What is it?
The Hospital Diet is a fad weight loss diet claiming one can lose 10 pounds in only 3 days. It also goes by the name of the 3-Day Diet, the Birmingham Hospital Diet, British Heart Foundation Diet, and the Greenland Diet to name a few.
It’s known as a crash diet which is intended only to be used for 3 days, taking a 4 day break, and if necessary returning back to the diet. There are a few websites which describe the diet, but it’s unclear who made it. Only specific foods are allowed, and the diet emphasizes a certain caloric limit. Our review experts have found that the highest rated weight loss solution is the 18Shake Diet. It offers a natural meal replacement that suppresses appetite for hours, and a stimulant free diet pill with plant extracts. To learn more about the benefits of the 18Shake Diet click this link.
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The Hospital Diet Ingredients and Side Effects
A full menu is outlined depending on the day:
• Day 1: Breakfast- 1 tablespoon of peanut butter, a slice of dry toast, ½ a grapefruit or juice, a black coffee or tea.
• Lunch- ½ cup of tuna, 1 slice of dry toast or an ounce of cheddar cheese, and a black coffee or tea.
• Dinner- 1 cup of string beans, 1 cup of carrots or beets, 1 cup of vanilla ice cream, a small apple, and 3 ounces of lean meat.
• Day 2: Breakfast- ½ a banana, 1 egg, 1 slice of dry toast, and black coffee or tea.
• Lunch- 5 saltine crackers, 1 cup of cottage cheese or a ½ cup of tuna, and black coffee or tea.
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• Dinner- ½ a banana, 1 cup of cabbage or broccoli, ½ cup of carrots or turnip greens, 2 beef franks, and ½ cup of vanilla ice cream
• Day 3: Breakfast- Small apple, 5 saltine crackers, 1 ounce of cheddar cheese, and black coffee or tea.
• Lunch- a slice of dry toast, 1 hardboiled egg, and black coffee or tea.
• Dinner- 1 cup of beans or cauliflower, 1 cup of tuna, 1 cup of melon, 1 cup of carrots or beets, and a ½ cup of vanilla ice cream.
It’s also mentioned to make sure to drink lots of water, and that diet soda can be used as a substitute for the drinks. When using this diet it’s advised to take a 4 day break in between until desired results are seen.
Calories will range from 800 to 1,000 in a day. There isn’t much instruction on what condiments if any are available. No instruction is offered either on whether or not exercise is suggested. It is clear however from the low amount of calories that it can be difficult to sustain this diet. That’s why Web MD mentions:
“The biggest effort you’ll make on the diet may be stopping yourself from reaching for more food”
Eating such a limited amount of calories will likely result in weight loss, but this is not a sustainable method. There are also many common junk foods and unhealthy suggestions. The vanilla ice cream, crackers, cheese, hot dogs, and other foods aren’t wholesome. They are low in nutrients and relying on these types of foods can be difficult and unhealthy.
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The Hospital Diet Quality of Ingredients
The allowed foods suggested can range in quality since one can purchase better foods depending on where one shops. There is no proof offered to show why the suggested foods were selected as good for weight loss.
It seems strange that they would suggest things like vanilla ice cream, which don’t offer enough nutrition but are rich in fats and sugar. These kinds of foods can lead to nutritional deficits and they aren’t very wholesome. Web MD also adds:
“This diet was most likely not developed by nutrition experts”
They also mention that the suggested weight loss claimed by this diet is not healthy:
“losing 10 pounds in 3 days is both unlikely and unhealthy”
You will likely be eating a large amount of sugars, cholesterol, and other potentially unhealthy micro and macronutrients. These reasons make it so The Hospital Diet is not a quality diet. Click the link here to see a comprehensive list of the best weight loss diets.
The Price and Quality of The Hospital Diet
The price depends on the brands of foods one decides to choose from. Since there are many typically cheap food items, it’s unlikely it will be costly to shop for the suggested meals.
The main issue is that there is no proof this diet is safe and effective. Losing 10 pounds of weight loss is not a recommended way to lose weight, especially since the kinds of foods one will eat are considered unhealthy.
This diet is similar to other fad diets in that it makes many bold claims and offers strange food choices which aren’t very healthy. One website which talks about this diet adds a warning:
“We do not necessarilyendorse this diet and recommend that beforetrying this or any other diet to consult a physician… Use at your own risk”
This disclaimer showcases the fact that there is no proof to back up the claims made, or to even show whether or not it’s truly safe to use. The website is separating itself from any liability since what it is suggesting may be potentially harmful.
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A dietician named Victoria Taylor also adds:
“(it) will only help you lose water or muscle weight, not fat”
“may lead to repeated cycles of gaining and losing weight that can strain your heart and immune system and increase your risk of nutrient deficiencies”
It’s for all these reasons that this is considered a very ineffective diet. There is no evidence provided to showcase if it’s truly safe to use.
Business of The Hospital Diet
It’s unknown who has created this diet. Information about its origins is mixed, with several different names being offered. Some point to certain hospitals which have not taken credit for it.
It’s clear from the confusion that similar to other fad diets; the name is used to help make it appear useful.
Some websites which describe the diet only offer the menu with no added information. This makes it impossible to ask anyone associated with the diet any questions. There’s very little information provided and no actual FAQ or support team.
EDITOR’S TIP: The top 10 list of the best diets is available here.
Customer Opinions of The Hospital Diet
Here are a few select quotes from users:
“I just completed tis. Didn’t lose 10 pounds”
“I ended up starving and constipated, no weight lost at all”
“certainly not suitable long term”
“I found myself getting minor headache”
People often struggled with hunger and ill feelings. There were also problems with an inability to lose weight. Some did manage to shed some pounds, but these same people added how they regained it back as soon as they ate normally.
This is likely due to the significant amounts of calories one loses which can lead to weight loss, but is not sustainable as a day to day diet.
Many people also had questions but were unable to find answers as to how they should go about this diet. The comprehensive list of the best weight loss diets can be found in this link.
Conclusion - Does The Hospital Diet Work?
The Hospital Diet is a fad crash diet meant to provide quick weight loss results in just 3 days. Information about its use, who made it, suggestions and more is not offered There have also been many who have tried it who mention it made them feel ill, and that any weight loss is only temporary. This is due to the extreme caloric reduction, which health sites like Web MD have advised not to follow. This can be potentially harmful, especially when one is eating the foods recommended such as ice cream, hot dogs, crackers, diet soda, and other foods. These low nutrient foods can lead to deficiencies and side effects.
Our experts have taken the time to review many different diets, and the highest rated one overall was the 18Shake Diet. There’s a meal replacement which suppresses appetite for hours, and a diet pill used for fat burning. They’re both made up of quality ingredients without preservatives, article colors, fillers, binders, and artificial flavors. There are many positive customer reviews available on the official website from those who have lost weight off the 18Shake Diet as well.
The 18Shake Diet is backed by an entire 30 day money back return. This is offered for a full 30 days with no questions asked. To learn more about the benefits of the 18Shake Diet, click the link here.
User Feedback
(Page 1 of 1, 13 total comments)theresia pulela
i did try it for 13 days and it works like magic i lost 6kg within 13days
posted Feb 9th, 2017 4:35 amEmily
I tired this diet together with my husband, I am 37 female, I had 72, I lost 5 kg, he lost 7 kg.
posted Oct 21st, 2014 10:24 amThe diet wasn t hard to keep, I wasn t feeling hungry, just on the first 2 days.
After the diet, in 2 weeks I put back on 3 kg, but this might be tricky, since all my clothes are too big, so I feel skinnier, just I weight more then when I finished the diet.
Bouncer
Lost about 10kgs on it (incl was moderate cardio: 5km run). There's several variations available on the net. One version even has a fruit at lunch incl; this seriously helps a lot with digestion! Went from 100kgs down to 90kgs, I'm a 6ft bloke. It is hard, but showed results. I did however loose a noticable amount of muscle mass along with the fat. Be prepared. Doing it again (bad diet & beer), but armed with BCAAs to help with muscle issue & exercise recovery. Might even add some whey protein as I exercise a lot more now.
posted Feb 10th, 2013 12:25 pmelle
?Why am I not losing anything?? Please check my plan!! I got my 13 day diet from this website. http://sexydiet.wordpress.com/2010/12/05/metabolism-diet/ And i see some of them are a little different... I'm on day 3 today- following everything VERY strict according to the plan, and I've lost nothing! Can someone please check my plan?? Thank you :)
posted Nov 14th, 2012 6:21 amMissSouthAfrica
+I did it only for 6 days... lost a lo of weight but did not finnish! Its about 6 months later, and I want to restart.
posted May 10th, 2012 8:48 amThe one I did, nothing was realy weighd. Everything was "as much as you like" only for instance, it would say "2 eggs" but eerything else pretty much was as much as you like... I lost about a KG a day... more or less...
Im wondering if anyone has the ORIGINAL 13 day diet?? Please! Im sooo desperate! I weigh 260 lbs, amd 5.8 and only 23! This ends HERE!!!
Sikyomu Stellah
+I have began today Monday 27/02/2012, and with all the feedback i have got from people who have tried it, i know that i will loose at least 13kgs by the 13th day.
posted Feb 27th, 2012 9:34 amjen
Who is stupid enough to continue a diet, when your doctor asks you to stop because of impaired vision? Dumb.
posted Jan 11th, 2012 9:30 pmKat
?Will eating creamed spinach affect The Hospital Diet? Will that affect the 13 days diet? On the first day, I had creamed spinach , will that affect the outcome of this diet. im now on day three but im worried it might not work becase of the type of spinach i had on day one. Please advice
Jessica
im on my second day, and i already lost 1.5 pounds, pretty good! lets see how much i loose by my 13th day =)
posted Jul 19th, 2011 2:51 pmkh
+I'm finishing my 10th day today. I have lost 6kg. I am never hungry its lovely. Well I'm sure if u wanna go back to eating cakes and brwnies, I'm sure u gonnna put all your weight on.
posted Jun 1st, 2011 11:05 amabba
+i have done this diet and lost 20 kg in the 13 days but on the 7th day i had to visit my gp because i was loosing my eysight.(weak vision) and he was shocked to see me.he had me on the scales and weighed me twice did not believe the the weight and cheked them twice ,in the end he weighed himself to verify that the scale was correct. he actually asked me to stop the diet as he could see that i had symptoms of impaired eysight due to a very rapid loss of weight. i insisted to him that i will continue with the diet as i was at 98 kg from 112kg when i had started and i aimed to finish it.i did finish the diet and i lost a total of 20 kg. my final weigh in was at 86 kg but after the diet i was at around 87-90kg. this diet i did in2006 and i still maintain the same weight. i can say with confidence that if you do the original diet and not the modified ones you can loose a lot of weight by being honest and sincere. i do want to caution all of you and say that i don't really understand the implications ,side effects and all other health problems(organ and tissue damage related to this diet) but i believe this is a hospital diet and it should be beneficial to all and has been well researched.
posted Mar 24th, 2011 8:18 amRB
-I dont know if its the same diet, but ten years ago i tried something called "The Danish hospital´s 13 days-metabolism diet" (the Danish hospital has denied having anything to do with it). For 13 days i ate very small amounts of roasted bread, coffee, yoghurt, eggs, celery, beefsteak, ham, spinach etc. It was so short on calories i would go as far as to call it a starvation diet. In 13 days i actually lost 10 kilos, then afterwards i gained it all back. Im giving this thumbs down because i dont like the idea of a 13-day diet. It just sounds a little bit too naive and desperate. And now someone are hiding the diet specifics to make money on it?... I dont recommend this diet, but if you have to try it, do a google search. Dont waste money on it.
posted Aug 16th, 2010 6:43 amlucky shebe
+its a good program
posted Feb 7th, 2009 11:47 am