Dangers of Very Low Calorie Diets

Very Low Calorie Diets are weight loss diets that are extremely low in calories – at or under 800 Calories Per Day. Many VLCDs are based around liquid formulas or diet shakes. In some circumstances the patient is restricted to an intake of less than 500 calories a day. This is an extremely low amount and medical consultation, and often supervision is always required for a diet of this type because of the dangers it can present to the patient.

The Low Calorie level in a VLCD is essential as the aim of the diet is to reduce the patient’s calorie intake to a point just above the body’s starvation point. In the same way that a car driver running low on petrol will begin to change the way they drive to conserve fuel, the body will slow its metabolism to avoid running out of stored energy. One of the effects of this energy conservation mode is that fat cells will be broken down at a lower rate as they are more difficult to process into usable energy than the proteins that make up muscle. Very Low Calorie Diets keep intake at the point at which this begins to happen so that the fat loss is a rapid as possible and that muscle deposits are not reduced. This is why VLCDs require proper medical supervision.

Obviously falling into the starvation zone is a major risk for patients following a VLCD but there are other risks as well ranging from the simply embarrassing to the potentially life threatening: Gall Stones, Constipation, Ketosis and Heart Failure.

Liquid diets do not require much digestion, leading to excess bile and gallstones. Patients already prone to stomach ulcers may experience an increased frequency of associated symptoms from the same effect. Constipation is another effect associated with liquid diets which is why many patients on a VLCD take fibre supplements.

Ketosis is a much debated metabolic state which indicates the body is producing glucose (basic sugars) from non-fat protein stores. Some argue that this process puts excess strain on the liver and can lead to liver failure. Doctors monitoring a VLCD patient will be looking out for Ketosis as a sign that they have reached the calorific level that is triggering the change in the patient’s metabolic rate.

Heart Failure is by far the biggest risk for patients on a Very Low Calorie Diet. There have been a number of examples of sudden heart failure of obese patients on VLCDs in recent history. The common belief that it is related excess strain on the heart is not entirely accurate. Instead it seems that the deficiency of the diet in essential minerals, copper, potassium and magnesium leads to instability in the electrical signal that tells the heart when to beat. This is a much more serious danger than simple stress as it can mean that any patient and not just extremely obese individuals could be at risk of heart failure.

Weight to Go is not a Very Low Calorie Diet. With Weight to Go your calorie intake level is kept low, to 850 calories a day, but not dangerously so. Weight to Go requires no medical consultation or supervision and our diet meals are carefully designed by nutritionists to ensure that you get all the essential minerals and the fibre you require. In addition our diet meals are prepared by real chefs, using real ingredients so that not only are they perfectly healthy, they taste great!