The Sacred Heart Diet can help you lose a significant amount of weight rapidly. However, this soup-based diet, like other fad diets, is unhealthy to sustain for a long period of time, and likely will not help you lose weight over the long term. Several versions of this diet also claim that it will help cleanse your body of toxins.
Origin
It has been rumored that the Sacred Heart Diet got its name from a Sacred Heart Hospital -- of which there are many -- using this diet to treat overweight patients. However, no Sacred Heart Hospital has come forward to claim affiliation with this diet, and many have denounced it. This popular fad diet is similar to a number of other diets, including the Cabbage Soup Diet.
This soup-based diet lasts a week, during which time you may lose a purported 10 to 17 pounds. Because the soup is so low in calories, you can eat as much of it as you want over the course of the week. The low calories allowed is also the main reason for the weight loss.
Meal Plan
Though there are slight variations of the diet, it generally requires you to follow a very specific meal plan over the course of the week. During the first day, you can eat any fruit except bananas and as much soup as you want. The second day requires you to eat only vegetables and soup. The third day allows you to eat all the soup, fruit and vegetables you want, but no potatoes. On the fourth day, you eat at least three bananas while drinking as much skim milk and eating as much cabbage soup as you can. During the fifth day you can eat up to 20 oz. of beef and up to 6 tomatoes -- or a can -- as well as soup. Day six allows you to eat as much vegetables, beef and soup as you want, but potatoes are not allowed. On the final day, you can eat as much brown rice, unsweetened fruit juice, vegetables and soup as you want.
Recipe
Though there are several variations of the Sacred Heart Diet, one recipe for the soup calls for 1 to 2 cans of stewed tomatoes, 3 large green onions, one large can of fat-free beef broth, one package of chicken-noodle soup mix, one bunch of celery, two cans of green beans, two pounds of carrots and two green peppers.
Precautions
While this diet may help you lose a significant amount of weight, most of it will be water weight. Due to the extreme calorie restriction on the diet, you likely will gain weight once you return to a normal diet. In addition, this diet likely will not provide you with all the essential vitamins and minerals you need to be healthy. Consult a doctor before beginning this diet.
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