Nutritional and Health Quality of a Group of Popular Weight-Reducing Diets in Jordan

Abstract

This study aims at assessing nutritional and health quality aspects of a group of popular weight-reducing diets in Jordan. Twenty two popular weight-reducing diets were collected from dieters and their essential nutrients were analyzed using Food Processor SQL software (2008). Dietary reference intakes were used as reference values for nutritional assessment. Characteristics of the diets were compared with the criteria of healthy weight-reducing diets. The results showed that the daily energy contents of the diets ranged between 352-1632 Kcal/day, with an average value of 985±77.6 Kcal/day. The percentages of diets provided the AMDR of carbohydrate, protein and fat, were 36, 82 and 73%, respectively; none of the diets did meet all the AMDR values collectively. Fourteen percent of the diets contained the AMDR of dietary fibers, while 50% contained cholesterol more than 300 mg/day. The diet coverages of DRIs ranged from 5-50% and from 5-77% for minerals and vitamins, respectively. Half of the diets contained one or more of the criteria of unhealthy faulty weight-reducing diets. Furthermore, only 3 diets encouraged dieters to practice physical activity, whereas only two instructed the adoption of healthy eating behaviors. In conclusion, that most of the tested popular diets in Jordan were imbalanced with respect to macronutrient contribution in daily energy intake, insufficient in one or more of the essential micronutrients and contradicted with the criteria of healthy weight-reducing diets.