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The Sirtfood Diet
Diets draw attention and popularity by promoting rapid weight loss and celebrity endorsements. The new fad or diet becomes a dangling carrot, many choose to bite.
With the sirtfood diet, they did just that. Take a peek at their website and you will see celebrity endorsements including Adele, Conor McGregor, and David Haye [6].
This diet claims not to be a trend or fad, but similar to diets that have come before, it appears to be an old diet with a new twist.
Origin of the Sirtfood Diet
The sirtfood diet was developed by Aidan Goggins and Glen Matten and published in 2017 [6]. The idea for the diet was sparked by the benefits of resveratrol in red wine. Red wine is thought of as the original sirtfood [4].
After seeing the benefits of resveratrol, it raised the question are there other foods that have these so-called powers similar to resveratrol? This opened the door to exploring other natural plant compounds and their potential benefits [4].
Much of the sirtfood diet reflects the recommendations of the Mediterranean diet. Keeping in mind again that most new or trending diets have components of past fads presented in new and shinny ways.
What is the SIRT in Sirtfood?
Situins (SIRTs) are a group of 7 protein in the body that have been found to support a variety of functions in mammals including metabolism, inflammation, insulin secretion, DNA repair, and more [7].
In several organisms, SIRTs to mirror the effects of calorie restriction [3]. Because of this it is thought that the inclusion of sirtfoods can fool the body by replicating the effects of calorie restriction and exercise without the negative long-term consequences [4].
The sirtfood website claims that if you include the “right foods” you can activate the “skinny” genes to mimic the effects of fasting and exercise [6].
Sirtfood rich “Mediterranean” diet is thought to decrease the risk of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and early death [6].
Please keep in mind that majority of the research does not consist of human studies, but instead animal studies and does not include long-term studies. That being said, it is only normal to have some skepticism when diets or foods claim to have superpowers.
What is the Sirtfood Diet
On the website for the sirtfood diet it states you can eat your way to rapid weight loss and a longer life by triggering the metabolic superpowers of sirtfoods [6].
The sirtfood diet is 3 weeks long and consists of 2 phases [1]. The first phase is 1 week or 7 days of severe calorie restriction and green juice. The first few days include 1 green juice and then move to include 2 green juices [2].
Sirtfood green juice includes kale, arugula, parsley, celery, ginger, green apple, lemon, and matcha green tea [1].
The second phase is 2 weeks or 14 days and is referred to as the maintenance plan. At this time, individuals following the diet are encouraged to include 3 “balanced” sirtfood meals and 1 green juice.
For a fee, individuals can build a diet plan based on sex, activity level, and food preferences. An individual will complete a questionnaire and receive a personalized meal plan, calorie and macronutrient ranges, food lists, and recipes [1].
Once the 3 week diet is over, it is encouraged to continue including sirtfoods with all meals and their signature green drink once a day.
Sirtfoods
The sirtfood diet promotes itself as a diet of inclusion, stating it is about what you eat, not what you leave out [6].
20 foods rich in polyphenols are known as the sirtfoods. Some sirtfoods include [1,4,5]:
- Cocoa
- EVOO
- Red onions
- Garlic
- Parsley
- Chilies
- Kale
- Strawberries
- Soy
- Walnuts
- Turmeric
- Buckwheat
- Dates
- Blueberries
- Capers
- Green tea
The diet has also caught hype for allowing coffee, red wine, and dark chocolate (85% cocoa) [1]. For all the foods allowed there is a larger number of foods not on the list. It often can be a downfall when diets label foods as superior.
Promises
The sirtfood diet promises fast, safe, and amazing weight loss results [1]. The diet also promises you can drop 7lb in the first 7 days [6]. It seems the focus of this diet is more about losing weight and less about being healthy. Keeping in mind body size does not equate to health.
Also, the diet promises losing weight while retaining muscle mass, improvements in memory function, better control of blood sugar levels, decreased risk of chronic disease, and anti-aging [6]. Promises like these are not realistic and most likely will not be the case for the majority who try a diet.
When thinking about trying a diet ask yourself why, what, how much, and who?
- Why am I looking into this diet?
- What do I want in the long-term?
- How much am I potentially sacrificing?
- Who is benefiting from this diet? Me or the diet industry?
Beyond the Promise
After the 3 week sirtfood diet has ended, then what? It is encouraged to continue including sirtfoods and encouraged to exercise regularly [1].
Sounds like the recommendation is to add a variety including fruits, vegetables, fats, grains, starches, and proteins. Along, with enjoying how your body moves and allowing for variety in self-care.
Understandably, the description above doesn’t sound as exciting as the sirtfood diet prompted by Adele, but it’s the truth.
A new diet or trend doesn’t have to be the answer to respecting, trusting, and accepting your body.
The goal is to identify what you as an individual need when healing this relationship and odds are a single diet isn’t going to answer that question for everyone.
What is truly needed, may be meeting with a dietitian and a therapist to heal your relationship with your body.
Resources:
[1] The Sirtfood Diet | Quiz. (n.d.). The Sirtfood Diet. [2] Amidor, T. (2021, November 1). Diet 101: The Sirtfood Diet. Food Network. [3] Haigis, M. C., & Guarente, L. P. (2006). Mammalian sirtuins—emerging roles in physiology, aging, and calorie restriction. Genes & Development, 20(21), 2913–2921. [4] Matten, A. G. G. (2022). SIRT Food Diet. Hodder & Stoughton General Division. [5] Pallauf, K., Giller, K., Huebbe, P., & Rimbach, G. (2013). Nutrition and Healthy Ageing: Calorie Restriction or Polyphenol-Rich “MediterrAsian” Diet? Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2013, 1–14. [6] The Sirtfood Diet. (n.d.). Sirtfood. [7] Yamamoto, H., Schoonjans, K., & Auwerx, J. (2007). Sirtuin Functions in Health and Disease. Molecular Endocrinology, 21(8), 1745–1755.The opinions and views of our guest contributors are shared to provide a broad perspective of eating disorders. These are not necessarily the views of Eating Disorder Hope, but an effort to offer discussion of various issues by different concerned individuals.
The opinions and views of our guest contributors are shared to provide a broad perspective of eating disorders. These are not necessarily the views of Eating Disorder Hope, but an effort to offer discussion of various issues by different concerned individuals.
We at Eating Disorder Hope understand that eating disorders result from a combination of environmental and genetic factors. If you or a loved one are suffering from an eating disorder, please know that there is hope for you, and seek immediate professional help.
Author: Raylene Hungate, RDN, LD/N
Published on November 15, 2022 and Reviewed & Approved by Jacquelyn Ekern MS, LPC
Published on EatingDisorderHope.com
