The purple diet is a new celebrity diet trend that’s gaining traction. The diet was made famous by Mariah Carey who has reportedly used it successfully to slim down. The idea behind this diet is surprisingly simple: eating only antioxidant-rich purple-hued foods such as cabbage, eggplant, grapes, plums, potatoes or cauliflower in the desired quantities. Artificial colored foods aren’t part of the diet.
According to Star magazine, the singer follows this strict diet rule for three days a week: “The diva has thrown herself into a new diet: three days a week, she eats purple foods like plums, grapes and eggplants – and is already loving the results.”
Purple foods are rich in a powerful anthocyanins, antioxidants that are responsible for the dark purple, red and blue colors of many fruits and which help protect the cells from damage. As if this wasn’t enough to get our interest up, purple foods are believed to help prevent cancer and provide anti-aging benefits. Moreover, purple fruits and vegetable are also rich in other important vitamins and minerals.
Purple potatoes for instance, are said to have four times more antioxidant potential compared to other potatoes, being rich in potassium, vitamin C, folic acid and iron. A strong point of the purple diet promotes natural foods instead of refined or processed options, which tend to be healthy and relatively low in calories which is why the diet can be effective in promoting weight loss.
However, while consuming purple foods does have health benefits, it is still considered a fad diet by nutritionists since consuming only foods of a certain color creates an unbalanced diet that doesn’t provide all the necessary nutrients the body needs to function properly. Instead, nutritionists recommend eating a ‘rainbow of foods’, meaning eating fruits and vegetables of various colors instead, to be able to benefit from the wide variety of nutrients the body needs on a daily basis.
See also:Bob Harper Diet: The Skinny RulesThe Fruit Flush Diet
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