It has been known for months as the “Fiorello’s diet”: this is because the famous showman, at the beginning of this year, said he practiced it constantly. But not everyone knows, however, that the so-called “dinner canceling” (freely translated: diet without dinner) is an idea of Dieter Grabbe, a German nutritionist born in 1969 who proposed it to the general public twenty years ago. In Italy, however, the media boom arrived in 2020: the power of television.
How the dinner canceling diet works
In his famous book, entitled “Dinner Canceling”, Grabbe talks about his diet as “the winning method to be in great shape and lose weight: it is a method that is good for the body, improves mood and keeps young for longer. even mentally “. But how does it work? “Eating a balanced diet until 5 pm – says Grabbe – and then, three times a week, instead of having dinner, consume light snacks and drinks complete with all healthy substances”.
The result, explains Grabbe, translates into a weight loss, a general detoxification, with the stimulation of the production of melatonin – the substance that helps sleep and rest – and of the growth hormone, which instead slows down the processes of ‘aging. But is it really so? Let’s analyze in detail the advantages and disadvantages.
Intermittent fasting: 16 hours without eating
Specifically, dinner canceling is part of the intermittent fasting models that follow the 16-8 pattern, i.e. 16 hours without eating and 8 in which you eat normally, always avoiding excesses. This is why the last meal should be eaten at 5 pm, preceded by a light snack to avoid hunger pangs in the evening. Fasting is (almost) total, because non-calorie drinks such as water or are allowed herbal teas, as long as no sugar, sweetener or milk.
Advantages and disadvantages of dinner cancellation
It is Grabbe himself, the creator of the diet, who emphasizes its various benefits: starting from the increase in concentration, increased energy, loss of weight and body fat, reduction of blood pressure, blood sugar (with increased insulin sensitivity) and cholesterol, reduction of aging processes, improvement of sleep quality.
But like all diets, no matter what people say, there are contraindications. Even if there is no risk of health problems – fasting does not last for days and days, but only for a few hours – even if intermittent, some particular categories would do better to avoid it. We are talking, for example, of pregnant or breastfeeding women, people who are underweight or with eating disorders, children until the end of growth and people with pathologies. A ban on false illusions: dinner canceling is just a diet, so it must always be accompanied by a healthy lifestyle and a little physical activity (and above all, no miracles!).
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