Crash diet

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For the band, see Crashdïet.

A crash diet is a diet which is extreme in its deprivations - typically severely restricting calorie intake. Meant to achieve rapid weight loss, a crash diet differs from outright starvation only slightly. Crash diets are typically unhealthy and are rarely - if ever - recommended by doctors or dietitians. Crash diets can lead to malnutrition, and are not a recommended means of weight loss.

After a person discontinues a crash diet, the "yo-yo effect" is often seen. This causes a person to eat far more than normal, causing them to regain both the weight that was lost due to the diet as well as additional weight. This is caused by an evolutionary trait of the human race that historically only took effect in times of famine: after a famine ended, people's bodies naturally craved to regain both the weight that was lost, plus additional weight as well, in order to protect themselves in case of another famine.

An example crash diet consists of a daily intake of 4 glasses of skim milk, 4 bananas, and 1 vitamin capsule; a boiled egg may be substituted for a banana. Also, large amounts of caffeine.^[1]