Japanese Morning Diet

The Japanese Morning Diet became a popular diet in 2008 in Japan and has made its way to the United States and beyond. The diet, also known as the Morning Banana Diet, is fairly simple to follow with only one mandatory ingredient -- bananas.

History

Sumiko Watanabe, a pharmacist in Japan, wanted to help her then-boyfriend, Hitoshi Watanabe, lose weight. She made some suggestions, which included eating a banana for breakfast with room-temperature water, and having dinner several hours before bedtime. Hitoshi followed her advice and lost weight. Excited by his success, Hitoshi shared his story on Japan's social networking site, Mixi. Soon others tried the diet, including a singer who shared her story on television, increasing the popularity of the diet further.

The Diet

The Japanese Morning Banana Diet is fairly simple to follow. Variations of the diet exist, but the general rules are: eat one or more raw, uncooked bananas for breakfast, whatever you'd like for lunch or dinner and enjoy an afternoon snack. While there are no strict requirements for the contents of your lunch or dinner, the Japanese aim to eat only until satisfied, not until stuffed, according to the Web site MorningBanana.com. The diet requires you to have dinner before 8 pm, and does not allow dessert with lunch or dinner, though your afternoon snack may be sweet. Room temperature water is the recommended beverage throughout your day.

Effectiveness

While there is no scientific research proving the Japanese Morning Banana Diet works, many individuals have reported success with the diet. The website MorningBanana.com lists several theories for the success of the diet, including the potential for bananas to help burn fat and aid in digestion. Eating dinner well before bedtime and eliminating evening snacks helps the body digest its food before bedtime, and drinking water rather than calorie-rich beverages also decreases calorie consumption.

Criticism

The Japanese Morning Banana Diet has often been referred to as a fad diet. Critics pounce on the freedom to eat whatever you want for lunch or dinner and the monotony of eating bananas every day. However, variations of the diet allow you to substitute other fruits for bananas, and supporters of the diet say they expect people interested in losing weight to be mindful of the other foods they eat, according to MorningBanana.com.

Hype

In October 2008, "Time" magazine reported a shortage of bananas on grocery store shelves in Japan when the craze began. The article reported that Dole Japan had increased its banana imports by 25 percent, but still couldn't keep up with the demand as dieters swept bananas off shelves in their quest for weight loss. Since then, weight-loss seekers in other countries have discovered the diet and added bananas to their shopping carts. Though the hype may wane for this particular diet, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, bananas are a great source of potassium and other healthy nutrients, making it an excellent food to include in your diet.