Mariah Carey recently announced that she's embarking on "the purple diet" where she only eats purple-hued foods such as cabbage, plums, and grapes. Is this one celebrity diet you should try?
Does it work?
It's not a totally bad idea, Dr. Talbott says. "Purple foods are generally very healthy for us; berries, grapes, and fruits are high in potent antioxidants called flavonoids that are good for the heart, brain, and entire body." The real problem is that focusing too much on any one food means you're missing out on other beneficial nutrients such as the carotenoids in yellow/orange vegetables, lignans in brown whole grains, or the iron in red meat. "I often encourage people to 'eat a rainbow' every day so they are actively trying to consume the widest range of colors for the most comprehensive antioxidant protection," Dr. Talbott says. "For example, red (tomato), orange (carrot), yellow (bell pepper), green (Romaine lettuce), blue (blueberries), indigo (acai berry), and violet (black berry)."
Is it safe?
"Anything done in extremes is not well-balanced and will find you deficient in other areas over time," Dr. Brar says. "Plus, you don't want to end up looking like Barney the dinosaur!"
Final verdict: Deny it.
