Research Proposal

Jocelynn Wright

April 30, 2013

English 102

Research Proposal

Introduction: For many decades, people have sought out weight loss strategies including special low-carb or low-fat diets, diet pills, and juice cleanses. This paper will look at the pros and cons of these popular fad diets in conjunction with other ways of losing weight and/or staying healthy through the use of exercise and clean eating. Do these diets really work? What are the longterm affects they have on people who use them? What is a better way to lose weight? My purpose is to persuade my readers that these diets are not very safe for you and that the best way to lead a healthy lifestyle is to eat whole foods and exercise. I will do so by using statistics, data, and studies.

Review of Literature: Sources reviewed so far include "Popular Diets, Body Weight And Health:What Is Scientifically Documented?" by Susanne Bryngelsson and Nils-George Asp. From a 2005 issue of Scandinavian Journal of Nutrition. It talks about three popular diets known to many people these days. Another source used was “The Return of Rainbow Diet Pills” by Peter A. Cohen published in the American Journal of Public Health in 2012 and it is basically all about the pros and cons of diet pills. "Cognitive And Motivational Consequences Of Dieting." by Jane Ogden published in 1995 by European Eating Disorders Review is a review of a survey that was done on people who used diets and compared how they felt and changed. Dana Angelo White wrote “Are Healthy Detox Diets Safe?” in 2010 and it backs up my argument that diets, such as detox diets, can be unsafe. Another article used was "Dieting, Weight, And Health: Reconceptualizing Research And Policy." by Jeanine C. Cogen in 1999 in The Journal of Social Issues and discusses the unsafe benefits of fad dieting. A fifth source from a peer reviewed scholarly journal was by Yvonne Tapper-Gardzina titled “Should You Recommend a Low-Carb, High-Protein Diet?” and published in 2002 by the Southern Medical Journal. This article supports the kind of “diet” that I think is better than a fad diet. Other sources I found on the web included “Basics of a Proper Diet” by Patrick McDowell, "Diet Pills Are Right For Few Patients." By Michael McCarthy, “Weight Management published by the United States Department of Agriculture, and “The Eat Clean Diet: Diet Review” by Kathleen Zelman. The scholarly articles were the most useful between those and the websites that I found and used.

Plan to Collect Information: In addition to the valuable sources I have found so far, I will be using the school library to see if there are any books I can use for my paper. I am also hoping to find statistics and graphs through the Google search engine or a book from the library. Graphs and charts are always useful for evidence and support. I will interview two people – one person who has used fad diets to aid in his/her weightloss, and one person who has used exercise and wholesome/clean eating. If time permits, I would also like to meet with a nutritionist or weight loss specialist at the local YMCA where I exercise to see what his/her views are on fad diets.

Project Timeline: This week I will spend a lot of time reviewing my sources, especially my online databases, to organize the important information I can use from each one. I will also compile annotations for each source since that is due next week in class on May 7th. The following week, I plan to interview a friend who has recently begun losing a significant amount of weight using exercising and whole foods/clean eating. She will be support for my argument. The same week, I also plan to interview someone in my family that used a fad diet and did not have great success. The week I do interviews will also be the week I check the library for any sources that can help my paper. By May 14^th I will have my review of literature completed for class.  This puts me in a great position to begin my first draft of my paper, which will be due May 21^st. Using the first draft, I will complete my final paper by June 4^th. If I follow all my steps in a timely manner, finishing my final paper should not be too difficult.

Works Cited

Angelo White, Dana. "Healthy Debate: Are Detox Diets Safe?" Food Networks. N.p., 29

Nov. 2010. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Ansel, Karen. "Is Gluten Bad for Your Body?" Women's Health: Health, Fitness, Weight

Loss, Healthy Recipes & Beauty. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

"Atkins And Other Low-Carbohydrate Diets: Hoax Or An Effective Tool For Weight

Loss?." Lancet 364.9437 (2004): 897-899. Academic Search Premier. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Bryngelsson, Susanne, and Nils-Georg Asp. "Popular Diets, Body Weight And Health:

What Is Scientifically Documented?." Scandinavian Journal Of Nutrition 49.1 (2005): 15-20. Academic Search Premier. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Chobdee, Julie. "Danger Signs of a Fad Diet." UC Riverside Wellness Program. UC

Riverside, n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Cogan, Jeanine C., and Paul Ernsberger. "Dieting, Weight, And Health:

Reconceptualizing Research And Policy." Journal Of Social Issues 55.2 (1999): 187-205. Academic Search Premier. Web. 23 Apr. 2013.

Cohen, Pieter A., Alberto Goday, and John P. Swann. "The Return Of Rainbow Diet

Pills." American Journal Of Public Health 102.9 (2012): 1676-1686. Academic Search Premier. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Deen, JC. "Clean Eating is a Scam and Why You Should Abandon It." JCD Fitness — A

No BS Approach To Looking Great Naked. N.p., 13 Sept. 2010. Web. 30 Apr. 2013.

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and Blood Institute. N.p., 13 Feb. 2013. Web. 30 Apr. 2013.

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Cardiovascular Disease Risk After Altering Macronutrient Distributions During A Regular Exercise Program In Obese Women." Nutrition Journal 9.(2010): 59-77. Academic Search Premier. Web. 23 Apr. 2013.

McCarthy, Michael. "Diet Pills Are Right For Few Patients." Lancet 348.9043 (1996):

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McDowell, Patrick . "Basics of a Proper Diet." Enjoy Healthy Living, Live a Healthy

Life, Sustain Good Health. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

"MORE ON HEART DISEASE AND DIET PILLS. (Cover Story)." Harvard Heart Letter

10.11 (2000): 5. Academic Search Premier. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Ogden, Jane. "Cognitive And Motivational Consequences Of Dieting." European

Eating Disorders Review 3.4 (1995): 228-241. Academic Search Premier. Web. 23 Apr. 2013.

Tapper-Gardzina, Yvonne, Nancy Cotugna, and Connie E. Vickery. "Should You

Recommend A Low-Carb, High-Protein Diet?." Nurse Practitioner 27.4 (2002): 1. Academic Search Premier. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Tobias, Joseph D., et al. "Psychologic And Physiologic Effects Of Dieting In

Adolescents." Southern Medical Journal 95.9 (2002): 1032-1041. Academic Search Premier. Web. 23 Apr. 2013.

"Weight Management." ChooseMyPlate.gov. United States Department of Agriculture,

n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2013.

Ylisela, Mary. "The Best Way to Get Fit in Two Months.” Healthy Living –

azcentral.com. N.p., Web. 16 Apr. 2013.

Zelman, Kathleen M. . "The Eat-Clean Diet: Diet Review." WebMD – Better

information. Better health. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2013.