Spoon University Logo
IMG 0119 2
IMG 0119 2
Lifestyle

The Truth about Popular Diets and What it Means to be Vegan

This article is written by a student writer from the Spoon University at UC Irvine chapter.

It seems like today, there is a new trending diet every month. From popular diets that require incorporating more fats than carbs, to diets that remove one product from one’s life like becoming vegan, everyone has a different opinion on what is the perfect lifestyle and diet. While many people use diets as a way to lose weight, what you eat is also important to a healthy lifestyle. Personally, I believe that eating what makes you feel happy and good but watching your portion sizes, is more important than sticking to a diet. But everyone is different, so listen to your body for the perfect lifestyle.

Ketogenic Diet

how to ripen avocados avocado sweet
Jina Kim

Normally, people’s body fat is being burned in glucose mode, meaning that the sugars from foods that we consume are being burned. However, those who are on a ketogenic diet have fat in body burning mode. This means that they are using their own fat for energy.

Those on the ketogenic diet will consume a small amount of carbs, more protein, and mostly high, healthy oils and fats.

Paleo Diet

popular diets
Danielle Chen

People on Paleo diets can also be considered ketogenic, but with a twist. They can eat any proportion of the different food groups as they desire. These foods consists of nuts, seeds, fruit, veggies, eggs, seafood, and meat. What differs Paleo from eating whatever, is that Paleos avoid grains, legumes, potatoes, refined and processed foods, and dairy. In general, those who are Paleo try to only consumewohle natural foods that can be found in the wild.

Atkins Diet

popular cuisines chicken vegetable
Michelle Rodriguez

Popular in the history of America, the Atkins diet is a notorious way of eating and losing weight. Simply put, this diet required participants to consume a small amount of carbs such as grains and rice, while giving no limit to the amount of protein, such as meat, nuts, etc. to be consumed.

Vegan

Freshman 15 vegetable carrot
Christin Urso

More people are becoming more conscious of the environment, so they decide to become vegan. Being vegan is more of a lifestyle than just a diet. Vegans completely avoid animal products; this means for consumption and in products and goods. Usually, a vegan’s diet consists of plenty of vegetables, beans, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, and mock meat. For dairy, they will prefer coconut, soy, or nut milks.

Vegetarian

popular diets carrot vegetable
Elizabeth Faile

Out of the previously mentioned diets, being vegetarian is the most straightforward. Vegetarians can eat animal products like eggs and dairy, but usually avoid seafood and animal meat.

In my opinion, there is no perfect diet for everybody. Everyone’s body changes over time, so it is okay to eat differently with different life circumstances. Even if you do not fall into any of these categories or are not participating in any of these diets, it is still important knowledge. Overall, although there are many popular diets that make their way into society, the new trend may not be exactly for you. Listen to your body to see what it needs and consume whatever makes you feel good at the moment. 

Alice Wen

UC Irvine '18