Can I die on this diet?!?

Hi all,

I have been on the Lighter Life diet for just over a week and am getting a bit scared.

My counsellor warned the group about the new Daily Mail story of a woman dying from heart failure 11 weeks into the diet, and I wasn't too concerned, but I have been reading a lot, and I am starting to feel a bit worried.

My big fear is that, according to a few, the VLCD means that the body eats away at muscle, the heart being one, and causes it to "switch off, just like a light"....and also that the heart gets used to not pumping as much as there is not as much fuel to help it.

I really want to lose weight ~ but am I at risk of heart failure from too little calories, or brain swelling from too much water?
When you starve yourself, as you do on a crash diet, your heart gets used to functioning on very little fuel. The problem is if you suddenly eat more - the classic dieter's lapse of willpower.
This puts your heart under pressure and while in most healthy people this is not a worry, in some it triggers an irregular heart rhythm and sudden death.
It's like an electrical problem in your heart: it simply switches off, as if it were a lightbulb blowing


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1211954/Bride-crash-diet-death--eating-just-530-calories-day-11-weeks.html#ixzz0QeoUEBSK

It also suggests that anything below 800 cals a day is not good, and that the diet should be a MAXIMUM of 12 weeks...I needed more than that...

Am I harming myself?

You might find this report and research on vlcd's helpful.

[FONT=Verdana,Bold][FONT=Verdana,Bold]The report documents the extent of the problem of overweight and obesity in the EU and corrects a number of misconceptions ie. that slow, small weight loss is better maintained or that rapid weight loss is unsafe.[/FONT][/FONT]​

Closely monitored clinical studies in over 50,000 people, many for prolonged periods with laboratory investigations and electrocardiographic monitoring show no evidence of pathological changes as a result of the use of VLCD. This confirms the practical experience of use of VLCD in over 25 million people during more than 20 years. This section examines the lack of relevance of the "liquid protein diet" . ​

These studies show that products with an adequate macronutrient and micronutrient composition, with an energy content in the range 400-800kcals per day (VLCD) are at least as safe as any other weight reducing diet. The safety applies not only to those in the higher BMI range but also to those with starting BMI levels down to 25 and finishing BMI levels in the normal range (20 to 25).

Click to expand...

Click on vlcd below for the link.

VLCD



Carrying reports submitted on behalf of the VLCD European Industry Group

http://www.geocities.com/jmarkscam/

Hopefully this information above helps you to clear up some things you are worried about and enable you to make up your mind one way or the other.

Love Mini xxx

LaydeeBug

If it helps, I started using the Cambridge Diet (which is similar to the LighterLife programme) in February 2006 weighing almost 19 stone.

I used it successfully for almost 10 months losing over 8 stone in the process and have been at or around my target weight for almost 3 years now.

I began with borderline high blood pressure and rather acute asthma due to carrying so much weight around. Within 3 months my blood pressure was in the normal range where it has remained ever since and my asthma has disappeared almost to the point of non-existence. I have never once had a single day's illness since I began or reached my target weight and, at the age of 52, feel fitter and healthier than I have for years!

All I can advise is read the research - from all perspectives - and then make your decision based on an informed position rather than focussing on the, admittedly very sad, stories that have circulated recently.

Good luck whatever you decide to do

ty mini and summer .. i have been worrying about this since yesterday ..having read a thread about it( the thread has since been closed ) although i refused to read the article ...i feel more at ease now xx

The Daily Mail is a rag which publishes scare stories and shouty nonsense purely to boost its own sales figures. Unless the story is corroborated by a valid news outlet I'd take it for what it is: trashy journalism designed to panic you into spending your cash.

Thank you so much Mini And Summer for your helpful responses.

And Crazy, yes, they did succeed in scaring me!

As I said, i wasn't too concerned when our counsellor warned us, but was at my in-law's yesterday and they said " I hope it's not this diet you're on!" and showed me the article.

I am not going to stop the diet as i have built myself up to do this, and I feel a non food diet is what is best for me.

Just one thing ~ if any of you have any info on this ~ I swim 2 or 3 times a week...I did this for 8 months before the diet. I swim 1000 metres in just under an hour, non-stop. I swim at a comfortable pace. Will I need to cut this down on my VLCD? And will it put pressure on my heart as I am taking in less "fuel"?

Many Thanks again. xx

hmmm i think slow and natural way to diet is the best wayy... but goodluck with ure decision x

Don't believe all you read, your own body will tell you if things are not right long before anything is seriously wrong.
(Just browsing the posts for inspiration, just about to start the Lighterlife programme, end of month.)

Kev* said:

Don't believe all you read, your own body will tell you if things are not right long before anything is seriously wrong.
(Just browsing the posts for inspiration, just about to start the Lighterlife programme, end of month.)

Click to expand...

Thanks Kev ~ and good luck with LL...what date do you start?