The cabbage soup diet – as the name suggests - supposedly originated in a hospital as part of their strict regimen and is an effective low calorie diet which relies heavily on consuming cabbage soup. The basic premise behind the diet is that you can literally consume as much cabbage soup as you like which will fill you up and ensure you don’t eat much of anything else.
There are actually several variations of the diet, and its main advantage is that it will allow the participant to lose a lot of weight in a relatively short time. The diet does allow you to consume fruit and vegetables in very limited quantities. Because of its initial rapid weight loss, some advocates of the diet even recommend it as an effective way of losing weight quickly for a special event or party.
The diet is effective because cabbage soup itself contains virtually no calories, and the plan is certainly one of the most affordable and uncomplicated that you can find. Meals are easily prepared ahead of time, easily reheated and you can eat soup at any time of the day. The diet allows you to eat as much as you like of the soup or other foods permitted, which consist largely of bananas, rice and vegetables.
People on the diet point out that a constant diet of soup certainly makes a change from the usual snacks and junk food, although the diet of cabbage soup is monotonous and is lacking in many proteins and essential fats. The lack of normal protein consumption can cause weakness and headaches. You also have to drink plenty of water to avoid malnourishment while on the diet – around 8 glasses a day. And it is certainly difficult to dine out while following the cabbage soup diet.
In conclusion, the cabbage soup diet is not something that should be practiced long term - most doctors suggest you should not follow it for more than a week - although it can have dramatic results in a short time. Most of the weight lost is “water weight” rather than actual body fat. And it is not recommended that people suffering from any illness practice it.