What is Sacred Heart Diet?
A seven-day meal plan, the Sacred heart diet requires a dieter to consume several varieties of dishes and unique soup daily. The sacred diet was thought to be started at the Sacred Heart Memorial Hospital, although the authority has refused the statement. In the past, Patients were asked to lose weight by following a seven-day diet plan before a medical procedure.
It is now followed by millions of individuals worldwide, with some claiming to have dropped 5-17 pounds in about one week. Dieters can consume as much soup as they want while following the diet. However, they are only supposed to eat a maximum of one serving per day. Some people claim that the soup consumed in a sacred heart diet has no calories, but the claim cannot be valid because all food has calories. However, it is a relatively low-calorie soup.
Origination of Sacred heart diet
The sacred heart diet plan comes in several ways, even though all are somewhat similar. The only dissimilarity that is present between different recipes of soups is the use of various ingredients.
Few variations of the sacred heart diet encourage you to drink diet soda, but most do not suggest drinking diet soda. Sacred Heart Memorial Hospital had invented the seven-day diet to help obese patients lose weight before any surgical procedure.
However, no proof supports this theory. Even the Sacred heart hospitals in Canada and the United States have made public statements claiming that the sacred heart diet was not established by them and should not be practiced. Many other names have been given to sacred heart diets, such as Cleveland clinic diet, Spokane heart diet, and Miami heart institute diet. The food that is to be consumed on each day of the diet is almost similar.
The Diet plan
The sacred heart diet has a variety of foods that are recommended to eat each day. However, it is not specified how many calories a participant has to take. The main dish of the sacred heart diet is soup, which is allowed to eat as much as the individual desires.
Nutritional Supplement
Vitamins, minerals, herbs, amino acids, or enzymes are recommended to consume because they boost health.
Day by day, the Sacred heart diet plan
While following a sacred heart diet, the dieters can eat vegetable soup, 7-8 glasses of water, and other specific dishes.
Day 1
Participants are encouraged to consume fruits except for bananas. Since watermelon and cantaloupe have low calories so while on the sacred heart diet, both fruits are highly recommended
Day 2
Participants are asked to consume green vegetables, soup, and water on the second day. Fresh, canned, cooked, or raw vegetables are highly recommended. The participants are instructed to eat a baked potato with butter for dinner. Make sure to avoid Dry beans, corn, and peas on the second day.
Day 3
All the vegetables and fruits are permitted on the third day. The participant is not allowed to eat a baked potato. Some studies claim that if the diet is followed accurately, the dieter will lose five or more pounds at the end of the third day.
Day 4
On day four, the meal should include two or three bananas, one skim milk glass with soup, and a lot of water.
Day 5
Day five incorporates beef into the menu. Dieters should only eat 10-20 ounces of beef, plenty of vegetables, and a single cup of soup. Six fresh tomatoes with beef are also recommended.
Day 6
On day six, the participant should consume as much meat, leafy vegetable, water, and soup as they want. The dieter is not allowed to eat baked potato on six-day of their diet.
Day 7
Finally, the sacred heart diet suggests fruits, vegetables, a cup of brown rice, soup, and unsweetened juice. Dieters are instructed to eat soup once a day and other items as much as they want.
The participant is also recommended to eat broiled fish, boiled, broiled, or baked skinless chicken as a replacement for beef. Dieters are predicted to lose 10-17 pounds by the end of the seven days.
The Sacred Heart Diet Soup recipe
There are several variations of the sacred heart diet in the market. No recipe is considered more accurate. The procedure of soup written below is the most common.
Ingredient
- 1 or 2 stewed tomatoes can
- Three large green onion
- One large cholesterol-free beef broth can
- One chicken noodles soup mix packet
- One celery bunch
- Two green beans cans
- 2-pound carrot
- Two green peppers
Method
- Prepare the vegetables by chopping them into the small or medium section.
- Add all the ingredients to the pot. Add water to the large utensil, let all the vegetables dip into the water, and then wait for 10 minutes or until the water reaches its boiling point.
- Lower the temperature and wait until all the vegetables are soft. If required, season the soup with salt, pepper, bouillon, Worcestershire sauce, or hot sauce.
Recommended Drink
- Unsweetened juices
- Coffee
- Herbal tea
- Cranberry juice
- Skim milk
- lots of water
Sacred Heart Diet Pros and Cons:
The sacred heart diet is a well-known and commonly used rapid weight loss diet. Some dieticians affirm that the diet plan is inefficient and potentially harmful, while others claim that it is beneficial and effective.
Pros
There are many advantages to losing weight if the diet is followed safely and moderately by a balanced diet and exercises. Obesity is associated with several diseases and disorders, including heart disease and diabetes. Weight loss will help lower the chance of many conditions in an obese individual. By following the seven-day diet plan, the individual will lose 17 pounds.
Soup is the main dish in the meal plan; it provides several benefits because it has low calories, vegetables, vitamins, and minerals. After consuming it, the dieter feels full and adheres to a healthy, low-calorie diet. Other than soup, fresh vegetables, beef, and fruits all have many health advantages. Many dieters claim that after following the sacred heart diet, they habitually eat vegetables and fruits.
Cons
According to experts, the sacred diet does not provide all the nutrients the body wants. Lack of nutrients makes the diet potentially risky, particularly for individuals who have long-term health issues. Some studies suggested once the individual quit the diet, he’ll gain his weight back.
Precaution
Here are some precautions that have to be followed before starting any diet plan.
- Always consult a medical consultant before beginning a new diet plan.
- Depending on age, gender, weight, and other factors, the requirement of calories, fat, and nutrients may vary. Ask a medical practitioner to make a list of calories, fat, and nutrients to be taken before beginning the diet. The sacred heart diet is somewhat complicated because of the limited number of items.
- Pregnant or breastfeeding women should be vigilant, as vitamin and mineral deficiency harm a baby. If pregnant or breastfeeding women are on a sacred heart diet, ask them to quit.
Side effects of sacred heart diet
You would think that a diet based solely on vegetables would not have any adverse effects, but you’d be wrong. The individual who followed the diet have reported the following side effect;
- Dehydration
- Diarrhea
- Nausea
- Dizziness
- Stomach pains
- Light-headedness
- Weakness
- Fainting
Approval of the sacred heart diet
The sacred heart hospital in Canada issued a letter in which it is written that no dietician at the hospital will recommend this diet. Even the American Heart Association has called the diet fake.
Does the Sacred Heart Diet work?
Some researchers claim that any diet that encourages you to eat as much red meat as you want is unhealthy, particularly for individuals with heart disease or cholesterol issues. The experts do not recommend the sacred heart diet because it does not provide proper nutrition to the body. Some researchers also claim that the sacred heart diet is beneficial and healthy. Further studies are still going on.
Conclusion
Sacred Heart Diet is a soup-based diet that promises the individual who follows the diet that he will lose 10-17 pounds in just seven days. The diet also contains a lot of other items to eat that are rich in vitamins and minerals. Since it does not provide the guideline of calorie consumption, it can also cause many health issues.
A long-term fitness plan and discipline are recommended to maintain weight loss after quitting the diet. Several researchers suggest, the diet is beneficial and healthy, but some experts also claim; do not follow the sacred heart diet. For ease, The United States Department of Agriculture issued an updated version of the diet guide, MyPyramid, for healthy children and adults. Always make an appointment with your consultant before beginning the sacred heart diet.
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