7 Reasons Why It Is Bad To Starve For Weight Loss

Losing weight can be a struggle for most people. It takes time, and results may show up late, which can be discouraging. Most people who try to lose well have high expectations of seeing results between one to three months. But when it goes slower than expected, they turn to these obnoxious diets or starve for weight loss.

To them, it’s a no-brainer that if eating makes you gain weight, then starving would make you not lose weight. But this is not the case, as starving for weight loss can cause direct harm to your body and take a toll on your health. 

READ ALSO: Top 5 Reasons Why You’re Not Losing Weight

Why it is dangerous to starve for weight loss

There are a lot of risk factors involved in these strict diets that restrict the intake of calories. Body fat is simply stored energy. When you consume food, your body burns some of the energy but stores what’s leftover in the form of fat. In the event that your body is running low on energy sources, it breaks down the fat stored to produce energy.

However, when you starve yourself, your body notices that it is getting reduced calories. In response, it slows down the metabolism to conserve energy supplies for a long time. Therefore, starving yourself can be counterproductive for your weight loss journey.

When you adopt extreme diets to lose weight, you can harm your body in various ways, such as;

1. Lack of energy.

Due to lack of food, fatigue sets in. You begin to feel weak after doing little or nothing at all. 

2. It can cause the death of cells due to the lack of glucose.

When cells do not get glucose for a long time, they could die. When these cells die, it can affect our immune system and make us vulnerable to diseases and viruses. 

3. The body goes into “starvation mode”.

When you stop eating adequately, your body goes into starvation mode and your metabolism slows down and starts to preserve body fat.

4. It can lead to memory loss.

This is because of the lack of nutrition in the body. You start to have difficulty remembering things. 

5. You can lose lean muscle.

Losing weight through starvation causes individuals to lose a large number of lean muscles and lean body mass. Your lean body mass comprises bones, water, organs, etc. 

6. You may gain more weight.

You will eventually gain more weight: because you cannot starve yourself forever. Also, there is the possibility of temptation, you will definitely eat. When you do, your body puts on more weight than before because of all it has been deprived of and this may lead to obesity. 

7. It may lead to hair loss.

It can also lead to poor hair growth and thinning out of hair and thus causing loss of hair.

Before going on any weight loss regime, it is important to consult with your doctor or nutritionist before adopting a new diet plan. Also, consider getting a workout partner or friends to keep you motivated during weight loss. 

There are tons of exercises that are easy and effective and can be done from the comfort of your home within minutes. So lack of time or where to work out shouldn’t be an excuse for starving yourself during weight loss. Also, remember that losing weight doesn’t happen overnight. It requires hard work and dedication but with the right amount of work put in, you will surely see results.