The Three-Hour Diet: myth or miracle?

It sounds like a dieter's dream, but what exactly is meant by the Three-Hour Diet and, more importantly, does it work?

No banned foods, no carb or calorie counting and a guaranteed weight loss of 2lbs a week. In fact, the only proviso is that you must eat every three hours. Sound too good to be true?

How it works

The latest dieting fad from across the pond comes courtesy of US celebrity trainer Jorge Cruise, who currently has three million Americans on his plan. It works on the basis that timing is everything - when you eat, as opposed to what you eat.

Cruise, who made his name with the best-selling 8 Minutes In The Morning fitness books, claims that the 3-Hour Diet works by continuously resetting the body's metabolism, making it store less - and burn more - fat. By eating at the correct times, he contends, you turn off your body's 'starvation protection mechanism', which protects fat supplies. This encourages the body to burn fat instead of muscle tissue. He continues, 'By going more than three hours between meals, the body turns on its natural starvation protection mechanism and starts to burn muscle. By eating every three hours, your metabolism stays revved and your body burns fat instead of muscle.'

No such thing as a free lunch

Although the book's great claim is that you can eat anything you want, including chocolate, cakes and hamburgers, the all-important caveat for this diet to work effectively are the dreaded words 'portion control'.

Followers of the diet are encouraged to eat a small or medium-sized meal of their choice every three hours - and are promised that they will lose at least 2lbs a week. A standard day involves six meals - breakfast, lunch and dinner, with two snacks sandwiched between (of 100 calories), and a treat before bed (of a rather measly 50 calories). Brigid McKevith of the British Nutrition Foundation, says, 'It's an interesting concept, but for some people there's the danger of eating far too much, which kind of defeats the object. Lots of fruit and veg are the key to this, I think.'

Will it shift the weight?

The answer is yes, but it's not a miracle-worker. As with every other sensible diet, to achieve weight loss you do have to watch the amount you eat and up your intake of fresh fruit and vegetables.