When people think about dieting, they usually think of food. However, not all diets strictly feature solid foods. In specific instances, a liquid diet - consisting of fluids and foods that are normally liquid - might be a useful way of approaching nutrition. There are different types of liquid diets, and in some circumstances, your health care provider may ask you to follow one for brief periods.
What Is a Liquid Diet?
As the name suggests, a liquid diet provides all calories, vitamins, and nutrients in liquid form. There are variations on this theme - clear liquids only, smoothies, power shakes, and fruit juice cleanses.
Clear Liquid Diet
A clear liquid diet is the most restrictive, allowing only clear fluids. It is generally recommended only before specific medical procedures, such as a colonoscopy, which requires the stomach or intestines to be empty of food. A clear liquid diet may also be recommended short term to help relieve digestive problems, such as nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea, or after certain types of surgery, including bariatric surgery. Clear liquids are easily digested and leave no undigested waste products in the intestinal tract. Because they contain so few calories and cannot provide adequate nutrients to sustain the body for long, they're usually only intended for a couple of days at a stretch.
Full Liquid Diet
A full liquid diet, on the other hand, is a bit more robust and includes any foods that are liquid or will melt once you've ingested them. A full liquid diet requires no chewing, aiming to promote healing of your digestive tract - anywhere from your mouth to your colon - because they place less stress on your digestive system, effectively resting the bowel.
Meal Replacement Liquid Diet
Some liquid diets include some solid food, depending on what the diet is being used for. In those instances, a liquid meal replacement may be substituted for one or two meals daily. It is advisable to "select a meal replacement containing adequate protein that's fortified with vitamins and minerals." A doctor or nutritionist can provide guidance about the best option for your situation. Using a mostly liquid and part whole-food diet may add "structure and simplicity to a weight management plan."
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Detox/Cleansing Diet
The reason people do cleanses is that they want to get a jump-start on weight loss or they want to rid their body of "toxins." Most cleanses have people severely restricting their calories by drinking only juice. These types of cleanses are neither effective nor safe.
Many cleanses restrict people to less than 1,000 calories per day, far less than the approximately 2,000 calories most people need. And when it comes to "removing toxins," it's simply not necessary. Our body has a great detox system built in: our kidneys and liver. Together, these organs process toxic substances like alcohol and drugs into safe byproducts, neutralize and excrete the toxic ammonia that results from normal protein metabolism, prevent harmful carcinogens from being absorbed into the bloodstream and remove heavy metals from the body.
Do Liquid Diets Work for Weight Loss?
The short answer is yes. Liquid diets are restrictive of calories, so you will lose weight. In general, weight loss is basic math: Consume fewer calories than you burn, and you lose weight. That’s why this - and any restrictive, low-calorie diet - will work short term. However, it is not a sustainable or healthy approach in the long term. Following a liquid diet is not a good long-term strategy for weight loss. Liquid diets can induce rapid and significant weight loss and must be managed by a health care provider. Long-term weight loss maintenance is dependent upon behavior change when returning to a whole food diet. Your dietitian or other health care provider can help you figure out your specific nutritional needs.
Are Liquid Diets Healthy?
Whether a liquid diet is healthy depends on what's in it, why you're using it, and whether it provides adequate nutrition for your needs. Many faddish liquid diets may be a waste of money and might actually be dangerous if you stick to them too long. Most liquid diets claiming to cleanse or detox the body have no clinical research to support their claims. Our liver, kidney, skin, and gastrointestinal tract are built-in body cleansers. Our bodies have the ability to get rid of toxins through sweat, urine, and bowel movements.
If you're thinking of moving to a liquid diet because you think you need a "detox," skip it and look to more proven means of using nutrition to boost health. Still, for some people, a liquid diet might be a smart move under certain circumstances, and in those instances, you should focus on getting the right nutrients. When you're on a liquid diet, it's important to focus on high-protein liquids to help preserve lean body mass. Most foods on a clear liquid diet are devoid of protein, so clear liquid supplements are typically recommended. Higher protein liquids on a full liquid diet can include regular or soy milk, bone broth, and yogurt if permitted, in addition to protein supplements.
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Generally speaking, a liquid diet is not recommended for overall health unless it's been medically indicated. Most liquid diets are insufficient in calories, protein, lack essential nutrients, and lack research to support long-term weight loss or health outcomes. Thus, you should really only use a liquid diet if you're instructed to do so by your health care provider.
Liquid Diet Foods: What You Can and Can’t Eat
Clear Liquid Diet Foods
A clear liquid diet is often needed the day before certain tests, procedures, or surgeries, like a colonoscopy, which require the stomach or intestines to be empty of food. A clear liquid diet may also be recommended short term to help relieve digestive problems, such as nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea, or after certain types of surgery, including bariatric surgery. Clear liquids are easily digested and leave no undigested waste products in your intestinal tract. Because they contain so few calories and can't provide adequate nutrients to sustain your body for long, they're usually only intended for a couple of days at a stretch.
Full Liquid Diet Foods
Liquid diets for weight loss go beyond clear liquids and allow foods that are liquified or will melt while being eaten (think ice-cream). A full liquid diet may sometimes include pureed whole foods, such as fruits, vegetables, and even meats - think baby food consistency. Such items may be added in after you've been on a liquid diet for a while to help transition back to eating whole foods.
Liquid, or better to call them meal replacement, shakes can be utilized to create an effective weight loss approach. These liquid meal replacements should contain adequate amounts of protein and macronutrients and micronutrients. And it should have enough calories to meet the body’s needs. There is more research to support meal replacement plans that are in the 900 to 1,200 calorie range. There have been programs around for many years, including OPTAVIA and SlimFast, that have clinical data to support the efficacy. Herbalife is another commercial weight loss program that uses shakes as part of the meal plan.
How Long Should You Be on a Liquid Diet?
Liquid diets of any type are not intended to be followed long term. They're not recommended because they do not teach you how to maintain healthy eating habits for the long haul or provide adequate calories and nutrients. A full liquid diet is generally recommended for only a few days to help you transition back to your normal diet. It is rarely used for longer than two weeks. In some cases, however, people with "complex gastrointestinal diseases and/or certain types of cancer" may be told to follow a liquid diet longer term. It is possible for a liquid diet to be nutritionally adequate, but it takes careful planning and preparation.
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Liquid Diet Tips
- Aim to drink a liquid meal replacement every few hours while awake. If you go more than a few hours without drinking a liquid meal replacement you may have challenges controlling your hunger later in the day.
- Ensure adequate hydration. Make sure you drink plenty of low-calorie beverages in between drinking liquid meal replacements.
- Have a plan to wean off the liquid diet. If someone starts a meal replacement program without acknowledging the importance of a proper transition, they will be more likely to gain the weight back, as they may return to poor eating habits. If they do the right transition, this is key to keeping the weight off.
- Consider replacing just a few meals with liquid meal replacements, not all of them. It is important to have at least one meal per day. The idea here is for people to make changes that will have a long-term benefit.
- Join a nutrition or weight loss support group, or seek the guidance of a registered dietitian nutritionist. The dangers would be if someone selected a program that was not properly fortified, and was too low in calories and macronutrients. Other dangers include wasting money and wasting time if someone has not done the right research on a safe approach, and also an approach they feel will be effective for them.
Meal replacements can be an effective tool for weight loss, but it is certainly not for everyone.
Liquid Diet Risks
Liquid diets don't teach healthy eating. They take the guesswork out of making food selections and portion control. In addition, liquid diets could be void of essential vitamins and minerals your body needs. Not all liquid diet plans offer adequate macro- or micronutrients. For example, when you juice fruits and vegetables, you remove a lot of the good parts, like fiber that feeds our gut bacteria. And if you're following a liquid diet for weight loss, you probably won't keep those pounds off. While eating plans that restrict calories will result in quick weight loss, they're rarely sustainable, and most people regain all the weight - and often more. Missing out on essential nutrients can lead to side effects such as fatigue and dizziness. Other side effects include constipation due to lack of fiber.
Full Liquid Diet: A Closer Look at What You Can Eat
A full-liquid diet includes liquid foods that are more nutritious than simple tea or broth. Examples include soup, milk, hot cereal, and juice. On a full liquid diet, you may eat foods that are liquid or turn liquid at room temperature. These foods contain little to no fiber or protein, so they give your digestive system a break. You may need to eat more than the three standard meals a day to get in all your calories and nutrients. Try eating six to eight times throughout the day with a variety of liquids and strained or blended foods. To increase your caloric intake, incorporate full-fat dairy, such as butter or whole milk, or high calorie supplement shakes. A liquid multivitamin is another good option if you’re worried about getting full nutrition on this diet.
Food Options on a Full Liquid Diet
Compared to a clear liquid diet, there are a variety of foods you may eat on a full liquid diet.
- Fruits and vegetables: all fruit or veggie juices (avoid pulp unless your doctor says otherwise)
- Soups: bouillon, clear broths (beef, chicken, vegetable), strained and pureed vegetable soup, strained meat- or cream-based soups (may contain pureed veggies or meat)
- Dairy: all types of cow’s milk (whole, low-fat, reduced-fat, fat-free), lactose-free milk products, such as soy, almond, or flax milk, half-and-half, butter, sour cream, custard-style yogurts
- Grains: Cream of Wheat, Cream of Rice, grits, other cooked cereals made from refined grains and thinned with milk
- Fats: butter, margarine, mayonnaise, creamy peanut butter or nut butter of choice
- Beverages: coffee and tea, hot cocoa, artificially flavored fruit drinks, lemonades, sports drinks, like Gatorade, milkshakes (you may add smooth peanut butter or canned fruit, but blend until smooth), pasteurized eggnog
- Supplement beverages: Ensure, Boost, Carnation Instant Breakfast, Glucerna
- Desserts: pudding, custard, gelatin, ice cream (plain varieties), sherbet, popsicles, fruit ices
- Other additions: sweeteners, such as honey, sugar, and maple syrup, salt, herbs, spices, and flavored syrups, like chocolate syrup, brewer’s yeast
Ask your doctor or dietitian about the following foods. They’re sometimes included in a full liquid diet or as you get closer to resuming a solid diet: pureed fruits, such as applesauce, pureed vegetables diluted into soups, such as strained pumpkin puree in a cream soup, cooked cereals, such as oatmeal, pureed potatoes, strained, pureed meats.
Foods to Avoid on a Full Liquid Diet
You should avoid any solid foods on a full-liquid diet. This means to stay away from raw, cooked, or canned fruits or vegetables that have the skin or seeds. Other foods to avoid include: mashed fruits and vegetables, such as mashed avocado, nuts and seeds, hard and soft cheeses, soups with noodles, rice, or other chunks in it, ice cream with solids in it, bread, whole cereals and other grains, meats and meat substitutes, carbonated beverages, such as sparkling water and soda. People who have had stomach surgery may also want to avoid consuming oranges and other acidic fruit and vegetable juices, as these juices may cause burning. If you’re concerned about your vitamin C consumption, ask your healthcare professional about liquid vitamin C supplements. They may give you further diet instructions based on the procedure you had.
Tips for Following a Full Liquid Diet
- Pureed foods should be of stage 1 or “baby food” consistency. Before mixing them into soups and other liquids, there should be no chunks or visible pieces.
- Adding milk, water, salad dressings, and mayonnaise can help moisten foods for easier blending.
- Feeling full is a sign to stop drinking. Pay attention to your body’s signals as you consume liquids. That said, try to get in at least 64 ounces of liquids each day.
- Trouble drinking enough is also a concern. Try drinking what you can at 15-to 20-minute intervals throughout the day.
- Nutritional supplements may be a good option if you need to be on a full-liquid diet for longer than five days. Discuss your options with your doctor.
- You may lose weight rapidly while following this type of diet. It’s meant to be used temporarily, not long term, unless directed by your healthcare professional.
- Experiencing fever, diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain are all reasons to contact your healthcare professional.
The BRAT Diet and Alternatives for Nausea, Vomiting, or Diarrhea
Nutrition for nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea consists of foods that are bland and gentle on the stomach. If you have nausea or vomiting, it may be hard to hold down food. Some foods may even make your symptoms worse. You may have heard of the BRAT diet which stands for Bananas, Rice, Apples, and Toast. The BRAT diet was often recommended for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but is no longer because of how restrictive it is.
In the immediate six or so hours after vomiting has stopped, it is best to give your stomach a rest. Following a period of one to two hours, suck on hard candy or popsicles (no chewing). Gradually add clear liquids if the vomiting has ceased. Beginning with a sip or two every ten minutes is a good way to start. Suggestions include water, apple juice, electrolyte beverage, weak tea, Jell-O (in liquid or gelatin form), broth or bouillon (clear base from a non-greasy soup). Begin to add bland, low-fat foods as listed above, like bananas, rice, applesauce, crackers, cooked cereals (Farina, Cream of Wheat), toast and jelly, yogurt, cooked carrots, and chicken or turkey. Progress to a “regular” diet if symptoms have improved. Continue to eat small meals every few hours.