A liquid diet is a diet plan where only liquids in various forms are consumed as meals and solid foods are eliminated throughout the duration of the diet. In the past these diets were prescribed for patients before and after surgery in order to clear the gastrointestinal tract. Today however they are used for weight loss. Liquid diets can take two forms; the clear liquid and the full liquid diets. In the former only clear liquids are consumed without any solid contents within. With thefull liquid diet semi solid ingredients like orange juice with pulp can be included. More on these type of diets below.
Liquid Diet Plan For Weight Loss
One of the advantages of going for liquid diets is that if you consume healthy liquids like soups, broths and fruits juices, you can get all the essential nutrients required without any excess calories. Secondly, you automatically cut down on refined carbohydrates, sugars and fats as none of these products contain them. You also gain all the essential fibers through fruits and vegetables that are required for quick weight loss, but in a healthy way. The following are the liquid diet foods that form the liquid diet plan.
Vegetable broths and soups
Fruit juices with/without pulp
Fruit punch and purees
Milk and milk shakes
Lemonade, lemon water and honey
Sports drinks and protein shakes
Jellies, clear ice pops and candies
Tea, coffee without cream, soda
Smooth and clear ice cream
You can plan your own diet including any of these foods in your meal plan. For weight loss, you can go for a full liquid diet and include some healthy foods like lean fish or cut fruits and vegetables if you are hungry. It will form a healthy diet which will also control your intake of calories. Apart from this diet plan, there are several fad or crash liquid diets that work.
Best Liquid Diets
The fad diets are meant only for temporary use for a quick weight loss. They are usually prescribed to be followed for 3-7 days and not more than that. The following are a few of the most effective weight loss liquid diet plans.
Master Cleanse
The Master Cleanse or the lemonade diet is a detox diet plan where one is supposed to consume only lemonade or lemon juice with maple syrup throughout the day. No other solid food or drink is to be taken. It is a fad diet that helps in detoxification as well as weight loss. It is to be followed for 7-10 days and is to be followed only after doctor's consultation.
Clear Liquid Diet
Another fad diet is the clear liquid diet and this one should not go beyond 3 days. Like the name suggests only clear liquids are consumed. They should be transparent without any trace of solid within. Some examples include clear soups and broths, juices without pulp, protein shakes, gelatin desserts, lemon water and lemonade, plain water, honey, etc . This diet is considered one of the best for weight loss.
This article provided just a short summary of liquid diet plans and there is much more that can be said about these diets. It is always important to remember that before you attempt any drastic change in your diet you should consult with your physician. This is particularly important for individuals who suffer from chronic diseases as the side effects can further damage one's health.
