We have written several articles on balanced nutrition, ie, eating balanced meals daily and why our bodies require this. To accomplish this is not easy and many times I think we just take the easy, quick route that in the end robs us of the proper nutrition it needs. We tend to think of the moment from day to day. Fad diets come and go and some remain. You still hear of the The Grapefruit Diet, The Cabbage Soup Diet, The South Beach Diet, The Low Carb Diet, The Low Fat Diet and the list goes on. Are these really good for us? Well, maybe in the fact that some weight can be lost, but, I don't feel that they are, which is my personal opinion, due to being a big fan of The Food Pyramid.

We used to see an old time traditional doctor years ago and he summed it up fairly well for me. He said, "If you eat well balanced meals daily and eat half of what you would normally eat then push yourself away from the table, you will loose weight properly or maintain your weight. If you want a piece of pie or cake, don't deprive yourself. Take a sliver or a couple of bites to curb the sweet craving. And, find a good exercise plan and do it daily".

The problem with Fad Diets is that they *are short term and we tend to carry them to extreme. When the weight is gone and we have reached our intended goal more then likely the weight will return.* This is Yo Yo Dieting. *Sometimes this can lead to a eating disorder such as anorexia.* What happens to us in yo yo dieting it that the weight will go up and down and this will affect our rate. You may see a weight increase instead of a decrease, and this is the reason. I know first hand because it has happened to me. When you frequent fad foods you are not getting a sufficent amount of food from the basic food groups. Making a habit of this long term will cause loss of muscle mass, including the most important muscle in our body, the heart. It will cause imbalances in nutrition, setting us up for a number of problems.

I have thought about fast foods, and in my opinion, I would call them Fad Diets, especially if we make a routine of eating them and they become daily diets.

*Fad foods are common in toddlers and young children.* I think that as children get older the fad foods increase and this is why we are seeing and hearing more about child/adult obesity. Society has for the most part lost their way towards the concept of a no nonsense nutrition diet. Fad foods are common for people who are chronically on a diet, or if under stress, depressed or just plain bored. If we are feeling hungry and run to the pantry or refrigerator for a snack, most of the time we are not really hungry at all. We are in fact thirsty and many do not even realize it. Just grab a tall glass of cold water, as it tends to take the craving of food that we think we are having away.

*Diets high in fat and protein are unsafe as it can raise our cholestrol levels. By eating too many fatty foods you can develop a dengerous imbalance, because we now have a lack of carbohydrates.*

In ending, stick to the basic food groups from the Food Pyramid. Drink at least 8, 8 ounce glasses of water a day and if you are thinking of dieting talk with your doctor first, he is your best source to reach your goals.