Cabbage Soup Diet

Based on the premise that eating cabbage soup several times a day for seven days will lead to rapid weight-loss, the Cabbage Soup Diet is widely considered to be a fad diet. While some people have had weight loss success (the typical claim is that the diet will help you lose 10 pounds in a week), most experts chalk the loss up to water loss rather than fat loss.

This is not a long-term diet strategy; most individuals will begin to eat normally after the period of seven days has ended, and will quickly gain back any pounds they managed to shed. The tedious concept of consuming cabbage soup for almost every meal, along with fruit or specific vegetables on certain days and a bit of beef and milk added in for variety, is almost certain to test even the most stalwart dieter’s endurance.

Nutritional experts give a solid thumbs-down to this diet plan since it lacks many nutrients necessary for a healthy diet. The soup recipe is also quite high in sodium, and the dearth of protein for days at a time leaves many dieters feeling dizzy and weak. Dieters themselves do report some success with this plan when they use it as a short-term weight loss solution, as in for quick weight loss for a wedding or other special occasion.

The origins of this diet are unknown, although it is occasionally referred to as the Sacred Heart Diet and purports to once have been used in a hospital to help surgical patients shed weight quickly.