Launched in 2016, the Sirtfood diet remains a hot topic and involves followers adopting a diet rich in ‘sirtfoods’. It has become a favorite of celebrities in Europe and is famous for allowing red wine and chocolate. It is one of the latest trendy new diets.
What is the Sirtfood Diet?
The Sirtfood Diet is an eating and health plan where sirtuin-rich foods take center stage. Developed by nutritionists Aidan Goggins and Glen Matten, the diet is based on the idea that consuming foods high in sirtuin activators, known as ‘sirtfoods’, activates specific proteins in the body called sirtuins. "The Sirtfood diet" is focused on the use of foods with a high content of sirtuin activators, and not on the deprivation of certain foods, as in all other diets.
Sirtuins are believed to help your body burn stored fat in a similar way to that of fasting and exercise. These special foods contain natural plant compounds (such as polyphenols) that work by activating a group of seven signaling proteins found in the body, called sirtuins. They also protect cells in the body from dying when under stress and are thought to regulate inflammation, make our bodies more energy efficient and slow down the aging process.
How Does the Sirtfood Diet Work?
It's thought that sirtuins influence the body’s ability to burn fat and boost metabolism resulting, it is claimed, in a 7lb (3kg) weight loss a week, while still maintaining muscle. However, some experts believe this is unlikely to be solely fat loss, but may instead reflect changes in glycogen stores from skeletal muscle and the liver.
Phases of the Sirtfood Diet
The diet lasts three weeks in total and is divided into two phases:
Read also: Is the Sirtfood Diet Right for You?
Phase 1: The Initial 7 Days
Phase 1 (7 days): The initial phase of the diet are restrictive - aiming to have 1000kcal per day for three consecutive days is difficult and may be an unrealistic ask for some people.
- Days 1-3: Calories are restricted to 1000kcal per day. This involves a daily intake of three sirtfood green juices and one meal rich in sirtfoods. The ingredients in the juices include kale, celery, rocket, parsley, green tea and lemon. Examples of meals might be turkey escalope with sage, capers & parsley; chicken & kale curry or prawn stir-fry with buckwheat noodles.
- Days 4-7: Calorie intake is increased to 1500kcal per day and comprises two sirtfood green juices and two sirtfood-rich meals.
Phase 2: Maintenance (14 Days)
This phase is known as the maintenance phase where steady weight loss occurs. During this phase you have one sirtfood green juice and three balanced meals, rich in sirtfoods.
What to Eat on the Sirtfood Diet
The good news is there are a large number of foods that contain polyphenols, with the most common including:
- Green tea
- Dark chocolate (at least 85 per cent cocoa)
- Apples
- Citrus fruits
- Parsley
- Turmeric
- Kale
- Celery
- Red onion
- Blueberries
- Soy
- Capers
- Flaxseeds
- Nuts including hazelnuts
- Red wine
These are then combined with healthy proteins (meat, oily fish, tofu etc) and some standard ingredients that you would usually include in your meals.
Foods to Limit
Although the diet promotes healthy foods, rich in polyphenols, it's relatively restrictive in both your food choice and daily calories, especially during the initial stages. The foods you are advised to avoid include refined and processed foods that lack the beneficial natural compounds (polyphenols), such as white bread, pastries, cakes and confectionery as well as sugary drinks.
Read also: The Hoxsey Diet
Will You Lose Weight?
The authors believe the diet offers a sustainable and realistic way to lose weight, however, their claims are not, to date, backed by robust scientific evidence. This may in part be because of the complexities of evaluating the effects of sirtuins, for example, levels found in the blood do not reflect the activity in the cells and until reference ranges are established, blood levels of sirtuins can’t be used as a valid biomarker.
The authors also suggest that focusing on weight loss is not what the diet is all about - it’s designed to be about eating the best foods nature has to offer. In the long term, it's recommended that you eat three balanced sirtfood-rich meals a day, along with one sirtfood green juice. This is believed to provide health benefits such as supporting energy and mood and potentially reducing the risk of chronic disease.
Is the Sirtfood Diet Healthy? A Nutritionist’s View
In the list of permitted foods, the majority are plenty of nutrient-dense options. However, the list does omit other healthful foods, such as dairy, which means the diet may be lacking in some essential nutrients including iodine and calcium. The initial phases of the diet are restrictive - aiming to have 1000kcal per day for three consecutive days is difficult and may be an unrealistic ask for some people. This phase of the diet also involves drinking juice and, during phase one, quantities exceed the daily guidelines.
In terms of weight loss and boosting metabolism, people may experience weight loss on the scales but this is likely to be down to a loss of stored glycogen and fluid. Burning and losing fat takes time so it's unlikely this weight loss will be sustainable. The diet offers limited long-term guidance, which means followers returning to their original eating habits after the two phases of the diet are likely to re-gain the weight they lost.
Should You Follow the Sirtfood Diet?
Slow and steady is key when it comes to weight loss. In order to lose weight and keep it off, it's best to increase your activity levels, create a calorie deficit, consider your meal timings and ensure an overnight fast. Eating balanced regular meals made up of low-GI foods, lean protein, fruit and vegetables and keeping well hydrated is the most sustainable way to lose weight.
Read also: Walnut Keto Guide
If you are considering the Sirtfood diet you should be aware that it does not comply with the weight loss guidelines recommended by the NHS, which includes a reduction in daily calorie intake by around 600kcal. The NHS also recommends a balanced and varied diet including all five food groups - fruit and vegetables; starchy carbs; protein, dairy or fortified alternatives and a small intake of fats and oils.
Weight loss and good health can be achieved by following a healthy, balanced diet. Our nutritionist-approved plan helps you find your perfect portion size, guideline daily amounts and nutritionally balanced breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks.
Please note: if you're considering attempting any form of diet, please consult your GP first to ensure you can do so without risk to health.
Top Sirtfood Diet Recipes
Sirtfood Green Juice Recipe
Ingredients:
- 2 large handfuls (2.5 oz) kale
- a large handful (1 oz) arugula
- very small handful (1/4 oz) flat-leaf parsley
- 2 to 3 large (5.5 oz) celery stalks, including leaves
- ½ medium green apple
- ½- to 1-inch piece fresh ginger
- juice of ½ lemon
- ½ level teaspoon matcha powder
Directions:
Mix kale, arugula and parsley together, then juice them. Next, juice celery, apple and ginger. Squeeze lemon by hand into the juice. Pour a bit of juice into a glass, add matcha, stir and wait for it to dissolve.
Other Recipes
- Matcha with vanilla
- Turmeric tea
- Date & walnut cinnamon bites
- Red chicory, pear & hazelnut salad
- Kale with lemon tahini dressing
- Broccoli & kale green soup
- Strawberry, tomato & watercress salad
- Soy salmon & broccoli traybake
- Super-healthy salmon salad
- Malabar prawns
- Chicken, kale & sprout stir-fry
- Chicken, broccoli & beetroot salad
The Sirtfood Diet: A Personal Experience
One individual's experience with the Sirtfood Diet reveals both the benefits and challenges of this approach to eating. The diet was undertaken to improve health and well-being while adhering to a gluten-free lifestyle.
Initial Days
The first 3 days of the Sirtfood Diet involve 3 green juices and only 1 meal, so I was prepared for it to be tough, but actually I was pleasantly surprised. But the real highlight of the day was the two squares of Lindt 85% chocolate I was allowed after dinner. I spaced the juices out so I had one at 7.30am (our usual breakfast time), one at 11am, one at 2.30pm, and then dinner at 6pm and the chocolate at about 9pm.
Challenges
The juice, which I had been quite happy drinking on Monday, tasted vile - so much so that it made me gag! Really not sure what went wrong here. I have a few theories: maybe making it up the night before meant the juices were less fresh, maybe the kale I used in batch 2 of the juices was a bit past its best, maybe my body had suddenly changed its mind and rejected the juice? I decided after my green juice disaster that I wouldn’t make my juices up the night before, but instead make them up fresh each time on Wednesday.
Adaptations
I slightly upped the apple - a whole one, not half as per the recipe. And I slightly reduced the celery - the main smell that was making me gag. I reduced the celery down from 2 to 1 sticks. Otherwise I just made up the juice the same as Monday and Tuesday…and it was fine! However a thought had been niggling in my brain since the start of the diet…the Sirtfood green juice ingredients all sounded like rather fab ingredients for a salad…would it work? Well I figured it was worth a shot! So instead of juice 2, I used the ingredients to make a simple salad.
Meal Variety
Each day there are two choices for dinner: a meat/fish one and a veggie/vegan one. I decide to mix and match a bit depending what the options were. After Wednesday, there is no more mention of the Chocolate, which I reckon was clearly a typo! So (very naughtily) I decided to continue with the Lindt 85%.
The stew was very nice, but it was the third meal in a row served with buckwheat and it would have been nice if it had been served with something else as I was getting a little bit fed up with buckwheat by this point. Buckwheat is nice but not every day. Ditto kale and celery for that matter. I know the Sirtfood Diet tries to cram in as much of the top 20 Sirtfoods as possible into each meal but it does make for a bit too much sameyness.
Sirtfood Green Juice Salad Alternative
An alternative to the Sirtfood Green Juice, this salad includes all the same ingredients as the green juice plus 2 additional Sirtfoods: walnuts and olive oil. Put the lemon juice, ginger, salt, pepper and olive oil in a jam jar and shake to combine.Place the kale in a large bowl and pour over the dressing.
Portion Sizes and Ingredients
Probably my biggest gripe with the Sirtfood Diet is the portion sizes are massive, which seems to defeat the object of a diet. I would much rather have two smaller meals in the day than one massive one that I can’t finish and sometimes it’s not the portions that seem supersized but the proportions - like ridiculous amounts of kale with the steak or 2 boxes of cherry tomatoes in the salsa (if you make it for 4 that is). I got thoroughly fed up of kale, celery and buckwheat in week 1. I like all 3, but by the end of Week 1, I kind of didn’t any more!
Most of the ingredients are really easy to buy in a normal supermarket: things like kale, celery, parsley, chillies, even buckwheat (groats) I found in my local Tesco. However there are a few things which a bit tricky to get hold of. Buckwheat Flakes/Puffs - I found these on Amazon but they cost a fortune! I eventually found the flakes in Waitrose and decided just to get these and swap the puffs for flakes in the recipe. Matcha Green Tea - This I could only find on Amazon - I bought this one*. It cost £12 and the tub is tiny!! It’s for the green juice and to be honest, if I was doing the diet again, I probably wouldn’t bother, but instead drink plenty of Pukka Herbs Supreme Matcha Green tea, which I found in Tesco and has a small amount of matcha in it and tastes wonderful. Buckwheat Noodles - I couldn’t find 100% buckwheat ones in Tesco, but found them in Waitrose and the health food shop. Lovage - I drew a total blank here. Goodness knows where you can get this from.
The Importance of Drinks
I think probably one of the reasons this diet works so well is the drinks. Basically your options are water, green tea, black coffee and black tea (and 2-3 small glasses of red wine in weeks 2 & 3). I always find it amazing just how many calories are hidden in drinks, which don’t even fill you up! There’s no juice/fizzy drinks/hot chocolate/lattes etc. allowed on this diet and very little alcohol.
Family Considerations
I am very fortunate in that my kids (and husband!) are relatively unfussy and willing to try new things. I gave them a normal breakfast while I had green juice. We called it Mummy’s special science experiment 🙂 . They were at school (work) on the days when I had green juice for lunch and for the lunches and dinners they were around for, they just had the same as me. The book says specifically that it is OK to give the kids the meals, but not the juice - to be honest I’d be quite surprised if you could find a kid who would drink the juice!! But I think a lot of kids would not be as accommodating as mine.
Results
And the answer is…yes. I lost 6lb! In fact I lost 5lb in the first 3 days!! The special thing about this diet is that it is supposed to help you gain muscle as well as lose weight. But for me the diet was so much more than about losing weight. I was intrigued to see if I could benefit from any of the other claims… and the answer is also yes! I definitely feel healthier, I’ve been sleeping better, I feel …
Gluten-Free Living and the Sirtfood Diet
As a Coeliac (Celiac), finding a sustainable diet that fits the need to be gluten free can be limiting. And it’s one of the main reasons the Sirtfood Diet appealed to me… The majority of recipes (and all the key Sirtfoods) are naturally gluten free. And the fact that buckwheat is one of those key Sirtfoods was a pull… Not least because it is Coeliac safe and can be eaten as buckwheat groats (in place of rice, etc… See my post on How to Cook Buckwheat, if it’s new to you), as buckwheat pasta (easily sourced in many supermarkets), noodles and even as flakes for Gluten Free Porridge.
Equipment Needs
The Sirtfood Diet largely requires basic cooking equipment that’s available in most kitchens. However, you WILL need a juicer for the green juice.
Can I make the Sirtfood Green Juice without a juicer?To be honest… No! I tried. Using a bog-standard blender resulted in disgusting sludge that would have been better suited as a drink for Shrek.
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
The Good
Easy to follow: The Sirtfood Diet is without question, the easiest-to-follow diet that I have ever explored. Why? Because it has a complete plan of meals, with recipes and absolute clarity about what you can or can’t eat for the duration of the first three weeks.
Gluten free: Even better… The recipes are almost entirely gluten free, which meant I rarely had to think about substituting ingredients and could follow the rules like everyone else!
Alternatives, dairy free and vegan options: The meal plans offered alternatives for each meal (generally one vegan and one meat/fish option). This makes it more inclusive and also gave another choice if I didn’t fancy one of the meals.
Didn’t feel hungry: For the most part (particularly after the first three days) I never felt ‘hungry’. The meals (even when calorie restrictive) felt filling and sustaining. Actually… there were times when the portion sizes felt too large!
Treats: Unlike many ‘diets’ the addition of Sirtfoods such as 85% dark chocolate, strawberries, red wine and coffee make it feel like you get some treats along the way. And actually, I was quite happy snacking on walnuts and dates too.
The Bad
The cost: There were days when I referred to the Sirtfood Diet as a bit ‘bourgeois’. The need to source some quite ‘trendy’ ingredients and the cost of these took the plan beyond the reach of many people who are eating on a budget.