| Rice is enjoyed by many people all over the | | | | short, people on the Rice Diet don't lose fat; they |
| world, especially Asians. This makes the "Rice Diet | | | | only lose water. |
| Report" an attractive way of losing weight. | | | | "Although this could amount to as much as 10-15 |
| Developed in the late 1930s by Dr. Walter | | | | pounds in the first few days, the weight loss is |
| Kempner, a physician at Duke University, the diet | | | | illusory. As soon as a regular diet (containing salt) |
| is composed of cooked rice, fruit, sugar, and tea. | | | | was resumed, the water weight was regained," |
| It was so restrictive and was originally meant for | | | | Yetiv explained. |
| people with severe kidney disease. In April 1944, | | | | Kempner's diet plan soon faded into obscurity in |
| Kempner told the North Carolina Medical Journal | | | | the late 1940s as drugs to fight high blood |
| about his popular diet and how it had helped lots | | | | pressure became readily available. But it was |
| of patients. | | | | recently resurrected by author Judy Moscovitz, a |
| The Rice Diet was later used by patients with | | | | graduate of the Rice House in Durham, North |
| high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetic | | | | Carolina, where she reportedly lost 140 pounds. |
| retinopathy, a serious complication of diabetes. | | | | In her book, Moscovitz encourages the dieter to |
| Kempner claimed his diet managed to control all | | | | eat nothing but fruit and rice for four or five |
| three conditions. | | | | months or longer. You can eat any kind of rice |
| "Dr. Kempner noted that the patients' blood | | | | provided it has no salt, spices, herbs or |
| pressure dropped to normal, and | | | | condiments. The dieter is also warned not to take |
| electrocardiograms showed their hearts had | | | | dairy products due to their fat and cholesterol |
| returned to normal size and function. Blood | | | | content. |
| vessels in the retinas of the eyes also returned to | | | | Unfortunately, Yetiv said subsisting on rice alone is |
| normal," said Theodore Berland in Consumer | | | | foolhardy and potentially life-threatening because |
| Guide's "Rating the Diets." | | | | this diet is low in iron, calcium, zinc, vitamins B12 |
| Along the way, Kempner and his colleagues found | | | | and D, and protein. What's more, we cannot |
| that the Rice Diet also helped people lose weight. | | | | totally eliminate dairy products from our diet |
| One patient, the wife of Richard Hughes, the | | | | because they are a rich source of calcium. The |
| former governor of New Jersey, was a diabetic | | | | least Moscovitz could have done is to tell readers |
| who weighed 230 pounds when she came to | | | | to use low fat or non-fat dairy products. But you |
| Duke University. After 19 weeks, Kempner said | | | | won't find any good advice from this book. |
| she lost 80 pounds and her blood sugar dropped | | | | "I consider the Rice Diet to be one of the worst |
| to normal levels. | | | | diet entries in the past decade. It is a very |
| At first, doctors were skeptical of Kempner's | | | | restrictive, choreographed diet. It teaches the |
| results. But they were amazed at the results. | | | | overweight patient nothing about the dietary |
| What makes the Rice Diet work? | | | | habits which led to the overweight condition to |
| In "Popular Nutrition Practices: Sense and | | | | begin with, and therefore, doesn't provide him |
| Nonsense", Dr. Jack Yetiv said this particular diet is | | | | with the necessary tools to prevent regain of the |
| very low in sodium. This causes diuresis or the | | | | weight," Yetiv concluded. |
| increased secretion of urine in the kidneys. In | | | | |