Is a 1,200-Calorie Diet Right for You?
Experts explain whether the popular weight-loss meal plans will help or hurt your efforts.
By K. Aleisha Fetters, Contributor |Jan. 12, 2018, at 4:06 p.m.
You should determine the right caloric intake for you before committing to a specific goal. (Getty Images)
When it comes to losing weight, it can seem like 1,200 is the magic number. Practically every health and weight-loss website out there has at least one (or one dozen) 1,200-calorie diet options. Even the National Institutes of Health has published a 1,200-calorie meal plan. Worldwide, more than 18,000 people per month search Google for “1,200 calorie diets.â€
What’s so special about 1,200? Well, for the average person, it’s the smallest number of calories you can eat in a day to lose weight without harming your health, explains New York City-based registered dietitian Justine Roth. Apart from the fact that calories supply the energy you need to live and, yes, even burn fat, many of the foods that pack calories also pack essential vitamins and minerals, she says. Go too low with calorie – and food – intake, and you’re pretty much guaranteed to experience nutritional deficiencies, adds Dr. Craig Primack, a member of the national board of directors for the Obesity Medicine Association.
https://health.usnews.com/wellness/food/articles/2018-01-12/is-a-1-200-calorie-diet-right-for-you
