Want to lose weight? Stop restricting yourself. Even the evidence doesn’t support restriction… A landmark study known as the Minnesota Starvation Experiment (Keys et al., 1950) vividly illustrates the damaging effects of food restriction—not just physically, but psychologically and behaviourally. The study involved 36 healthy men (selected from 400 applicants) who underwent a six-month semi-starvation phase, during which their caloric intake was reduced by about 50% , simulating famine or extreme dieting conditions. The participants displayed severe psychological and behavioural effects, including obsessive thoughts about food, emotional distress, social withdrawal, depression, and changes in personality. They also reported feeling “out of control” around food and engaged in binge eating during the refeeding phase. “THESE SYMPTOMS PERSISTED LONG AFTER THE STUDY, WITH MANY EXPERIENCING PROLONGED WEIGHT REGAIN DIFFICULTIES AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS.” The study was foundational in ...