Scroll through social media today, and you’ll find yourself bombarded with diet trends promising miraculous results. One influencer swears by the carnivore diet, showcasing an overcooked steak and runny eggs served on a wooden cutting board (it’s always a wooden cutting board). The next scroll preaches plant-based eating, insisting that cutting out animal products will lead to eternal youth. Then the next influencer swears by keto, the high-fat, low-carb craze that has convinced people that bread and pasta are the enemy.
While it may seem like fad diets are a modern phenomenon fueled by Instagram course-selling gurus and YouTube biohackers, the truth is, that we humans have been obsessed with extreme diets for centuries. Long before TikTok trends, people were doing absurd things to lose weight, cleanse their bodies, or achieve the “ideal” physique. From eating nothing but vinegar-soaked biscuits to drinking arsenic for a glowing complexion, history is full of wild and questionable dietary choices.
Let’s take a journey through time to uncover some of history’s most fascinating (and sometimes ridiculous) fad diets—from ancient times to today’s information-overload of conflicting nutrition advice.
Ancient Diet Trends: Eat Like a God, Fast Like a Saint
Diets based on strict food rules, purity, and bodily transformation are not a modern trend. Ancient civilizations had their own ideas about food and health, some of which still echo in today’s wellness industry.
The Greeks and Romans were among the first to document theories about diet and health. The famous philosopher Pythagoras (c. 570–495 BCE) wasn’t just interested in math—he was also one of history’s first dietary influencers. Pythagoras and his followers followed what we would now call a vegetarian diet, not for health reasons, but because they believed certain foods, particularly beans, contained the souls of the dead. (Source: Porphyry, Life of Pythagoras) While avoiding animal products is nothing new, avoiding beans for supernatural reasons certainly adds an eccentric twist to plant-based eating.
Meanwhile, the Romans had a completely different approach to food—one that could be described as indulgence followed by purging. Roman elites hosted lavish banquets where they would stuff themselves with food and then vomit it up to continue eating. Contrary to popular belief, the idea of a separate “vomitorium” is a myth, but Seneca’s writings confirm that vomiting as a form of indulgence was a real practice. (Source: Seneca, Moral Epistles) The Romans may not have followed a diet in the modern sense, but their commitment to eating for excess and then undoing it isn’t too far from today’s binge-and-detox cycles.
Other cultures took the opposite approach, seeing fasting as a means of achieving spiritual enlightenment and self-discipline. Medieval Christian monks, for example, often subsisted on bread, water, and beer, believing that self-denial brought them closer to God. Some took it to extremes, starving themselves for weeks in pursuit of religious purity. (Source: The Rule of St. Benedict, c. 529 CE). Today’s intermittent fasting and juice cleanses may not be religious in nature, but the idea of self-control through dietary restriction is still alive and well.
Early Modern Period: When Starvation Became Fashionable
As we move into the 18th and 19th centuries, the obsession with thinness, frailty, and control over food intensified. Unlike the ancient Greeks, who admired muscular, athletic physiques, or the Renaissance era, which celebrated fuller, well-fed bodies as a sign of wealth and fertility, the Victorian era embraced a new aesthetic—pale, weak, and thin.
This ideal was heavily influenced by the Romantic movement, which associated delicacy and fragility with beauty, intelligence, and moral virtue. Women in particular were expected to maintain an almost ethereal appearance, while men, inspired by literary icons like Lord Byron, sought a melancholic, brooding thinness that reflected artistic sensibilities.
The Vinegar & Water Diet – Lord Byron’s Starvation Plan
One of the earliest celebrity-endorsed fad diets emerged in the early 1800s, when the famous poet Lord Byron developed his Vinegar & Water Diet. Byron, known for his mysterious and moody demeanor, was obsessed with maintaining a thin and ghostly figure. He believed that consuming vinegar, water, and dry biscuits would suppress his appetite and keep his weight in check. Byron often skipped meals altogether and wore layers of heavy clothing to induce sweating and further accelerate weight loss. (Source: Fiona MacDonald, The Politics of Hunger in Victorian Britain)
( Lord Byron on his death bed, by Joseph Denis Odevaere)
Byron’s self-imposed starvation did not go unnoticed. His pale complexion, sunken eyes, and slim figure became desirable traits among young men and women who idolized his poetic persona. His influence was so powerful that Victorian women across England began following his dietary habits, believing that a thin, frail frame was not only aesthetic but also a marker of refinement and virtue. Some women even fainted from malnutrition, reinforcing the idea that extreme fragility equaled femininity. If social media had existed in the 19th century, Byron’s #Thinspo movement would have gone viral.
The Arsenic Diet – Poison for a “Perfect” Complexion
For those who wanted faster results, the Arsenic Diet took things to a terrifying new level. In 19th-century Europe, small doses of arsenic were marketed as weight-loss supplements and complexion enhancers. Beauty guides and advertisements encouraged women to consume arsenic pills or powders, claiming that it would speed up their metabolism, help them shed fat, and give their skin a smooth, porcelain-like glow.
The logic behind this was that arsenic increased circulation, making the skin appear flushed and radiant—a much-coveted look among Victorian aristocrats. However, there was a tiny problem: arsenic is a deadly poison. Many women, unaware of the risks, gradually built a tolerance to small doses. Others, however, miscalculated their intake and suffered severe poisoning. Symptoms included vomiting, convulsions, hair loss, and ultimately, death. (Source: James C. Whorton, The Arsenic Century)
Despite its dangers, the arsenic craze lasted for decades, with beauty companies selling “safe” arsenic-based powders, marketed under euphemisms like “Teint de Lys” (Lily Complexion). Some weight-loss pills even contained trace amounts of arsenic well into the early 20th century before regulations caught up.
Extreme Corseting – The Diet You Wore
Another brutal weight-loss trend of the Victorian era wasn’t something you ate—it was something you wore. Tightly laced corsets, while originally designed for posture and shaping, became an instrument of extreme dieting. Some women laced their corsets so tightly that their waistlines were forced to shrink by several inches, leading to internal organ damage, shallow breathing, and even fainting. Physicians at the time warned against “tape-worm waist syndrome,” where the body would contort unnaturally, sometimes leading to collapsed ribs and digestive issues. (Source: Valerie Steele, The Corset: A Cultural History)
Because corsets physically restricted the stomach, they also prevented large meals from being eaten, acting as a sort of 19th-century gastric band. Some women even boasted about their inability to eat more than a few bites of food, taking pride in their self-imposed starvation. Others would tighten their corsets after meals to ensure their bodies never expanded beyond their desired shape. While modern-day waist trainers and “corset diets” still exist, they pale in comparison to the dangerous levels of restriction that Victorian women endured.
The 20th Century: The Birth of the Diet Industry
As we entered the 20th century, dieting became big business. What was once the domain of aristocrats, poets, and religious ascetics was now being marketed to the masses. Industrialization, rapid advances in food production, and the rise of advertising and mass media created a perfect storm for the emergence of a multi-billion-dollar diet industry.
Before the 1900s, dieting was primarily practiced by the wealthy, who could afford to obsess over their waistlines while the rest of the world was concerned with simply getting enough to eat. But as food became more abundant and sedentary lifestyles became more common, the focus shifted from survival to self-image. Companies quickly capitalized on the public’s fears about weight gain, beauty standards, and longevity, creating a revolving door of diet products and trends that persist to this day.
The Rise of Diet Pills, Meal Replacements, and Extreme Regimens
One of the earliest commercial weight-loss products was Dr. Lulu Hunt Peters’ 1918 book Diet and Health, with Key to the Calories, which introduced the idea of calorie counting to the general public. Peters promoted a simple formula: Eat fewer calories than you burn, and you’ll lose weight. While this idea seems obvious now, it was revolutionary at the time. (Source: Lulu Hunt Peters, Diet and Health, 1918)
If interested, a link to Dr. Peters’ original 1918 book.
By the 1920s and 1930s, the cigarette industry jumped on the diet trend. Brands like Lucky Strike ran ad campaigns urging people to “Reach for a Lucky instead of a sweet”, positioning smoking as an appetite suppressant. The campaign was wildly successful, leading to a boom in cigarette sales—especially among women. (Source: Lucky Strike Ads, 1929-1930s)
The 1940s and 1950s saw the introduction of meal replacements, including Metrecal, one of the first mass-market weight-loss shakes. The idea was simple: replace meals with a scientifically formulated shake to lose weight. The problem? They tasted terrible, provided little nutritional value, and left people constantly hungry. Despite this, meal replacements set the stage for later products like SlimFast, Herbalife, and Soylent, proving that people were willing to drink their meals if they thought it would make them thinner.
The 1950s and 1960s also gave us some truly bizarre fad diets, including the Cabbage Soup Diet, which promised rapid weight loss by consuming nothing but cabbage soup for a week. (Source: Popular diet books from the 1980s-1990s). But perhaps the most extreme of all was the Sleeping Beauty Diet, rumored to have been used by Elvis Presley. The idea? Take sedatives and sleep for days—because if you’re unconscious, you can’t eat. (Source: Albert Goldman, Elvis, 1981).
The Low-Fat vs. Low-Carb War (1970s-1990s)
In the 1970s and 1980s, diet culture exploded into the mainstream, thanks to Hollywood, the fitness craze, and the diet industry’s massive advertising push. This era was dominated by low-fat dieting, fueled by government guidelines that blamed dietary fat for heart disease and obesity.
The 1980s and 1990s were ruled by low-fat, high-carb diets, leading to the rise of products like SnackWell’s low-fat cookies, fat-free yogurt, and sugar-laden breakfast cereals. While these foods were marketed as “healthy,” they often contained more sugar than their full-fat counterparts, leading to a rise in processed foods, insulin spikes, and unintended weight gain. (Source: U.S. Dietary Guidelines, 1980s-1990s)
At the same time, Dr. Robert Atkins was promoting the opposite idea: low-carb, high-fat eating. The Atkins Diet, introduced in the 1970s but reaching peak popularity in the 1990s, encouraged people to ditch carbs entirely and live off of meat, cheese, and fats. This set the stage for later trends like keto and carnivore diets. (Source: Dr. Robert Atkins, Dr. Atkins’ Diet Revolution, 1972)
If interested, a link to Dr. Atkin’s book Diet Revolution from 1972.
The 21st Century: Information Overload and the Biohacking Era
If the 20th century was about big business monetizing dieting, the 21st century has been about information overload and self-experimentation.
The rise of the internet, social media, and influencer culture has made it easier than ever to spread diet trends—whether or not they have any scientific backing. Today, we live in an era where a single viral post can turn a fringe diet into a worldwide movement.
The Return of High-Fat Diets: Keto, Carnivore, and Biohacking
By the late 2010s, the keto diet exploded in popularity, following in Atkins’ footsteps but with a modern spin. Originally developed as a treatment for epilepsy in the 1920s, keto was rebranded as a weight-loss and performance-enhancing diet. Keto influencers promoted the benefits of high-fat eating, mental clarity, and even “biohacking” longevity. (Source: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 2021)
For those who thought keto wasn’t extreme enough, the carnivore diet emerged, promoted by figures like Dr. Shawn Baker and Liver King, claiming that eating only meat could cure autoimmune diseases, depression, and even reverse aging. (Source: Dr. Shawn Baker, The Carnivore Diet, 2019). While some people swear by it, scientific backing is minimal, and long-term effects remain unknown.
The Detox & Wellness Industry: Celery Juice, Fasting, and Goop-Style Cleanses
On the opposite end of the spectrum, wellness culture has fueled trends like celery juice detoxes, juice cleanses, and intermittent fasting, often promoted by celebrities and influencers rather than nutritionists. Anthony William (aka Medical Medium), for example, built an empire claiming that celery juice has magical healing properties, despite a lack of scientific evidence. (Source: Anthony William, Medical Medium, 2016).
Meanwhile, Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop empire has turned pseudo-science-based detoxes and cleanses into a multi-million-dollar business, selling everything from activated charcoal to vaginal steaming—all in the name of “wellness.” (Source: Goop’s website, 2020s).
Too Much Information, Not Enough Clarity
The real problem with modern dieting is that we’re drowning in information but starving for wisdom. Every day, a new study, influencer, or “expert” contradicts the last, making it nearly impossible to know what is actually good for us. Is fat bad or good? Are carbs the enemy or essential? Should we fast or eat five meals a day? The answers change depending on who you ask—and the truth is, there is no universal “best diet”.
The Best Diet: Is No Diet at All
If history has shown us anything, it’s that humans have always obsessed over food—not just as sustenance, but as a means to achieve the perfect body, live longer, or unlock mythical health benefits. From ancient Greeks avoiding beans for spiritual purity to Victorians sipping arsenic for weight loss, we have a long tradition of chasing extreme diets in the hopes of an easy fix.
But time and time again, these trends have come and gone, often leaving damaging consequences in their wake. The Vinegar & Water Diet of Lord Byron helped popularize starvation as a beauty ideal, just as the Lucky Strike cigarette diet sold smoking as a way to curb appetite. The low-fat obsession of the 1980s flooded grocery stores with sugar-laden “diet” foods, and today’s keto and carnivore diets echo the same extreme tendencies we’ve seen for centuries.
Yet, despite all these fads, one truth has remained constant throughout history: the healthiest people weren’t the ones following the most extreme diets. The Romans ate a varied Mediterranean diet rich in grains, vegetables, and meats—they weren’t fasting themselves into oblivion. Traditional cultures across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East thrived on balanced, locally sourced diets, not on the latest health craze promoted by an influencer. Even when ancient civilizations experimented with dietary restrictions, it was rarely in pursuit of weight loss—it was for religion, philosophy, or survival.
So why, after thousands of years, are we still chasing the “perfect” diet?
The truth is, there is no single best way to eat. No magic macro ratio, no perfect fasting window, no single superfood that will make you thin, young, or disease-proof. Humans are remarkably adaptable—we’ve survived on everything from the carb-heavy diets of ancient farmers to the high-fat diets of Arctic populations. The idea that one diet is right for everyone ignores the cultural, genetic, and personal factors that shape our health.
History proves that diet fads will always exist, and there will always be someone trying to sell you the next miracle plan. But in reality, you don’t need a guru, an Instagram influencer, or a $300 meal plan to be healthy. The healthiest people throughout history weren’t the ones who drank weight-loss teas or eliminated entire food groups. They were the ones who simply ate a variety of whole foods, enjoyed their meals, and didn’t obsess over every bite.
So the next time you see a TikTok nutritionist claiming they’ve discovered the one true diet, remember:
Fad diets will fade into history. A healthy balance will last forever.