Dukan diet
No controlled trials of the Dukan diet were located. In an interview study of 51 women on the diet, average weight loss was about 15 kg after 8 to 10 weeks, protein intake was above nutrition standards, and vitamin C and folate intakes were low. One case report describes ketoacidosis with severe vomiting two days after starting.
- Status
- A commercial diet program, not a regulated product.
- Also called
- Dukan, Dukan Diet, Dukan method
- Followed for
- weight loss
Strong several reviews agree · Moderate one review or consistent trials · Limited one or a few small studies · Untested no study in people, listed with what it rests on
Shown to help1
Reported risks3
- LimitedLimited evidence: one interview study found low vitamin C intake in women on the diet.
- LimitedLimited evidence: one interview study found low folate intake in women on the diet.
- LimitedCase reports: a 42-year-old woman had 10 hours of intractable vomiting from ketoacidosis 2 days after starting the diet.
What people follow it for, and what was found
Shown to help1
Weight loss
Limited evidence: in an interview study of 51 women on the diet, average weight loss was about 15 kg after 8 to 10 weeks.
Compared with no comparison group [1]
The numbers and sources
- Effect
- Women's average weight reduction after 8 to 10 weeks of dieting was about 15 kg [1].
- Population
- 51 women aged 19 to 64 following the diet, interviewed individually. Observational, with no comparison group [1].
- Sources
- [1]
- Caveats
- One small study with no control group. The abstract does not say how weight was measured or how many people started and stopped [1].
How trials defined it
No trial has tested the diet. In the one dietary study, women described typical menus from each phase of the diet, and intake was estimated with a national food photograph album. Protein intake, mostly from animal foods, was above nutrition standards, and carbohydrate intake was low because of low fruit and vegetable intake [1].
Risks
Reported risks3
Vitamin C
Limited evidence: one interview study found low vitamin C intake in women on the diet.
Folate
Limited evidence: one interview study found low folate intake in women on the diet.
Ketoacidosis
Case reports: a 42-year-old woman had 10 hours of intractable vomiting from ketoacidosis 2 days after starting the diet.
The numbers and sources
- Effect
- A 42-year-old woman with no prior medical problems presented with 10 hours of intractable nausea and vomiting from ketoacidosis 2 days after starting the Dukan Diet [2].
- Population
- One case report [2].
- Sources
- [2]
- Caveats
- A single case. The authors describe ketoacidosis from this kind of diet as rare [2].
Supplements to consider
The nutrients research linked to this diet running short, each with its own page.
Vitamin C
Limited Limited evidence: one interview study found low vitamin C intake in women on the diet.
Folate
Limited Limited evidence: one interview study found low folate intake in women on the diet.
Sources
- Wyka J, Malczyk E, Misiarz M, et al. Assessment of food intakes for women adopting the high protein Dukan diet. Roczniki Panstwowego Zakladu Higieny. 2015. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26024402/
- Freeman TF, Willis B, Krywko DM. Acute intractable vomiting and severe ketoacidosis secondary to the Dukan Diet©. The Journal of Emergency Medicine. 2014. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jemermed.2014.06.020