Supplements – The Diet Industry’s Dirty Little Secret
Posted by Jeff The Jock on January 8, 2008
Like any industry out there, the goal of the Diet Industry is to make money. It is the perfect business to be in because of all the repeat business. Almost all diets fail because 95% of the successful dieters, put the weight back on within a few years. The only way to be truly successful with a diet is to NOT go on a diet, but go on a “lifestyle” change. Simply put, if you want to look like a slender person, eat and exercise like a slender person – you will eventually get there.
Over the last few years, the diet industry realized that they can make more money after selling a diet program, than they made from selling the diet program in the first place. They started making and selling their own diet supplements – everything from meal replacements, vitamins, nutrition bars, fiber supplements etc.
Take a look at the Atkins Diet. You can buy Atkins Vitamins and Atkins meal replacement bars. The same is even true for diets such as the Zone and South Beach diets. Even the regular “Diet Centres” such as Nutrisystem and Jenny Craig sell their own supplements and vitamins.
This is such a lucrative business that companies are now creating supplements and meal replacements and then creating the diet program in order to sell them.
The most well known diet that did this was “Body For Life” by Bill Phillips. Bill Phillips is the owner of the giant supplement company EAS which makes the meal replacement called Myoplex. It is no surprise that the suggested menus in this program all list 2 meals per day of Myoplex.
In almost every instance, it is better to eat “real food” instead of a meal replacement shake or bar. To digest real food, your body burns calories in the digestion process, so your net calories are lower than the actual calories that you just ate. This is great if you are concerned with losing weight, not to mention that real food isn’t as painful on your pocketbook!
Many of these diet programs that are based on a supplement product are not necessarily bad though. If the program suggests a balanced diet, there is nothing wrong with an occasional supplement product once and while. There is also nothing wrong with eating a sensible balanced meal instead of a suggested supplement and still have success on any program.
Unless you are planning to continue to take all of these extra supplements and meal replacement products for the rest of your life after you reach your goal, it would be wise not to become used-to or dependent on them for long term weight loss.
