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Adherents of the 5:2 diet are advised to stick to leafy vegetables and lean meats for two days per week.
The 5:2 diet is a fad diet that emphasizes intermittent fasting. The 5:2 approach is similar to, but less restrictive than alternate day fasting, as adherents restrict calories for just two days per week. The diet was popularized in the summer of 2012 when the BBC broadcast a Horizonepisode featuring doctor and journalist Michael Mosley and his experiments with fasting.
Technique
The diet involves restricting caloric consumption to 25% of an individual's caloric needs for two days per week, and eating normally for the other five days. The diet does not actually advocate for full fasting, but rather severe calorie restriction during the two "fasting" days: the average limit for women is 500 calories, with 600 for men, although this varies based on various factors. Although the diet does not restrict any types of foods during the fast days, it is suggested that adherents focus on: vegetables (especially leafy green), lean meats, eggs, soups, black coffee and tea, and water. There is no restriction placed on how often adherents may eat during the "fast days," as long as the caloric intake is kept at 25%. There is also no rule for which of the two days during the week are fasting days.
Another version of the 5:2 diet is based around the Mediterranean diet, with a slight increase in allowed calories (800) during "fast days."
History
Fasting is one of the most ancient traditions in human history, and has been practiced by virtually every culture and religion on earth. Hippocrates was known to prescribe short-term fasting to illpatients in the 4th century BC.
The modern 5:2 diet was popularized in the UK in the summer of 2012 after Dr. Michael Mosley took part in a BBC2Horizondocumentary about the supposed health benefits of fasting. The popularity of the diet increased after Mosley published his book "The FastDiet" in early 2013. Dr. Michelle Harvie and Tony Howell released "The 2-Day Diet" soon after.
