Have you indulged a little too much in food and alcohol lately? Or perhaps you're noticing the impact of unhealthy eating habits on your body and overall well-being? If so, the Whole30 diet plan might be something to consider.
The Whole30 isn't just another diet; it's often described as a nutritional reset, designed to help you reshape your relationship with food, curb cravings, and identify potential food sensitivities. Before diving in, it's important to understand the ins and outs of this program, including its rules, potential benefits, and drawbacks.
What is the Whole30 Diet?
The Whole30 diet is a 30-day elimination diet that focuses on whole, unprocessed foods while eliminating certain food groups that may be causing negative effects on your health. Developed in 2009, it's promoted as a way to reset your metabolism, heal your digestive tract, calm your immune system, and reshape your relationship with food. It emphasizes eating real, unprocessed foods and requires giving up all processed foods, added sugars, and food additives. This restrictive diet also asks you to avoid certain food groups that could be considered inflammatory, such as grains, dairy, soy, and legumes.
Unlike many other diets, the Whole30 program doesn't involve calorie counting, portion control, or tracking macronutrients. It encourages mindful eating, focusing on how different foods make you feel.
Guidelines of the Whole30 Diet
The elimination phase requires strict adherence, so if you’re considering this diet, you may need to spend a few days prepping your kitchen. Then, for the next 30 days, you’ll need to stick to the following rules:
Read also: Satisfy Your Cravings with Whole Foods
Foods to Eat on the Whole30 Diet
During the Whole30 elimination phase, you can enjoy a variety of whole, unprocessed foods, including:
- Whole foods: Stick to consuming real, unprocessed foods.
- Meat and eggs: Poultry, beef, pork, eggs, and seafood are allowed. If you’re vegetarian, there is a Plant-Based Whole30 that allows certain protein sources that otherwise would be excluded, mostly legumes such as lentils, peas, and soy.
- Vegetables: Include a wide range of these, both starchy veggies (such as sweet potatoes and root vegetables) and non-starchy vegetables (think leafy greens).
- Fruits: Enjoy fresh fruits in moderation. While these contain nutrients, certain fruits are also high in sugar.
- Fats: Use healthy fats for cooking and drizzling such as olive oil, coconut oil, and avocado oil.
- Nuts and seeds: Consume nuts and seeds in moderation.
- Herbs and spices: Use common kitchen herbs and spices to flavor your dishes, with added health benefits.
- Coffee and tea: Unlike some elimination diets, the Whole30 allows black coffee. Unsweetened tea of all kinds is also acceptable.
Foods to Avoid for 30 Days
The Whole30 diet requires eliminating several food groups for 30 days:
- Sugar: Limit all forms of added sugar, including everything from honey to ice cream, maple syrup, fruit juice, and artificial sweeteners. Do not consume added sugar, real or artificial. This includes (but is not limited to) maple syrup, honey, agave nectar, coconut sugar, date syrup, monk fruit extract, stevia, Splenda, Equal, Nutrasweet, and xylitol.
- Grains, including non-gluten grains: All grains, including wheat, alternative flours like sorghum, oats, rice, corn, barley, rye, wheat berries, farro, amaranth, buckwheat, and quinoa are not allowed under this diet. This includes wheat, rye, barley, triticale, oats, corn, rice, millet, bulgur, sorghum, sprouted grains, and pseudo-cereals like quinoa, amaranth, and buckwheat. This also includes all the ways we add wheat, corn, and rice into our foods in the form of bran, germ, starch, and so on.
- Dairy: Exclude dairy products, including milk, cheese, and yogurt. This includes cow’s-, goat’s-, or sheep’s-milk products like milk, cream, cheese, cottage cheese, kefir, yogurt, sour cream, ice cream, or frozen yogurt.
- Legumes: Legumes like beans, lentils, chickpeas, soy, and peanuts are all avoided on this diet, with the exception of green beans and peas. This includes beans (black, red, pinto, navy, garbanzo/chickpeas, white, kidney, lima, fava, cannellini, lentils, adzuki, mung, cranberry, and black-eyes peas); peanuts (including peanut butter); and all forms of soy (soy sauce, miso, tofu, tempeh, edamame, soy protein, soy milk, or soy lecithin).
- Alcohol: Alcohol is not allowed.
- Processed foods, baked goods, and “junk foods”: All processed foods are also off-limits. This includes baked goods made with alternative flours (bread, tortillas, wraps, crackers, pizza or pie crust, biscuits, pancakes, crepes, waffles, muffins, cupcakes, cookies, and brownies); pasta or noodles made with alternative flour; cereals made with alternative flour; chips (including potato, sweet potato, tortilla, plantain, taro, or cassava chips); French fries or tots. No commercially-prepared chips (potato, tortilla, plantain, etc.) or French fries either.
- MSG, sulfites, and carrageenan. Avoid these additives commonly found in processed foods.
Additional Guidelines
As you go through the program, these are some additional guidelines provided by the program:
- Read labels: This program recommends being vigilant about reading food labels, since many products can have hidden ingredients. This can be helpful, since according to the diet’s restrictions, consuming an item on the “avoid” list, whether intentionally or by accident, can mean you’ll have to start over.
- Don’t take cheat days: If you do slip up, the diet’s founders strongly encourage that you begin the whole program again from day 1.
- Focus on mindful eating: Eating slowly and mindfully can help you to pay attention to your body's hunger and fullness cues.
- Cook at home: Preparing meals at home can also allow better control over ingredients.
- Stay hydrated: Drinking plenty of water throughout the day is another important factor, and these nutritionist-recommended hydration strategies can be helpful if you have trouble staying hydrated.
The Plant-Based Whole30
In February 2022, Whole30 launched its new plant-based plan. It has a lot of overlap with the original Whole30, but the main difference comes down to protein and fat sources. While the original Whole30 focuses on lean animal proteins and excludes legumes, soy and peanuts, the plant-based Whole30 uses legumes, less processed forms of soy, unsweetened plant-based protein powders, nuts and seeds to provide adequate protein. The Plant-Based Whole30 does not include any animal protein and fats.
Why These Restrictions?
The Whole30 plan eliminates foods that are believed to often trigger food allergies, intolerances, and sensitivities. The hope is that by removing these foods, you can learn more about how your body responds to them. The program focuses on the idea that certain foods - like sugar, grains, legumes, alcohol, and dairy - may negatively affect your health and fitness. Eliminating these foods from your diet is supposed to help your body recover from these negative effects and promote long-term health.
Read also: Whole Foods Breakfast Options
Potential Benefits of the Whole30 Diet
While scientific evidence supporting the Whole30 diet is limited, many people report positive effects, including:
- Improved energy levels: Some report heightened energy levels, weight loss and improvements in overall health.
- Better sleep:
- Reduced food cravings:
- Improved digestion:
- Weight loss: Any pounds lost may be the result of a lower caloric intake and a reduction in sugar or processed foods. Eliminating processed foods and sugars, bolstered by an increased consumption of whole foods-studies show-can instigate weight loss.
- Decreased anxiety and fewer migraines:
- Can include essential vitamins and minerals: One benefit of this diet is it can help you to focus on nourishing your body with whole, minimally processed foods which are filled with essential vitamins and minerals.
- Can be high in fiber: While you won’t be eating grain- or legume-based sources of fiber, you’ll still likely consume plenty of fiber from vegetables, fruits, and nuts, which can have beneficial effects for your metabolic health.
- Can support gut health: Limiting high-calorie and inflammatory foods like sugar, alcohol, and processed foods: in your diet can support better overall health and may even be beneficial for weight loss.
- May support blood sugar regulation: By limiting your intake of refined carbohydrates and putting a focus on whole foods that can be rich in fiber and other nutrients, this diet may help prevent blood sugar spikes for some people.
- Heightened awareness of dietary choices: It can also help individuals become more aware of their dietary choices and how certain foods affect their bodies leading to healthier long-term eating habits.
The Whole30 program can bring a huge number of non-scale victories (NSVs); improvements in energy, sleep, cravings, mood, digestion, chronic pain and fatigue, joint pain and swelling, acne, allergies, asthma, anxiety, migraines, and any number of symptoms.
Potential Disadvantages of the Whole30 Diet
Despite the potential benefits, the Whole30 diet also has some drawbacks:
- Overly restrictive: The Whole30 is more restrictive than many other popular diets, which isn’t necessarily a good thing. This diet is meant to be a short-term elimination diet-not a long-term weight-loss plan or a way to heal complex health conditions on your own.
- Potential nutrient deficiencies: While the Whole30 may have certain benefits, you’ll also be missing out on important nutrients that are found in foods like dairy products, legumes, and grains. The extreme eradication of certain food groups (as Whole30 advocates) could possibly instigate nutrient deficiencies and other health issues over an extended period.
- Not sustainable: If you don’t tolerate one or more “avoid” foods, eliminating those foods and cutting out entire food groups may not be sustainable or even necessary.
- Can encourage eating disorder tendencies: Although the Whole30 is meant to change your relationship to food in a positive way, overly restricting foods can result in unhealthy habits and worsened cravings and reactive binging once the elimination phase is over. The stringent rules of the Whole30 diet may also heighten the potential for disordered eating habits' development: a risk underscored by some individuals struggling to reintroduce previously eliminated foods back into their diets-often ingrained with guilt or fear.
- Social challenges: The diet can be socially challenging, as it may limit one's ability to dine out or participate in certain social events. This can lead to feelings of isolation and frustration. The diet's rigid demands and the challenges presented in social situations-where non-compliant foods are served-are difficult to navigate. The Whole30 diet's stringent regulations may also negatively impact one's social activities, especially considering the centrality of food at many social events. The anxiety, derived from having to forgo particular foods, can potentially harm mental health.
- May not be effective for addressing true intolerances longer-term: The all-or-nothing elimination philosophy may also not be effective for addressing true intolerances longer-term.
- Whole grains have essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals: Whole grains have essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals, such as B vitamins, selenium, iron and magnesium, that assist with turning food into energy.
Reintroduction Phase
Following the 30-day elimination phase, you'll reintroduce foods one at a time, once every three days or more, to understand your response to certain foods going forward. After the initial 30 days, you may slowly reintroduce off-limits foods to see how they affect your health and fit into your new eating pattern.
The suggested way to reintroduce off-limit foods is to add back only one food group at a time. For instance, dairy can be reintroduced on day 1 after completing the Whole30 program. You are then encouraged to return to the Whole30 diet and avoid milk on days 2 through 4, while paying attention to any potential symptoms. If all goes well, you can reintroduce a different food group on day 5, then repeat the process.
Read also: Plant-Based Diet Guide
Reintroducing only one food group at a time while keeping the rest of the diet the same is promoted as a way to better identify which foods cause negative symptoms, such as bloating, skin breakouts, or achy joints. Once all food groups have been individually tested, you can add the ones your body tolerated well back into your regular diet. Naturally, individuals are not required to reintroduce all foods. In fact, you’re strongly encouraged to avoid reintroducing foods that you do not miss.
Is the Whole30 Diet Right for You?
The Whole30 diet is a restrictive plan. As a rule, it’s important to talk to your health care provider or a registered dietitian before beginning any diet, especially if you have a history of eating disorders. Before initiating this diet, you must evaluate your personal health history: pay particular attention if there are specific dietary requirements or restrictions; consider any background of disordered eating-these factors are crucial.
While some people may have anecdotally found success on the Whole30 program, its popularity doesn’t necessarily make it the right diet for you.
Opinions about the Whole30 diet diverge significantly: some physicians and nutritionists view it as a beneficial short-term reset-designed to cultivate healthier eating habits; others express concern over its stringent restrictions and potential long-term consequences. The diet's rigid demands and the challenges presented in social situations-where non-compliant foods are served-are difficult to navigate. The Whole30 diet's stringent regulations may also negatively impact one's social activities, especially considering the centrality of food at many social events. The anxiety, derived from having to forgo particular foods, can potentially harm mental health.
Meeting with your medical providers and a registered dietitian or nutritionist may be a more effective approach, as they can work with you to define a personalized plan designed to help you to reach your health goals.