All-Bran is a high fiber breakfast cereal from Kellogg's which is low in both fat and sugar. A typical 40 g or 1.4 ounce serving contains 112 calories, making All-Bran a low calorie food. The high fiber content of this food product means that it is slow to digest and will keep you fuller for longer -- especially compared to high sugar cereals. Although there is no official Kellogg's diet using All-Bran, this breakfast cereal can be used as a weight loss food in the same way that Special-K is promoted as a diet food.
Methodolgy
To reduce your daily calorie intake and lose weight, replace one or two meals per day with a serving of Kellogg's All-Bran cereal. The daily energy shortfall will have to be met by burning extra body fat for energy, which will result in losses of body fat and weight. Your other meals should be balanced, healthy and consist of carbohydrates, protein and healthy fats. The Kellogg's Special-K diet suggests that you replace two meals a day with cereal for the first two weeks and one meal a day thereafter.
Advantages
Like any meal replacement diet, exchanging regular meals for low calorie meals will result in weight loss. The simplicity of merely preparing a bowl of cereal makes the All-Bran diet easy to implement and requires no special culinary skills. All-Bran is readily available in most grocery stores and is cheap, especially when compared to commercially prepared meal replacement products such as bars, soups and shakes. There is no need for calorie counting or weighing. Simply measure your cereal in an appropriately sized cup. All-Bran is also high in fiber, which means it is good for your digestive health.
Disadvantages
Any overly restrictive diet can fall short in supplying essential vitamins, minerals and energy. All-Bran is very low in both energy and relative nutritional value, especially compared to "live" foods such as fruit and vegetables. An eating plan that replaces meals with cereal is likely to be classified as a very low calorie diet, which can lead to an overly rapid weight loss, which may trigger the starvation response. The starvation response can lead to regaining weight and the so-called yo-yo diet effect. Meal replacement diets such as the All-Bran and Special-K diets can be socially exclusive, especially if you are the only member of your family eating this way.
Predicted Weight Loss
Because All-Bran is so low in calories, replacing two meals a day is going to create a significant calorie deficit, which will result in rapid weight loss. One pound of body fat contains approximately 3,500 calories of energy. A 1,500 calorie a day calorie deficit will result in three pounds of weight loss per week. Actual weight loss will vary, depending on physical activity levels, percentage of body fat, size of regular meals and diet compliance.
Considerations
Although substituting one or two meals a day with All-Bran will result in rapid weight loss, the weight loss may be too rapid to be good for you. You are likely to be hungry, lack energy and may feel unwell when following such a restrictive diet. Because of this discomfort, compliance with this type of diet is generally poor and therefore success will not be as high as with a more structured and balanced diet. Meal replacement diets such as the All-Bran and Special-K diets do not help to re-educate you about portion control and proper food choices, which means that weight gain once the diet is finished is likely.
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