Is The 30 Bananas A Day Diet A Step Too Far?

Last Updated: November 22, 2021

If you follow Instagram nutrition trends, then you are probably aware of the 30 bananas a day diet. If not, we’ll explain it to you. It’s a mono-diet where you only eat 30 bananas a day, which will supposedly help you lose weight and cleanse your body.

This trend started in 2008 in Japan and got increasingly popular on Instagram with the account @freeleethebananagirl. But what does that radical diet actually consist of, is it safe, and are there real benefits to it? Or is it just taking it a step too far?

These are all questions that you might have about the 30 bananas a day diet, and we’ll give you all the answers to them, as well as some extra information. This way, you can see for yourself if the 30 bananas a day diet could be for you or if it’s just plain dangerous.

(The Raw Till 4 Diet: banana Girl Cleanse)

What Is The 30 Bananas A Day Diet?

The 30 bananas a day diet is a mono-diet that consists of eating only 30 bananas a day. Freelee, the Banana Girl, popularized this diet and even wrote a book about it. And she eats about 50 bananas a day.

A lot of her followers follow the weeklong diet of eating 30 banans a day for a week. And that’s it. Nothing else.

This challenge is supposed to drastically help you lose weight and is known as the ‘Banana Island’ challenge.

As you can imagine, this radical challenge doesn’t come without health risks, and after a week, you’ll come back to your normal diet, so all the weight you lost will probably come back, and can even double.(The Raw Till 4 Diet: banana Girl Cleanse)

The 80/10/10 Diet But More Radical

eat-Bananas-in-a-Weight-Loss-Diet - Vegan Liftz

Think of the 30 bananas a day diet like the 80/10/10 diet, only more radical.

The 80/10/10 diet was invented by Dr.Douglas Graham; you can read about it in his book The 80/80/10 Diet. He promotes a raw vegan diet, mostly based on raw fruits and leafy greens.

The general idea is that you get 80% of your daily calories from carbs, 10% from fats, and another 10% from protein. This can be harmful to your system, as you need to have more food groups than that to maintain a healthy body.

The 30 bananas a day diet is even more extreme since it’s not only around one food group: fruit, but also because it’s only bananas. There is no variety, and mono diets tend to be dangerous in general.

Sure, you can lose a lot of weight if you follow this diet, but your body will suffer consequences, and you’ll probably go back to your original weight and might even gain more weight.

This plan is super restrictive and can actually lead you to have an unhealthy relationship with food.

Is It Safe To Eat 30 Bananas A Day?

By now, you will have realized that it’s not safe to eat 30 bananas a day. But why is it not safe, exactly?

The first reason why eating only 30 bananas a day can be dangerous is that you won’t get the essential nutrients your body needs just from bananas.

You need a varied diet, so a mono-diet or any diet that only lets you have a few foods will prevent you from absorbing the actual nutrients you need.

Also, one banana tends to have 105 calories. So if you eat 30 bananas, you’re exceeding your average calorie count for the day. Just do the math.

Do you know how hard it is to eat that amount of bananas per day? Many people who tried this challenge just end up sick and throw up. They never want to see another banana in their life.

So you’ll be eating a lot of calories, but these calories will most likely be empty calories and won’t sustain you. Especially if you’re an active person. You might feel very weak and faint if you only eat 30 bananas a day.

Even if you just do this challenge for a week, it can unsettle your entire health and give you long-term side effects. Not only can it disturb your physical health, but eating 30 bananas a day can disrupt your mental health and give you an eating disorder.

Restricting yourself to only one food category, let alone one food item only can be very disruptive, which often leads to eating disorders(The Raw Till 4 Diet: banana Girl Cleanse)

What Are The Benefits And Drawbacks Of Eating 30 Bananas A Day?

Now you know all the drawbacks of this diet, but are there any benefits to eating 30 bananas a day?

Bananas are very healthy for you. They can help improve your digestion, give you lots of potassium and carbs, and are low-fat.

Also, they’re usually cheap, easy to find, and filling. Eating this diet can keep you filled and give you a bit more energy at first, but long term, you won’t feel this energy to last.

Is This A Sustainable Diet You Can Actually Keep Up?

No, this is not a sustainable diet, as you might have guessed already while reading all its drawbacks(The Raw Till 4 Diet: banana Girl Cleanse)

Alternatives To The 30 Bananas A Day Diet

Instead of doing the 30 bananas a day diet, you could try a vegan diet or even a raw diet first and slowly move on to a more fruitarian diet.

Before you try any new diet, talk to a nutritionist to see if this diet is really for you and how you can adapt it to you, your needs, and your lifestyle.

Conclusion

There are so many drawbacks to the 30 bananas a day diet, which include eating too many calories, not receiving the nutrients you need, not giving you energy, and creating an unhealthy restrictive relationship with food that can lead to eating disorders.

It’s not a sustainable diet, but if you’re interested in losing weight or being more healthy in general, there are alternatives to this diet(The Raw Till 4 Diet: banana Girl Cleanse)

About the author

Jason Hughes

"Hey there, I'm Jason, and you've just landed on the most exhilarating spot on the web - my VL universe! Here's the deal: I'm wildly obsessed (in the best way possible!) with all things diet, strength training, fitness, health, and wellness. It's not just a passion; it's a lifestyle!

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