McDougall Diet Example 🆙

Premise

The following indications are for informational purposes EXCLUSIVELY and are not intended to replace the opinion of professionals such as a doctor, nutritionist or dietician, whose intervention is necessary for the prescription and composition of PERSONALIZED food therapies.

The McDougall Diet

Like the vegetarian and vegan diets, the Mc Dougall diet (from its inventor, the American doctor McDougall) abhors the use of meat, fish, molluscs and crustaceans; moreover, more similar to the vegan one and contrary to the vegetarian diet, the McDougall diet does NOT include eggs, milk and derivatives, and honey.

Positives

This eating style is purely aimed at the preservation, or rather at the restoration, of the state of health, since the absence of animal fats (containing saturated fatty acids and cholesterol) makes it particularly suitable for the REDUCTION of cholesterolemia, therefore of the atherosclerotic risk. It can be deduced that, by reducing the possibility of occlusion of the vessels, the McDougall diet drastically reduces the cardio-circulatory danger, to which also the high content of potassium (K) contributes, in turn responsible for the modulation of blood pressure. Last but not least, the very high intake of dietary fiber which (in addition to contributing to the moderation of cholesterol and to moderate the risk of bowel cancer) promotes fecal transit by effectively reducing the symptoms of constipation.

From the point of view of weight control, the McDougall diet also greatly favors weight reduction as, in addition to animal-derived fats, it totally excludes ALL seasoning oils, oilseeds (dried fruit) and processed foods (albeit vegetable ) rich in lipids (vegetable frankfurters, vegetable steaks, tofu, etc.).
The McDougall diet is very rich in phytoestrogens, compounds "potentially" useful in the fight against the typical symptoms of climacteric syndrome.

Downsides

On the other hand, remember that a "reckless" increase in dietary fiber can induce chronic malabsorption and lead to an excess of daily fecal evacuations (similar to diarrhea); as if that were not enough, together with dietary fiber, vegetables bring high quantities of ANTI-nutritional elements (some more than others) such as tannins, oxalic acid and phytates in general, which hinder the absorption of various mineral salts : iron, calcium, zinc and selenium.
Some nutrition professionals argue that vegetable proteins, especially raw fruit and vegetables, are not well digested and therefore do not contribute to raising the daily protein quota; I would avoid arguing about the veracity of a similar statement but, if so, the McDougall diet would be extremely deficient in amino acids and especially in essential ones.
Unfortunately it is not over; the McDougall diet is also very poor in cobalamin (vit. B12), calciferol (vit. D), heme iron and ferrous iron (Fe ++), calcium (Ca), and (in some cases more than others) of high biological value proteins ; it therefore requires the use of fortified foods and / or specific food supplements. Excluding vegetable oils and oily fruit, there may also be a shortage of essential fatty acids of the omega three series.

Breakdown of the diet

The McDougall diet is a rather extreme dietary therapy; it could certainly induce the improvement of metabolic parameters related to cholesterol and, probably (thanks to the abundance of potassium and the low presence of added sodium), also of blood pressure, as well as inducing a rather rapid, even if indiscriminate, decrease in body weight ( lean mass and fat mass).
There are no particularly detailed indications for the calculation of the needs and the distribution of meals but, as regards the food choices and the quantity of energy nutrients, McDougall is quite strict:

Eliminate, as already mentioned, foods of animal origin, condiments, oil seeds, artifacts and fats vegetable products, etc.
Eliminate all refined foods (including white flours)
Eliminate all processed sugary foods (fruit juices, sweets, etc.)
DO NOT consume more than 3 fruits per day
Eliminate the nerves
Center your meals on a single plate of complex carbohydrates
Ultimately, break down energy into: 75-87% CHO, 6-15% protein and 5-10% fat.

Useful supplements

Similarly to the vegan diet, the McDougall diet is also insufficient in the intake of: cobalamin (vitamin B12), calciferol (vitamin D), heme iron and ferrous iron (Fe ++), calcium (Ca), and (in some cases) high biological value proteins; this means that, in addition to the support of a nutrition professional (necessary to balance the diet), the McDougall diet requires food supplementation with:

Cobalamine: in the form of periodic injections or with lozenges (especially before and during pregnancy)
Vit. D and calcium: generally in combination against the increased risk of skeletal complications (especially in pregnancy, lactation, growth and from pre-menopause until beyond the resolution of any climacteric symptoms)
Ferrous iron: only when necessary, therefore in case of overt anemia or in pregnancy
Essential amino acids: in the event that the subject does not follow a balanced diet
Soy Protein: Same as for essential amino acids