The problem with online marketing is you never really know if what you are being sold is going to work or what long term effect it could have on your body. With the rise of social media platforms like Instagram it is easy to see why more and more people feel pressured into looking a certain way, no matter the cost – whether that be financially or the risk to one’s health.

Dodgy pills and potions

They pose a serious threat to your health – unregulated and often including ingredients that may be regulated or even banned in your country. Putting your health at risk by taking some sort of magic pill you found online – no matter how much research you did – is simply not worth it! Little research can be done with new variations of banned substances popping up every day it is difficult to be aware of short term and long term health risks.

Diet patches

If you are unfamiliar with this concept it is an adhesive style patch you wear on the skin overnight, it tends to be worn on the stomach or feet. Available to purchase mainly from Chinese websites and are very cheap to buy. Again with little research done these patches can pose a risk to your health. It is thought they are designed to detoxify your system while you sleep – drawing out harmful toxins but it is not known exactly what is inside these diet style patches.

The werewolf diet

Yes, you read that right. No idea? Let’s give you a hint – it doesn’t involve ripping your clothes off, growing fur and attacking random people in the middle of the night, it does have something to do with a full moon though. During a full or new moon you eat nothing but smoothied or pureed veg and fruit and drink water. Whilst you may lose weight temporarily you will more than certainly put it all straight back on. The problem is you are setting yourself up for failure. Your body may even go into shock and store fat rather than burn it. Sounds crazy and probably will not give you the results you desire. Short answer – avoid.

The baby food diet

Sounds wrong doesn’t it – probably because it is! Baby food is designed for, well…babies! They digest food at a different rate to adults and tend to eat food in a soft, mashed up state. They also have different nutritional needs. Adults began eating baby food in an attempt to lose weight, this is a dangerous and drastic way of dieting and there are much safer alternatives. Leave the baby food for the babies and stick to a real diet plan if you are wanting to lose weight or detox.

The celebrity endorsed diet plan

Some of you may remember way back in 2006 that Beyoncé used the master cleanse diet in order to lose weight for her role in dream girls. This diet involves drinking a mixture of lemon juice, chilli pepper and maple syrup. You do this around 8 – 10 times a day – now of course you are going to lose weight but as with many of these health fads they number 1 aren’t actually healthy at all and number 2 you run the risk of piling all that weight straight back on (and in some cases even more) this is because you are not giving yourself the chance to succeed. These diets are dangerous and almost impossible to stick to. You are denying your body of much needed nutrients and vitamins, the best way to succeed is to pick a diet that will work for you that you are able to stick to.

Have you tried any of these faddy diets? Or considered doing something drastic to lose weight? With the impact social media has on the day to day world and the unrealistic body images we are expected to be held to its easy to understand why people will go to such lengths. What you must understand is that the celebrity you look up to with that perfect body doesn’t even have that perfect body! These guys have teams of designers and Photoshop experts on hand to edit there images before they see the light of day. Be kind to your self – choosing to diet can sometimes be a necessary part of adult life, it doesn’t need to be dangerous though. Your health is your wealth.

It’s all you have when it comes down to it. There are lots of safe diet plans available and your GP or health profession will be able to point you in the right direction should you need any support.

Look after yourselves. Don’t take any unnecessary risks with your health!