Dante Carrillo
The concept of dieting has evolved over centuries, with early humans primarily focused on survival and eating local, seasonal foods. Ancient Greeks associated a healthy body with a healthy mind, embracing fitness and athletics. The first diet book, Letter on Corpulence by William Banting, was published in 1863, promoting a low-carbohydrate and low-calorie approach. The 19th century also saw the emergence of the first diet influencer, Lord Byron, who popularised the idea of starving and binge eating. Diet advice began appearing in American women's magazines in the 1890s, reflecting shifting beauty standards. The 20th century witnessed a boom in fad diets, with the 1918 book Diet and Health: With Key to the Calories by Dr. Lulu Hunt Peters popularising calorie counting. Today, dieting is a multi-billion-dollar industry, with various weight loss programmes and an ongoing quest for the ideal body.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| First popular diet | ["Banting", named after William Banting] |
| Year of the first diet | 1863/1864 |
| Diet characteristics | Low-carbohydrate, low-calorie diet |
| First weight-loss book | Diet and Health: With Key to the Calories by Dr. Lulu Hunt Peters |
| Year of the first weight-loss book | 1918 |
| Book characteristics | Popularized the concept of calorie counting for weight loss |
| Dieting as a societal problem | First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! initiative in 2010 |
| Dieting as a moral issue | Overweight people are considered inferior and unattractive |
| Dieting as a health issue | Diets can be individualized to prevent and treat diseases such as diabetes and epilepsy |
| Diets in ancient times | Ancient Greeks believed a healthy body meant a healthy mind |
| Diets in modern times | Pop culture and social media have made fad diets more prevalent |
| Diets and spending | Approximately $60 billion is spent annually in the USA on diet products |
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What You'll Learn
The first diet book was published in 1864
The history of dieting is a long and complex one, with the concept of dieting for weight loss having evolved over centuries. While it is challenging to pinpoint the exact origins of dieting, the publication of the first diet book in 1864 by William Banting, titled "Letter on Corpulence," marks a significant milestone in the history of dieting.
William Banting, an overweight undertaker from London, shared his successful weight loss journey in his book. Banting attributed his transformation to replacing bread, sugar, and potatoes with a diet consisting mostly of meat, fish, and vegetables. This publication is considered the first of its kind, specifically focused on weight loss and shaping a new ideal body type.
The release of "Letter on Corpulence" sparked a shift in societal beauty standards, particularly for women. In the late 19th century, the ideal female figure was slowly moving away from the hourglass shape that had been dominant. With the rise of scientific racism, a pseudoscientific ideology asserting the superiority of the white race, body size became a racialised and gendered battleground. Black women were stereotyped as lacking self-control regarding consumption, pushing white women to embrace dieting as a means of differentiation from these stereotypes.
The early 20th century witnessed the emergence of calorie counting as a weight-loss strategy. Dr. Lulu Hunt Peters, an American physician, popularised this approach in her 1918 book, "Diet & Health: With Key to the Calories." Peters framed overeating as unpatriotic, arguing that hoarding food in one's body during wartime was akin to hoarding food during a time of rationing.
The early to mid-20th century also saw the rise of fad diets, with publications such as "The Last Chance Diet" (1976) advocating for extreme weight loss methods, such as consuming a very low-calorie liquid blend of predigested animal byproducts. These diets were often dangerous, and some even resulted in the deaths of their followers. It wasn't until Robert Atkins published "Dr. Atkins' Diet Revolution" in 1972 that low-carb, high-protein diets gained widespread popularity.
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Diet advice in magazines began in the 1890s
Dieting advice has been around in some form for centuries. In 1028, William the Conqueror went on a liquid diet to lose weight. In 1864, William Banting, an overweight undertaker, published what is thought to be the first diet book, "Letter on Corpulence". In the book, Banting describes his success in losing weight by replacing an excessive intake of bread, sugar, and potatoes with mostly meat, fish, and vegetables.
However, it wasn't until the 1890s that diet advice began appearing in American women's magazines. During this time, societal beauty standards around the female body were shifting away from the dominant hourglass figure of the 19th century. The development of scientific racism, a "pseudoscientific" approach used to prove the supposed superiority of the white race, partially relied on anti-fatness. Black women were characterized by their "presumed inability to control their consumptions". This not only shamed Black people and their bodies but also encouraged white women to start dieting to differentiate themselves from Black women. Body size became another battleground for racialized and gendered ideals, and dieting was pushed into the spotlight in the 1920s.
The "'ideal'" female body type continued to evolve in the early 20th century, with thinness now being the most desirable trait. Only women who weren't desperate for food had the privilege of restricting their consumption for aesthetics. As the demand for weight loss increased, so did the strategies to achieve it, such as calorie counting, which was popularized by American physician Dr. Lulu Hunt Peters in 1918. Dr. Hunt Peters characterized fat people as unpatriotic threats to the future of the United States.
The modern health food market, which largely caters to an upscale audience, has its roots in the late 1800s, when the idea of scientifically defined healthy eating was targeted specifically at poor workers. During this time, the first federal diet recommendations were issued for the general public, and baseline values for nutrients in foods were established by USDA Agricultural Chemist Wilbur O. Atwater.
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The first weight-loss bestseller was published in 1918
Dieting as a practice has existed in various forms for centuries. The word 'diet' comes from the Greek 'diaita', which refers to a notion of a healthy lifestyle, including both mental and physical health. The practice of dieting for weight loss, however, is a more recent phenomenon.
In the 19th century, the main concern among nutrition experts was malnutrition, especially among the poor. As such, the focus was on finding inexpensive ways to provide enough food energy. This mindset began to shift in the early 20th century, particularly after World War I. With the development of scientific racism and shifting beauty standards, societal ideals around the female body began to change. Slim figures were increasingly associated with wealth and glamour, and dieting became a way for women to differentiate themselves from stereotypes.
During this time, the first weight-loss bestseller was published in 1918, titled "Diet & Health: With Key to the Calories" by Dr. Lulu Hunt Peters. Peters, an American physician, columnist, and writer, was likely the first person to recognize that intentionally reducing calorie intake would lead to weight loss. She popularized the concept of calorie counting for weight loss, targeting her message specifically towards American women. Peters' book was based on her own experiences with weight loss, having lost 50-70 pounds herself. She presented a formula for calculating ideal weight and included estimates of food portions that would contain 100 calories.
Peters' work characterized fat people as unpatriotic and reinforced the message from the fashion industry that being slim was fashionable. She captivated her readers by addressing the shame associated with being overweight and presenting a solution to achieve the ideal body type. The book sold 2 million copies and remains influential even today.
The popularity of Peters' book reflects a growing demand for weight-loss strategies in the early 20th century. With the rise of slim fashion ideals and a post-war abundance of food, dieting became a way for women to exert control over their bodies and conform to societal expectations.
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The Last Chance Diet in 1976 was a dangerous fad
Dieting has been a practice for centuries, with the earliest known instance of a diet book published in 1864 by William Banting, an overweight undertaker. Banting's book detailed his weight loss journey after replacing foods like bread, sugar, and potatoes with meat, fish, and vegetables. However, it was in the 1970s that dieting became a widespread phenomenon, driven by shifting beauty standards and the emergence of diet fads.
One of the most notorious diet fads of that decade was the "Last Chance Diet," introduced in 1976 by Dr. Robert (or Roger) Linn. The premise of this diet was that consuming only a low-calorie liquid protein concoction called Prolinn would lead to rapid and permanent weight loss. Prolinn was made from slaughterhouse by-products like cowhide, tendons, crushed animal horns, hooves, and bones, which were chemically predigested to separate the protein and amino acids.
The Last Chance Diet was marketed as a quick and easy solution to obesity, and it quickly gained popularity, especially among celebrities and the wealthy. Dr. Linn's book on the diet sold over 2 million copies in about two years. However, the diet was not a sustainable or healthy way to lose weight. It was essentially a starvation diet, lacking the nutrients the body needs to function properly.
Soon, reports emerged of people losing a significant percentage of their body weight and then suddenly dying. The FDA intervened in 1977 after news that several people had died because of the diet, and the product was taken off the market. The Last Chance Diet is a stark reminder of the dangers of extreme weight loss methods and the potential consequences when vanity outweighs common sense.
While the Last Chance Diet may be one of the more extreme examples, it is not an isolated case in the history of dieting fads. From Thomas Short's "Avoiding Swamps Diet" in 1727 to the Cotton Ball Diet in 2013, people have often prioritized quick fixes over safe and sustainable weight loss methods.
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Ancient Greeks believed a healthy body meant a healthy mind
The concept of going on a diet has been around for centuries, with the earliest known instance of a published diet book being William Banting's "Letter on Corpulence" in 1864. However, the idea of dieting as we know it today, with a focus on weight loss and appearance, didn't become mainstream until the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Ancient Greeks had a holistic view of health and believed that a healthy mind and a healthy body were interconnected. This belief, often expressed by the phrase "Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body" ("Nous Ygis, En Somati Ygis" in Greek), was attributed to Aristotle. Aristotle and other ancient Greek philosophers recognized the importance of physical activity and exercise in achieving this balance between the mind and body. Aristotle believed that participating in sports and gymnastics was essential for developing the human body and promoting harmony between the mind and body.
Plato, another influential ancient Greek philosopher, emphasized the role of nature and the outdoors in maintaining a healthy balance. He encouraged his students to engage in physical activities such as horseback riding and wrestling, and he founded the peripatetic school, where students were taught while walking alongside their teacher outdoors.
The ancient Greeks also understood the importance of community and social engagement in overall health and well-being. They empowered individuals and communities through democratic institutions and placed emphasis on health education and skill development. The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates, considered the founder of ancient Greek medicine, focused on "natural" treatments and the belief that medicine should be practiced as a scientific discipline based on the natural sciences.
Overall, the ancient Greeks' view of health was holistic and encompassed physical, mental, and social aspects. Their belief in the connection between a healthy mind and a healthy body has had a lasting influence on our understanding of wellness and the interplay between physical and mental health.
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Frequently asked questions
The idea of "dieting" as we know it today, i.e., eating in a regulated way to decrease, maintain, or increase body weight, seems to have originated in the 19th century. The first popular diet book, "Letter on Corpulence, Addressed to the Public," was published in 1863 by William Banting, an overweight undertaker.
The first popular diet was "Banting," named after its creator, William Banting. Banting's diet was low-carbohydrate and low-calorie, emphasizing meat, greens, fruits, and dry wine, while avoiding sugar, sweet foods, starch, beer, milk, and butter.
Some of the earliest diets include:
- Lord Byron's diet of starving himself and then binge eating, followed by sweating off weight under multiple layers of clothing.
- Fletcherism, which became popular in the early 1900s and involved chewing each mouthful 32 times and spitting out the rest.
- Calorie counting, popularized by Dr. Lulu Hunt Peters in 1918, who characterized overweight people as unpatriotic.
- The "Avoiding Swamps Diet," proposed by writer Thomas Short in 1727, which suggested that people move away from swamps to lose weight.
Diets have evolved from being primarily about weight loss and health to becoming heavily influenced by beauty standards and societal ideals. The "ideal" body type has changed over the centuries, from the hourglass figure in the 19th century to the thin ideal in the mid-19th century and beyond. Diets have also become more individualized, with the recognition that different people may require different approaches to succeed.
