Is the Human Being Diet trend safe?

The new human being diet promises better well-being, more energy and up to seven kilos of weight loss in just 16 days, according to a new study.
But it is met with sharp criticism from KI professor Mai-Lis Hellénius:
“It is a concoction of sensible and some strange things, but it is poorly scientifically substantiated.

The new method, called the “human being diet”, involves strictly following a three-month program in three different phases with a focus on fresh and nutritious food, minimally processed, and anti-inflammatory diet.

People are encouraged to eat high-quality protein sources such as fish and eggs, healthy fats and certain fruits, while excluding ultra-processed foods, meal replacement bars and shakes.

“The human being diet method is very much based on people’s desire to lose weight and contains some components that are downright bad,” says Mai-Lis Hellénius, lifestyle professor at Karolinska Institutet, KI.

The weight loss model is focused on finding stability in insulin and the stress hormone cortisol, which, among other things, affects hormone levels in the body, which plays a major role in metabolic health – and weight.

Table of contents

“Strange attitude to food”

In the first, intensive phase of the human being diet, which lasts for 48 hours, you eat only vegetables. No grains or dairy products, no protein, no legumes and no alcohol. To keep calorie intake as low as possible, various oils should also be excluded when possible.

– This can give a strange attitude towards food. It risks taking away the joy from food and meals. This is not how we humans live, where food is an important social glue.

Phase 2 of the human being diet is a 16-day detox – with a focus on removing toxins from the body and promoting well-being – where the recommendation is a maximum of 700-900 calories per day. Here there are strict restrictions on sugar, foods based on wheat and various potato plants, which include vegetables such as tomatoes and eggplant as well as dairy products.

Only water is allowed then

During the detox period, it is allowed to drink unsweetened black tea and coffee with meals – in between, only water is allowed.

“It’s common for people to lose 7 to 15 pounds in the first 16 days of the program, and sometimes for the first time in years, experience dramatic pain relief and a significant increase in energy,” nutritionist Petronella Ravenshear tells Women’s Health.

However, Mai-Lis Hellénius points out that there are no long-term studies that prove that detox leads to better health and a longer life.

“This is the exact opposite of giving someone personalized advice. This is a strict schedule that you have to follow, regardless of who you are, how you feel, your values, whether you have high blood sugar or not.

“Outright wrong”

The third and final phase of the human being diet should last at least ten weeks – or until you are satisfied with your new weight. Here, for example, you should avoid legumes – something that the Swedish National Food Agency recommends that we eat daily in its latest, updated dietary guidelines.

– Legumes are something we should eat more of because they are good, cheap food that makes us feel full and helps us lose weight.

Various whole grain varieties such as cereals, brown rice and quinoa should also be removed, as they are claimed to be able to damage the intestinal mucosa, according to new controversial studies. At the same time, the recommendation is to be careful with vegetables – and to severely limit the intake of fruit due to the fruit sugar.

Common with headaches on human being diet

Mai-Lis Hellénius says she is leaning confidently on the collective research when she gives the human being diet a thumbs down:

– There are those who have tried different types of intermittent fasting and become almost euphoric from it, but many get headaches, become tired, grumpy and stop because it doesn’t work. The risk in the long run is that you will have some type of nutritional deficiency.

Her advice is to follow the food pyramid instead of the human being diet and increase your daily movement with a few extra thousand steps a day and see vegetables, berries and fruit as food.

– Then you add eggs, a piece of fish, chicken or mussels. Plus a piece of meat sometimes.

She also emphasizes that we should not reduce our fat intake, but choose better quality fats: Fatty fish, vegetable oils, nuts and almonds over butter and other fatty dairy products.

How should we relate to carbohydrates if we want to lose weight?

– Peas, beans, lentils, wholemeal bread are good carbohydrates that make us feel full. However, we should be careful with sweet drinks, sweets and snack bread. If you are a bread lover, you can consider replacing the white with wholemeal or crispbread. The same goes for white pasta and white rice – preferably wholemeal alternatives.

This is the food pyramid

• The food pyramid diet model has replaced the old food circle. It describes in a simple way what is good and healthy food, according to the latest recommendations. This applies to both the brain and the heart.
• According to the food pyramid, the base of our diet should consist of colorful vegetables, but also legumes – peas, beans and lentils – berries and fruits and nuts. Vegetable oil is also found in the base.
• After all the greens comes seafood – fish, shellfish, mussels and various algae – which we also need to eat in ample quantities.
• A little higher up the pyramid comes chicken, eggs and dairy products.
• At the very top we find processed meat and a little sugar – which we should eat most sparingly.
  – You can keep this pyramid in the back of your mind when you go shopping, says KI professor Mai-Lis Hellénius.