The Dukan diet, a popular form of protein diet in France, was designed by Dr. Pierre Dukan. It has gained popularity due to its new approach, where dieters do not have to stick to a low calorie diet plan and can, instead, eat from a list of 100 allowed foods .The diet also allows the dieters to eat meat, so this diet is popular amongst meat lovers.
The Dukan diet consists of 4 stages:
1. The Attack phase- Dieters lose rapidly a number of pounds (4 to 6lbs) by kick starting their metabolism.72 protein rich foods are allowed in this phase.
2. The Cruise phase- Here dieters have to eat protein rich foods with addition of 28 vegetables. Though this phase varies from person to person, it tries to target a 2 lb per week weight loss.
3. The Consolidation phase- This is the phase that tries to prevent future weight gain by reintroducing starchy foods like bread, cheese etc into the normal diet.
4. The Stabilization phase- In this phase, dieters can eat whatever they want but have to follow certain rules like: protein once a week, bran every day and commitment to use every piece of furniture in the house as exercise equipment! This commitment is to be followed by dieters throughout their lives. The diet is not recommended for pregnant women and patients with diabetes and kidney problems.
The diet is essentially a protein diet but also adds vegetables and later on foods containing starch, which most other diets of its kind do not allow. Doctors are divided on the diet because many believe that the diet could cause a host of problems like infertility, sleep apnea and heart problems due to the high intake of meat, fish and cheese.