“It has not been proven safe by [the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)], nor has it been proven effective,” she cautions. “We just don’t know the long-term effects.” The FDA has even issued warnings against HCG diet products. (1) While Mehmet Oz of The Dr. Oz Show introduced an updated form of the HCG diet that allows up to 1,500 calories per day, the classic version of the HCG diet restricted calories to just 500. In his new and updated version of the diet, Dr. Oz even states that the original HCG diet “should no longer be in practice by any physician,” though his updated version of the diet still involves restricted eating of similar foods and hormone injections. (2) Very little research has been done on this new version of the HCG diet, and it’s worth noting that the data Oz uses to back up these claims does not come from a peer-reviewed journal. (3) In fact, Weinandy does not believe that the version of the HCG diet introduced by Oz on his show is any safer because “it still requires injections, has not been approved by the FDA for safety or efficacy, and is still too low calorie,” she says. So what is the HCG diet exactly, and why do its proponents make such dramatic claims about its effects? In 1954, British physician A.T.W. Simeons theorized that HCG allows mothers-to-be to access fat reserves to feed their fetuses. He published a book, Pounds and Inches: A New Approach to Obesity, in which he suggested that HCG could help people access their fat reserves and achieve weight loss. The idea might have been that, if a woman had morning sickness or some other condition that prevented her from taking in ample nutrition at a certain point in her pregnancy, her baby would still have a reserve of energy to draw on, and the hormone HCG could help facilitate access to that supply, Weinandy says. But, she notes, this really oversimplifies the numerous systems at work in pregnancy: A number of hormones are active, and the way they interact can sometimes even promote fat gain for the mother. In fact, Weinandy says, this kind of speculation about HCG’s role in weight loss can be “really dangerous, and it’s sending a bad message to people because we don’t know for certain how HCG works.” Another worry? Many chronic diseases, including breast cancer and prostate cancer, have been linked to an imbalance of hormones, so we can’t predict what effects manipulating our hormones might have, Weinandy cautions. According to the HCG diet website, here are a list of the approved foods:
Some FruitsLimited oranges, strawberries, apples, and red grapefruitNonstarchy Vegetables Lettuce, celery, cabbage, cucumbers, onions, and tomatoesLean Meat Chicken breast, lean ground beef, shrimp, lobster, and white fish
So what are some foods that are definitely off-limits in this plan? Keri Gans, RD, a New York–based dietitian, notes that the diet does not allow any of the following:
Fatty Foods Fatty fish, nuts, or anything made with oilStarchy Vegetables Potatoes, for exampleAdded Sugar Not permitted in any form
“The amount of calories per day allowed on this diet is below any recommended amount for safe weight loss,” Gans says. “For the average person, consuming 500 to 800 calories per day puts them at risk for malnutrition, plus a host of other side effects, including fatigue, dizziness, nausea, and constipation.” What of advocates’ claims that the HCG diet helps reduce fat, not muscle? According to the HCG diet website, this is because the body’s shape begins to change while on the diet: Deposits of fat move away from the stomach and hips, and instead become available for the body to use immediately, leading to fat loss rather than muscle loss. But Weinandy says there’s no scientific evidence that the diet won’t cause muscle loss, and studies on the diet are funded by HCG diet proponents themselves. Right now, she notes, it’s only clear that “following a low-calories diet in the short term will produce weight loss, and this includes fat and stomach in the hips.”
Little Medical Support “It is not at all healthy for you,” Gans says. It would be impossible, she continues, to find “an accredited physician or registered dietitian — the two professionals you should be going to if you need help with weight loss — who would endorse the HCG diet.”Expensive Injections The daily HCG injections or pills, Gans says, could be costly. Most people buy the hormone pills on the internet or go to clinics that advertise HCG injections. And, Weinandy says, you also have to worry about whether the injection is indeed what it claims to be, and that it is not harmful in the long term.Likely Weight Regain People are likely to put the weight back on as soon as they go off the diet, Gans says. Once people are no longer severely restricting their diet and calories, they will often regain the weight: A review published in 2013 in ISRN Obesity found that multiple mechanisms in the body — including changes in metabolism, the body’s hormones, and appetite — help counteract a reduction in calories, which the authors say might explain why many people regain weight after a period of restriction. (5)Few Food Choices Because the HCG diet is so calorie restrictive, there aren’t many exciting HCG diet recipes, Gans says. Your choices usually include different ways of seasoning basic foods, like fish, chicken, turkey, or lean beef. Seasonings can add flavor and variety but no calories. Many of the HCG diet recipes are for single servings.Long-Term Health Risks By following the diet for the recommended six to eight weeks, you put yourself at risk for a number of nutritional deficiencies, Weinandy says. You could also face electrolyte imbalances, an irregular heartbeat, gallstones, and more, not to mention the additional health risks mentioned earlier about the effects of manipulating your hormones.
People who stay on the HCG diet for a long time could become malnourished. “You can’t meet your nutritional needs on 500 calories a day,” explains Gans. “The U.S. dietary guidelines are based on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet.” The HCG diet promises quick weight loss and can work at first because you are eating far fewer calories than you are burning. However, it’s important to remember that healthy weight loss takes time and most often can’t be accomplished through fad diets. “I always tell my patients that it didn’t take you two weeks to gain those 20 pounds, so don’t expect to lose them in two weeks,” Gans says. “You need to change your behavior for the long term, and fad diets don’t do anything about changing behavior except encouraging some new, not-so-healthy ones.” “This is what I always say with these diets: Whatever you do to lose weight, you need to keep doing it, or you’ll gain it back,” Weinandy says. She notes that the HCG diet is not sustainable or healthy — and thus isn’t the best option for meeting your weight loss goals. Additional reporting by Stephanie Bucklin
