6 Instagram-Famous Diets That Are Quietly Destroying Your Metabolism
Social media’s favorite eating plans have a dark side
We go on Instagram and find pictures of people’s weight loss journeys, side-by-side comparisons and individuals promoting the newest weight loss tips.
They aren’t limited to offering diets; they’re now major brands in people’s lives. Hashtags, pictures of meal prep and testimonials advertising fast weight loss and everlasting youth.
Despite what you see online, many of these popular diets can actually harm your metabolism.
The harm takes time to develop. It is not always obvious; it happens gradually, and it can be very difficult to reverse. You feel tired, your weight goes back up, and dealing with food becomes difficult.
This is what Instagram isn’t explaining about the diets that are so popular.
1. The “What I Eat in a Day” 1,200-Calorie Culture
Look at any fitness influencer’s Instagram, and you’ll notice their meals are tiny, almost not enough for a child who does not exercise.
On Instagram, the 1,200-calorie diet is now the most common way people share their meal plans. Everything is neat, orderly and exactly the right size for a 9-square grid.
1,200 calories is not just a suggestion; it’s considered a medically monitored very low-calorie diet. This is the type of ventilator hospitals rely on for people who are very overweight and have to be carefully watched.
Eating less than your basal metabolic rate makes your body adjust so that it can still function.
Based on research in Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, people who ate 1,114 calories saw their resting metabolism slow down more than twice as much as those who consumed 1,462 calories. Still, both calorie levels lowered the speed of the basal metabolic rate.
In a study done in 2009, overweight people who consumed only 890 calories per day saw their calorie expenditure drop by 633 calories on average after 3 months.
It thinks your body is going without food. That is its purpose.
An influencer sharing what she eats in a 1,200-calorie day. It is possible that she is eating differently when the cameras are off or she is harming her metabolism to create content.
Instead:
The 2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans points out that limiting calorie intake to 1,200 per day is not sufficient for most people’s nutritional needs
Figure out the number of calories you actually need by considering your age, how active you are, and what your aims are.
2. The “Detox Tea” and Juice Cleanse Obsession
Influencers on Instagram’s wellness page are often photographed holding colorful juices and encouraging people to try cleanses that last for 3, 7 or 21 days.
The promise? Bring your metabolism back into balance, get rid of toxins, and set yourself up for weight loss.
The reality? You are not getting the right nutrients, but you are giving your body a lot of sugar.
Fructose is the main source of calories in most juice cleanses, which usually offer between 600 and 1,000 per day.
That means
No protein to support muscle strength
Hormones are produced with less fat in the diet.
A sharp increase in blood sugar levels is followed by a sudden drop.
In a 2017 study, those who did juice cleanses showed a decrease in metabolic rate after three days. It gets worse, because most of the weight lost was from water and muscle, not from fat.
Studies have shown that having a juice cleanse might lead to eating disorders and increase the risk of health complications.
Health authorities state that our body’s natural detox system through the skin, lungs, liver and digestive tract eliminates the need for juice cleanses.
After being on liquids, your metabolism slows down and needs less food.
The result? When you return to solid food, your slower metabolism can’t handle the same caloric intake. The result? Rapid weight regain, often exceeding your starting weight.
You can “reset” by choosing whole foods, enough protein and drinking sufficient water.
3. The Keto-for-Everyone Phenomenon
Many people are now seeing ketogenic diets on social media, where influencers post about making butter coffee and wrapping everything in bacon.
People with epilepsy, diabetes or particular metabolic conditions can find keto to be helpful.
Instagram uses a single approach, not considering that everyone’s body chemistry is different.
Here are the consequences of trying keto without learning about it first:
It appears that the keto diet can be risky for those with hypothyroidism since it may reduce the amount of thyroid hormone in the body even more.
Carbohydrates are necessary because they:
Having menstrual periods at about the same time each month
A good quality sleep
The production of serotonin (your happiness hormone)
Leptin sensitivity
Amenorrhea (missing periods), sleep problems, and anxiety and irritability known as “keto rage” are common in women who follow a keto diet for a long time.
Instead,
Look at what works best for you.
If you are always under stress, your body probably needs more healthy carbohydrates to function well.
4. The Intermittent Fasting “Lifestyle”
Intermittent fasting (IF) has become very popular on Instagram, with people posting pictures of their fasting apps and talking about how it increases metabolic flexibility.
IF can be helpful if it is done in the right way. Social media has made it a sort of extreme sport.
Fasting is not the real issue; it’s the way it is usually done that causes the problem.
If you’re:
Already experiencing a lot of stress
Experiencing bad sleep
Facing problems with hormone balance
Sticking to a very limited number of calories
Fasting on top of the other stresses puts even more burden on an already strained system.
It has been shown through studies that fasting can lower thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4).
A study proved that fasting for 36 hours and then eating without limits for 12 hours caused T3 levels to go down.
Women may be more affected by prolonged fasting in these ways:
Change the normal levels of reproductive hormones
Make the symptoms of PMS worse.
Create more cortisol in your body.
Cause people to engage in binge-eating.
Instead,
Begin with a conservative approach if you want to try IF. Eat a breakfast that contains protein if you deal with stress, issues with sleep or hormonal problems. You need to work on consistency before you can start getting flexible.
5. The “Clean Eating” Orthorexia
The movement for clean eating on Instagram seems beneficial because it includes lots of colorful vegetables and organic products and avoids processed foods.
This is why orthorexia has become a new issue — people who have it are obsessed with eating only healthy foods.
Metabolism is affected when clean eating ends up being a form of restricting what you eat.
Cutting out entire food groups for no medical reason
Consuming very little food which makes your body believe there isn’t enough to eat
Causing people to worry about foods that are not considered clean
Feeling alone because of strict dietary rules
According to studies, being stressed about food for a long time — including perfectionist tendencies — causes cortisol to go up which decreases metabolism and leads to extra fat around the midsection.
Liquid diets were found to be linked to more cases of serious health problems and eating disorders. Many who promote so-called “clean eating” can actually worsen eating disorders while stressing wellness.
Instead;
Add more nutritious foods to your diet instead of removing entire groups of foods.
Your metabolism does better with consistent and adequate eating than with strict and restrictive diets.
#6. The “Metabolism Boosting” Supplement Stacks
Their posts on Instagram often tell people about supplements that guarantee a quick way to “boost the metabolism” and “burn fat.”
Typical ingredients are
More than 300–500mg of caffeine per serving
Synephrine which comes from bitter orange.
Yohimbine
Having green tea extract in very large amounts
While they may raise your metabolism for a short time, they also create a lot of stress for your nervous system.
Long-term usage of stimulating supplements may:
Drain your adrenal system.
Affect how well you sleep
Increase feelings of worry and short temper
Make it so that people rely on and use the drug regularly
Cause the body to compensate by speeding up metabolism when they are stopped
Studies found that after 8 weeks or more of using thermogenic supplements, people experienced less energy and more tiredness when they stopped.
You are using energy that you will have in the future.
Instead,
Keep your metabolism healthy by resting enough, eating enough protein, training your muscles and managing stress. They help your metabolism stay improved and not just give you a quick artificial boost.
It often seems that Instagram’s diet culture is promising fast and big changes to your body. Your metabolism cares about regularity, sufficient nutrition and being aware of your body’s needs.
Before starting an influencer’s diet, take some time to think:
Can the work last many months or even years, not only weeks?
Is my daily food enough to cover the calories and nutrients needed for my daily activities?
Am I thinking that a diet will solve problems with my lifestyle?
You do not have a metabolism problem. It is behaving the way it is designed to based on your actions.
Don’t go into it just to see what your friends will think. Begin to handle it as the advanced system it is.
References:
Healthline — 1200-Calorie Diet Review: Does It Work for Weight Loss?
Health Digest — The Truth About the 1200 Calorie Diet
Medical News Today — 1200 calorie diet: Weight loss, safety, and meal ideas
Healthline — 6 Mistakes That Slow Down Your Metabolism
Health.com — Juice Cleanse: Benefits, Risks, and Research
Medical News Today — Juice cleanse: Benefits, risks, and effects
NCCIH — “Detoxes” and “Cleanses”: What You Need To Know
PubMed — Could the ketogenic diet induce a shift in thyroid function?
Medical News Today — Can the ketogenic diet work for hypothyroidism?
Paloma Health — Hypothyroidism and Intermittent Fasting
Frontiers in Endocrinology — The influence of extended fasting on thyroid hormone