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By now, you’re familiar with all the prepackaged diets from Nutrisystem and South Beach to Slim-Fast and Jenny Craig. But which of these healthy diet proponents really works, if any? Many people get stuck on the idea of buying convenient, easy weight loss solutions, without assimilating the real life lessons of portion control, calorie reduction and enlightened snacking. Many people who are dieting can only last on these restrictive or expensive fads for so long before abandoning them. Instead of using a quick fix diet, here is some more information about the popular programs out there.

For people who are severely overweight, it sometimes takes a special weight loss program to keep them disciplined and motivated. After all, when you’re used to living a certain way your whole life, the switch to fewer calories and a more varied diet, without the fat, can be overwhelming. One of these popular plans is the Weight Watchers program, which is $20 to join and costs about $9/week. The diet nutrition plan emphasizes strict calorie control, flexibility in food choices, exercise and a positive attitude. Proponents of Weight Watchers attend group meetings and weigh-ins and are not mandated to buy prepackaged food. Instead, they learn about what choices they can make based on a “points system,” as outlined in the Weight Watchers manual. Some critics say the points system does not necessarily lead to healthy eating, but the diet has fared well in clinical studies. Additionally, because it is cost-effective and flexible, participants are more likely to stick with it.

Another of the latest diets you may have heard of is the Dean Ornish Diet. In his book “Eat More, Weight Less,” Ornish looks to reverse heart disease by advocating a high-fiber, low-fat vegetarian diet to help you improve health and lose weight. He says with a combination of diet and exercise, rather than strict caloric restrictions, you can transform your body into an effective fat-burning machine. In his book, he recommends eating the following foods whenever you’re hungry and until you’re full. The list includes beans, legumes, fruits, grains and vegetables. Non-fat dairy products (yogurts, milk, cheese, sour cream, egg whites) and low-fat commercial products (ice cream) can be eaten occasionally, in moderation. The following foods should be avoided completely or consumed as little as possible. This list includes meat, oils, salad dressings, avocados, olives, nuts, seeds, full-fat dairy, sugar, honey, syrups, alcohol and commercially prepared food. Eating a lot of little meals and incorporating thirty minutes of exercise a day or an hour three times a week, along with managing stress through meditation, massage, therapy or yoga, is the key to success. Neal Barnard, MD, president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, says: “His diet is one of the only popular diet plans that is firmly rooted in science. It not only brings weight loss without counting calories, but it also brings good overall health. It reverses heart disease, cuts the risk of cancer, makes diabetes and hypertension more manageable, and sometimes even makes them go away.” Yet others, like Frank Hu of the Harvard School of Public Health, say that Ornish doesn’t distinguish bad fats from good fats, which can have some proven heart benefits too.

Fad diets will come and go, but the truth is simply to reduce your caloric intake and you’ll lose weight. Dr. Frank Sacks from the Harvard School of Public Health says that the problem with most weight loss plans is that people get hungry and quit. “It’s very difficult to reduce your calories enough to really sustain a lot of weight loss,” adds Catherine Loria of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Research suggests that it’s not simply the healthy eating that facilitates weight loss, but also community initiatives and support networks. Martjin Katan, professor of nutrition at Amsterdam’s VU University, points to a small town in France that reduced its childhood obesity rate to 8.8% (compared to 17% in neighboring towns) just by building outdoor sports facilities and outdoor spaces, as well as creating community programs that focused on dieting and healthy cooking. In one of Dr. Frank Sacks’ studies, he found that overweight people who attended at least two-thirds of the counseling sessions lost thirteen pounds more than other study participants.

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