The Sacred Heart Soup Diet is Not So Sacred

Review

There are plenty of misconceptions surrounding The Sacred Heart Soup Diet. For one thing, there’s nothing new about it; it has existed for several years under numerous names and resembles other types of diets. And, its origin is mysterious and dubious at best. What is known is that this soup-based diet is popular with dieters despite dire warnings of its effectiveness as a fad diet. So what exactly is this diet? Why should it be taken with caution? Let’s take a look.

Its Claim

The story circulating on various diet and nutrition websites is that the Sacred Heart Diet supposedly came from the cardiology department at Sacred Heart Memorial Hospital where it was used for overweight heart patients. Proponents of this diet plan claim it can shed 10-17 pounds in the first week alone.

It does this through a seven-day plan in which the dieter will eat a limited and varied amount of “nutritionally” sound food each day. In most cases, the food is meant to go along with the soup rather than being the main course. This complex daily plan even appears to favor certain foods at different variables.

At the heart of this diet plan is the soup, which is the only consistent thing to eat every day on this plan. Although there are several variations, the type of soup often sited is chicken noodle soup or Lipton Onion Soup. Often, the plan will call for the following:

2 – 11 oz, cans of chicken noodle soup

5 stalks of celery (diced)

1 pound of packed frozen string beans

4 carrots (diced)

4 potatoes (diced)

½ green peppers (diced)

2 onions (diced)

One site added stewed tomatoes

The seven-day plan can vary and may have a “theme” for each day. Still, all the food is complementary to the soup that is served every day.

For instance a week program will be:

Day one: will be an “all fruit day” (without banana);

Day two: all vegetables (no beans, peas or corn);

Day three: fruits and vegetables (no potatoes);

Day four: bananas and skim milk (3 bananas and as much milk as you want);

Day five: beef and tomatoes (10-20 ounces of beef and six tomatoes or a can of tomatoes);

Day six: all-you-can eat beef and veggies (just no potatoes);

Day seven is brown rice, unsweetened fruit juice, and veggies.

It sounds like a plan, but not all plans come together.

“Phony”

However, as good as the plan looks and what it claims to do, there are several warning signs that this diet is not all that it’s supposed to be. To start, this diet plan was condemned by the American Heart Association. To be succinct, they called it “phony.”

Also, The Sacred Heart Hospital in Montreal, Canada (which was one of the places the diet was rumored to have come from) issued a press release in 2004 that states:

“No nutritionist at the Hospital took part in the development of this diet (Every Diet, 2008).”

This diet has been incorrectly associated with other distinguished medical centers. In addition, this diet mirrors other diets from the past that have taken the name of prominent hospitals throughout Canada and the U.S.

As an example, it has been known by such names as:

Spokane Heart Diet,

Cleveland Clinic Diet,

Sacred Heart Memorial Hospital Diet (who released disclaimers), and

The Miami Heart Institute Diet.

The diet also has a striking resemblance to the cabbage soup diet. This is another, short-term calorie reduction diet that was rumored to be used by a hospital (again, Sacred Heart is mentioned) to stimulate weight loss for surgery patients. Like the Sacred Heart Diet, the cabbage soup diet’s origins are a mystery and cannot be verified.

A Closer Look at its Claim

Its claim that dieters will lose 10-17 pounds also needs to come under close scrutiny. Many sites agree that weight-loss in the short time may happen; however, this may result from a loss of fluids and can be immediately gained back after a while.

Despite the warnings, the promise that the Sacred Heart Soup Diet Plan tries to deliver is very enticing to many dieters looking for a quick, short-term fix.

On a page from the website Diet in Review, it has been reviewed and judged in bold red letters, “This Diet is not recommended.” Also, to support its argument it lists the American Heart Association’s warning and the Sacred Heart Hospital disclaimer.

Yet, at the bottom of the page reserved for reader comments, almost everyone who responded to the article claimed that the diet worked or they were willing to try it, despite the warnings.

With those types of comments coming from the readers, this diet will be practiced by many, despite the warnings.

WORK CITED

“Sacred Heart Diet (2008)”: every diet: https://www.freedieting.com/

“Sacred Heart Diet( retrieved 2010)”: retrieved from 2 Fat.com:

“Sacred Heart Diet (retrieved 2010)” : Diets in Review: https://dietsinreview.com/diets/Sacred_Heart_Diet