The Galveston Diet has gained considerable attention in the health and wellness sphere, particularly for women over 40 seeking to manage weight and reduce inflammation. Developed by Dr. Mary Claire Haver, a board-certified OB-GYN, the diet aims to address the unique challenges women face during perimenopause and menopause. This article delves into the Galveston Diet, examining its core principles, potential benefits, drawbacks, and available research.
Introduction to the Galveston Diet
Unlike many diets that primarily focus on calorie restriction, the Galveston Diet emphasizes incorporating anti-inflammatory foods and reducing processed foods to achieve weight loss. Dr. Haver created the diet in 2018 after her own experiences with midlife weight gain proved that the common advice of "eat less and exercise more" wasn't effective for everyone. She designed the Galveston Diet as an eating regimen to help women address fat gain associated with perimenopause and menopause.
Core Principles of the Galveston Diet
The Galveston Diet comprises three major components: avoiding inflammatory foods, practicing intermittent fasting, and increasing healthy fat intake.
1. Avoiding Inflammatory Foods
The Galveston eating plan restricts foods believed to contribute to inflammation in the body. According to Harvard Health Publishing, these inflammation-promoting foods include sugars, processed grains, fried foods, processed lunch meats, saturated fats, and soda. Instead, the diet emphasizes whole foods with plenty of nonstarchy vegetables and fruits. Foods specifically believed to reduce inflammation are encouraged, such as fatty fish, berries, garlic, nuts, tomatoes, and olive oil. The focus is always on eliminating refined carbohydrates and adding more anti-inflammatory foods to the menu.
2. Practicing Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting (IF) involves taking periodic breaks from eating. The idea, notes a review of research published in the Annals of Medicine, is that a long stretch of time between meals makes your cells more adaptive to stressors and also initiates important cellular repair. The type of intermittent fasting recommended in the Galveston diet is known as 16/8, which means fasting for 16 hours and eating during an 8-hour window each day. This generally means delaying the first meal of the day until around noon.
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A study published in the journal Obesity in October 2022 tested a dozen postmenopausal women (as well as a dozen premenopausal women) after two months of even stricter eating windows of four to six hours. It found no changes in levels of estrone, testosterone, and most other sex hormones. Haver advises adopting an intermittent fasting regimen slowly, such as by pushing breakfast back a half hour every few days, to give your body time to adjust.
3. Upping Your Fat Intake
Compared with the typical American diet, the Galveston diet slashes carbs dramatically. Initially, about 70% of calories come from healthy fats to encourage fat burning, according to Margaret Walsh, the company’s director of coaching and curriculum. The company refers to this shift in energy sourcing as “fuel refocusing.” Proteins make up the next largest part of the diet, with nutrient-dense carbohydrates as the smallest component. After being on the diet for a while, some additional complex carbs are added after getting used to eating fewer carbs and sugars.
The Science Behind the Galveston Diet
The Galveston diet works by decreasing inflammation in the body and regulating hormones, according to its founder. By reducing processed foods and incorporating anti-inflammatory foods, the Galveston diet aims to tame low-grade inflammation.
Research published in 2019 in the journal Nature Medicine suggests that social, environmental, and lifestyle factors can lead to systemic chronic inflammation, which can lead to an array of health problems.
Addressing Menopausal Weight Gain
It is true that a woman’s body composition shifts during perimenopause, with more fat settling around the abdomen, experts say. Midbody weight gain is almost universal among menopausal women, according to Dr. Nanette Santoro, the chair of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine in Aurora and a longtime menopause researcher. Virtually every woman gains at least some fat under her skin with the end of menses, which researchers believe might be related to the loss of estrogen.
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Menopausal women generally lose muscle mass at a rate of almost 1 percent a year, according to Dr. Stephanie Faubion, the director of the Mayo Clinic's Center for Women's Health and the medical director for the North American Menopause Society (NAMS). The Galveston diet addresses this issue by limiting carbohydrate intake and replacing it with healthy fats like avocados, nuts, and olive oil.
Foods to Eat and Avoid on the Galveston Diet
The Galveston diet encourages high fat, low carb, antioxidant-rich, and anti-inflammatory foods.
Foods to Eat
- Fats: olive oil, coconut oil, MCT oil, butter, ghee, avocado oil, and sesame oil
- Proteins: lean ground beef, chicken, turkey, eggs, lean pork, salmon, trout, tuna, and shellfish
- Fruits: avocado, strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries
- Leafy greens: spinach, kale, lettuce, dill, and mustard greens
- Other vegetables: cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, tomato, bell pepper, cucumber, onion, and carrots
- Nuts: cashews, pistachios, almonds, and peanuts
- Seeds: pumpkin, sesame, sunflower, flax, and chia seeds
- Dairy: heavy cream, cheese, sour cream, plain greek yogurt, and nut milk
- Tea: black, green, oolong, and chamomile teas
- Fresh herbs: ginger, garlic, parsley, thyme, and basil
Foods to Limit or Avoid
- Sweeteners: added sugar and artificial sweeteners
- Food additives: artificial additives (flavors, colors, and preservatives)
- Alcohol: beer, wine, and spirits
- Processed foods: refined grains, fried foods, and processed meats
- Vegetable oils high in omega-6 fats: soybean, sunflower, safflower, and corn oil
- Sugar-sweetened beverages: sweet tea, colas, soft drinks, and juices
Potential Benefits of the Galveston Diet
Several potential health benefits are associated with the Galveston Diet, primarily stemming from its core components of intermittent fasting and a low-carb, anti-inflammatory approach.
Weight Loss and Management
The Galveston diet can work, provided you follow the rules as directed. By limiting the intake of added sugars, fried food, and processed foods and adhering to intermittent fasting, the eating regimen “seems to help people lose stubborn pounds gained in their perimenopausal years,” says Lisa D. Ellis, a registered dietitian in private practice in Manhattan and White Plains, New York.
Multiple studies have shown that the diet's components, including intermittent fasting and low carb dieting, are effective for weight loss. One 3-month study in 40 people showed that a 16/8 intermittent fasting diet reduced belly fat and cut waist size by an average of 2.1 inches (5.3 cm).
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Inflammation Reduction
The Galveston diet eating regimen is designed to fight inflammation in the body, according to Haver. Intermittent fasting reduces concentrations of inflammatory markers and protects blood vessels from plaque buildup and clogging. Research also indicates that low carb diets may help reduce inflammation and combat inflammatory conditions like fatty liver disease, Parkinson’s, and multiple sclerosis.
Disease Risk Reduction
Intermittent fasting and low carb diets have been shown to protect against various lifestyle illnesses, such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and insulin resistance. They’re also associated with a reduction in visceral fat, fasting insulin, and insulin resistance, all risk factors for type 2 diabetes.
Blood Sugar Management
A study showed that people placed on a very low carb keto diet showed improved blood sugar management than those following a diet based on the diabetes plate method.
Downsides and Considerations
While the Galveston Diet has helped some women lose weight and keep it off as they go through menopause, it’s not necessarily for everyone.
Restrictive Nature
The Galveston Diet is likely slightly harder to adopt and less sustainable than other diets due to the nature of food restriction and the strict feeding window. The diet restricts or eliminates many staple foods that are high in carbohydrates, such as bread, pasta, rice, and potatoes. Such restrictions can make it challenging to find satisfying and tasty meals that are within the guidelines of the diet.
Potential for Overeating
Intermittent fasting may help some people lose weight, but it could trigger overeating after periods of restriction.
Difficulty Sustaining Long-Term
The fat-loss phase of the Galveston diet is a low-carbohydrate eating regimen, and some people find low-carb diets restrictive.
Potential Low Fiber Intake
Cutting back on carbs can reduce your fiber intake. Therefore, it’s important to include lower carb, fiber-rich foods like nonstarchy vegetables, avocados, and berries when following a low carb regimen like the Galveston diet. Fiber supplementation may be necessary to achieve the recommended 25 to 35 grams of fiber per day for women and 38 grams a day for men, according to Haver.
Lack of Scientific Research
To date, there are no peer-reviewed studies evaluating the effectiveness of the Galveston diet. While studies looking at similar eating patterns have been conducted, the Galveston diet itself has not been the subject of a large clinical trial yet.
Cost
The diet has two main levels. The Program level costs $59, a one-time fee that doesn’t require an ongoing subscription. The other subscription level, Platinum Coaching, bills itself as “the ultimate Galveston diet experience.” Costs start at $24.99 for the first month, then costs $49.99 per month.
Success Stories and Testimonials
Diana Johnson, a 57-year-old from Galveston, Texas, adopted the Galveston diet after experiencing symptoms of menopause. About a month into the regimen, Johnson began seeing results. She dropped 25 pounds and found relief from knee and hip pain.
Comparing the Galveston Diet to Other Diets
Galveston Diet vs. Mediterranean Diet
Both the Galveston Diet and the Mediterranean diet focus on reducing added sugars, processed foods, and refined grains. However, the Galveston Diet emphasizes lean protein, whereas the Mediterranean diet emphasizes legumes, whole grains, and nuts and seeds as healthy fats over lean protein. The Galveston Diet is slightly more restrictive than the Mediterranean diet, allowing only low-glycemic fruits like berries, whereas the Mediterranean diet includes most fruits. The Galveston Diet is also a gluten-free diet, compared to the Mediterranean diet, which allows whole grains, including whole-wheat pasta and whole-wheat bread.
Galveston Diet vs. Keto Diet
Both the Galveston diet and keto diet are high fat and low carb.