, should ideally be practiced only for two days. “If done for a prolonged time, it comes bearing health hazards like disturbed normal functioning of the intestines, which could lead to Irritable Bowl Syndrome and malnourishment because of no minerals and nutrients,” she told indianexpress.com.

Further calling it a fad diet, Dr Agarwal said, “It is usually used as a plateau diet to give a push to weight loss or detox the body. If done sensibly once in a while, it causes no harm but it should not be done for a long time.”

She explained that the weight loss as a result of following this diet is temporary and hence one should practice such a diet only after proper consultation.

Lovneet Batra also listed some significant side effects of the diet.

You’ll be extremely hungry, irritable, and tired because pineapple is so acidic that it might bother your stomach, especially if that’s all you’re eating for an entire day. You may also feel nauseated or experience diarrhoea.
Side effects like dizziness, passing out, headaches, hunger pains, insomnia, weakness, and extreme hunger are common because pineapple contains less than one gram of protein and fat per cup and lacks many vitamins and minerals which can further put you to nutrient deficiencies.

Also Read | | From fighting inflammation to increasing fat breakdown: The many health benefits of pineapples

Additionally, extremely high amounts of bromelain (an enzyme found in pineapple) can cause skin rashes, vomiting, diarrhoea, and excessive menstrual bleeding

Concluding, she said: “You do not need to follow any restrictive diet to lose weight. To lose weight, it is best to create a small calorie deficit by cutting out or reducing your intake of sugary beverages, and ultra-processed foods.”

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