The key to successful weight loss is to shoot for slow, manageable, sustainable results. The only effective way to lose weight is to take in fewer calories than you burn off each day, states the Mayo Clinic. While a doctor can help you jump-start a diet with surgery or quick-acting very-low calorie plans, you must transition into a diet that becomes a lifestyle to stay healthy, reach and maintain your ideal weight. Quick weight loss can lead to a number of serious consequences when not managed by a health care professional.
Weight Gain
Quick weight-loss diets are not sustainable. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, deprivation can lead to overindulgence and binge eating. When your body lacks sufficient nutrients from certain food groups, cravings result that lead to overeating. Most of the initial weight loss in extreme diets is water weight that quickly returns when you start eating a normal diet again. As fat begins to disappear on unhealthy quick weight loss diets, muscle also dissipates. High protein diets, usually high in fat, can lead to heart disease, stroke, cancer and eventual weight gain, reports the American Heart Association.
Side Effects
Fasting and strict very low calorie diets can lead to fatigue, hair loss and menstruation irregularities. Initial side effects also include intolerance to changing temperatures, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. Confusion and dizziness are common among dieters who don't receive sufficient nutrition. Side effects of completely eliminating certain food groups can lead to vitamin and mineral deficiencies that can have serious consequences such as osteoporosis, anemia and cancer.
Death
Many fad diets over time have been banned from legal distribution because of the fatalities they caused, but losing weight too fast on any diet can lead to death. According to CVS Health Resources, diets in the past based on liquid shakes, pills and injections continually came under scrutiny when dieters died in significant numbers. Dieters losing weight too fast can die from heart attacks and strokes when using methods designed to control appetite and provide energy. When the body goes into starvation mode as it continues to be deprived of necessary nutrition, it begins to store fat. When those fat reserves are used up, the body turns to the muscles and vital organs for energy, leading to malnutrition, system shutdowns and death.
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