Banana Diet "Recipe For Disaster" For Most

Nutritionist Keri Glassman Not A Fan; She Describes The Eating Plan, And Its Pros And Cons

(CBS)  Plenty of people in Japan are going bananas over the Morning Banana Diet -- so much so that there are reports of a banana shortage there as eager dieters gobble them up.

What makes it so -- a-peeling -- and does it work?

"Can you believe banana sales in Japan went up 80 percent in one week compared to the same week last year? I think that's crazy. Because it is crazy!" exclaimed registered dietician and Early Show contributor Kerri Glassman Friday.

Under the Banana Diet, she explained, "You start with a banana, as many as you want, for breakfast, with warm water. You don't have anything until lunch. You have a basic lunch, which can be anything you want, even pizza and fries. Then (in mid-afternoon), you can have a snack, which can even be a sweet. Then dinner, which can be anything you want. It has to be before 8 p.m. Nothing after dinner, including sweets. Then, you have to go to bed before midnight."

Co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez was skeptical, observing, "(You can have) as many bananas as you want (for breakfast)? Maybe the idea is you get so full, you don't want to eat a big lunch, or a big dinner?"

"That's part of it," Glassman agreed. "Bananas do have fiber, and they're gonna help fill you up to some extent. But still, many people we know, no matter how many bananas you have for breakfast, (if) they're told you can have whatever you want for lunch and dinner -- you could be having a turkey sandwich, trying to lose weight, and then all of a sudden, you switch to pizza and fries -- you're gonna gain weight.

"It's a recipe for disaster for most people. However, for some people, if you're eating, let's say, lots of sweets throughout the day, and now you're told you can't have any sweets except for one small sweet at three (p.m.), you might lose some weight. Also, for some people, if you're an emotional eater and you over-consume thousands of calories at night, you're gonna cut calories (with this diet). So, for some people, you may lose a little bit of weight, but for most people, it's a recipe for disaster."

Glassman dubs it "a fad diet," noting it gives people rules to follow, and saying isn't the stuff of a roadmap for lifetime eating.

She adds the warm water with breakfast actually appears to be a good idea: "Some people believe it helps with digestion. And it's common for some people to have the warm water in the morning. You're increasing your fluid intake in the morning, but this diet gives no explanation why (the warm water helps).

The diet caught on inn Japan after a famous actress there lost 26 pounds on it and, Glassman says, "It was put on some social networking (Web)site in and people are going crazy, and half the testimonials, they can't even find the people.

"For the most people, bananas are not a magical food. They're just not. They have fiber. They have protein. They have potassium. They're an excellent food that should be incorporated into your diet but, just like the grapefruit diet or cabbage soup diet, there's no magical food."

Also, bananas "have some resistant starch. That is a type of fiber that passes through your system into your colon without being digested. There is some new research that shows it might actually help burn fat. Now, even if that's true and, let's say, it does help do that, there are other resistant starches out there, in potatoes, in beans. You still can't over-consume as many bananas as you want, and you still can't eat whatever you want, including steak and fries every day for lunch.

"Incorporate bananas into a healthy diet. That's the way to go. But we still need whole grains and vegetables," among many other types of food.

[docpeter1953]

I like bananas; banana pudding, banana nut bread/cake, banana cream pie, banana moon pie, banana split, banana nut ice cream, banana and strawberries, banana and cereal, banana and chocolate syrup, fried banana, dehydrated banana, plain banana. Geez, I didn''t know I could eat all that I want and lose weight.

[Kaliu3W]

Wouldn''t an onslaught of bananas dangerously increase the potassium levels in some individuals? Those with compromised kidney function, for sure...but what about others?

[docpeter1953]

Wouldn''''t an onslaught of bananas dangerously increase the potassium levels in some individuals? Those with compromised kidney function, for sure...but what about others?

Posted by annrckhll at 11:51 AM : Oct 24, 2008
_____________________

There you go, I knew someone would come along and confuse me with nutritional details about bananas.

[rushman71]

Come Mr. Tally man, tally me bananas!!!!
Daylight come, and we wanna go home!!!

[kennergirl]

I thought bananas made you constipated.

[notanairplan]

Bananas. The silent killer.

[amurguz]

Work all night on a drink oh rum! Daylight come and me wan go home. Stock banana till the morning come! Daylight come and me wan go home.

[brittanimae]

I understand the appeal for some ignoramuses to reveal their racist thoughts, but please, don''t. It is unfortunate that any Joe six-pack can make crude comments here, but that''s the price we pay for free speech. Please try to use some constraint, however.

I believe there is still hope for our country, in spite of the few wack jobs in the fringes.

[longtree-2009]

interesting. this article reminds me of a man that crossed my path who was marooned on an island in the south pacific during ww2 as the ship he was on had had been torpedoed by the japanese. forget how long he was on the island before he was rescued but i recall he said he only had bananas and lost massive amounts of weight. After a steady normal diet, he said he gained his normal weight and became a high school football coach until he retired. banana diet does work but one has to have the discipline to keep the weight off when one returns to a normal diet.

[naruto79]

Thanks for your article on banana diet, I was looking for it ^^

I've seen here http://www.nanoda.com/en/japanese-cooking/asa-banana--the-morning-banana-the-new-diet-from-japan.html here that there are some people trying it, so I'm curious if you have tried it too.

In the official banana diet website there is a forum, but it is almost empty

Thanks

Emy

[Mistermiago]

Jeez, if you think about Asian ppl eat rice, vegetables for side dishes and a bit of meat at times..and we eat what? Hamburgers, fries, pizza, chips, and etc. Our diet is definitely different from theirs..so of course we have to watch what we eat.. don't be stupid and eat whatever you want. if your smart, you should have already figured it out. I'm sure the diet would work if we adjust the diet a lil bit. Like the saying.."if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably isn't true." lol