When you want to lose weight, it is important to make food choices based on a healthy and balanced diet. Eating only fruits and vegetables is considered a crash diet instead of a healthy balanced diet because you are eliminating grains, protein and dairy products. However, if you opt to follow a diet that includes only fruits and vegetables, you should do so only for a short period of time before expanding your food choices to include all of the food groups.
Step 1
Choose a variety of fruits and vegetables to get as many nutrients as possible. Your body needs vitamins A, B complex, C, D, E and K, as well as nutrients such as potassium, calcium, fiber and magnesium daily. Eating different types of fruits, such as berries, melons and other fruits can expand the variety of nutrients you receive. For vegetables, focus on eating orange and yellow, dark green, red and starchy vegetables each day.
Step 2
Include fruits and vegetables that contain higher amounts of fat and calories since your body needs fat and calories daily to function properly. For example, 1 oz. of avocados contain approximately 46 calories and 4 g of fat. One cup of raisins contains almost 1 g of fat and 433 calories.
Step 3
Add salt and healthy oils to your diet. You need about 1,500 mg of salt each day and approximately 1 to 2 tbsp. of healthy oils daily for your body to function. You can add the salt and healthy oil, such as canola oil or sunflower oil, to your fruits and vegetables or you can eat them alone.
Step 4
Stay well hydrated by drinking water, fruit juice and vegetable juice. The fruit juice and vegetable juice you drink should be pasteurized. Some of these products are fortified with additional nutrients, so if possible, choose those.
Step 5
Consider adding in vegetarian protein sources, such as tofu, into your diet so that you can get the proteins you need to help your body produce new cells, such as blood cells.
Tips and Warnings
- Always check with your doctor before starting a weight-loss program.
- Stop following the fruit and vegetable only diet if you start to feel any adverse health effects, such as headaches, dizziness, heart rate changes, weakness, chest pains. Go to the emergency room or contact your doctor immediately if you experience any of these, or other, negative health effects.
References
- American Heart Association: Quick Weight Loss or Fad Diets
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010
- MyPyramid.gov: Food Groups: Vegetables
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 23: Energy (kcal) Content of Selected Foods per Common Measure
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 23: Total Lipid (fat) (g) Content of Selected Foods per Common Measure
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