Kate Middleton had all the eyes of the world on her when she walked up the aisle to marry Prince William back in 2011. There were many reports at the time that the Princess of Wales was following the controversial Dukan diet in the lead-up to her royal wedding.
However, royal biographer Katie Nicholl appeared on ITV’s Loose Women in March 2011 to dispel those rumours and set the record straight.
Former panellist Sherrie Hewson asked Ms Nicholl: “Take us to the wedding, now is it true that [Kate’s] losing all this weight, let’s get that clear for a start?”
The royal commentator replied: “Well I’m told that actually, she’s trying hard to put weight on. She’s losing it because, as you were talking about wedding planners earlier, they don’t have a wedding planner!
“They are doing this entirely on their own. So Kate’s been checking out hotels, tasting menus, and booking florists,” to which moderator Andrea McLean added, “Like a normal couple!”
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Ms Nicholl continued: “You know what happens when you get married, literally you don’t need to go on a diet because you drop that weight because you’re so anxious all the time!”
It was reported at the time that the Princess was following the Dukan diet leading up to her big day. The opposite of a longevity diet, the Dukan diet is a high-protein, low-carb French diet favoured by many Hollywood celebrities, among them Jennifer Lopez.
The Dukan diet involves four stages: attack, cruise, consolidation, and stabilisation. In the “attack” stage, you have to eat only protein — no fruits and not even vegetables — for four to six days. Next, in the “cruise” phase, you are allowed vegetables on some days.
Then, the “consolidation” phase brings back some fruits, carbohydrates, and cheese, along with two “celebratory” meals a week. How long phases two and three last depends on how much weight you want to lose.
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Then, for the rest of your lifetime, you are meant to do “stabilisation,” which requires doing the “attack” mode once a week.
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Dietitian and nutritionist Susie Burrell called the diet “simply a high-protein plan initially followed by the gradual reintroduction of a small amount of wholegrain carbs and plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables”.
The Dukan diet originated in France and was devised by French doctor Pierre Dukan.
The diet’s creators say you can lose around seven to 10 pounds in the first five days alone following the Dukan diet.
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But France’s National Agency for Food, Environmental and Work Health Safety has called it risky.
In addition, the British Dietetic Association called it one of the five “worst diets” of the year 2011 after it made the news in the lead-up to Kate’s royal wedding.
The Dukan diet, therefore, did not appear to get rave reviews from many health experts back in the early 2010s.
However, due to its association with Kate Middleton, the Dukan diet is the ninth most popular diet in the world, raking in 60,000 annual Google search results.
Other celebrities associated with the Dukan diet include Welsh singer Katherine Jenkins, who has regularly championed the diet.
The diet with the most Google searches in the world with 1,200,000 global searches is Intermittent Fasting.
The Princess of Wales has often been referred to as a sporty royal, often being pictured getting involved on the Tennis courts and various outdoor activities.
According to Google search data, monthly searches for “Kate Middleton diet” receive over 4,400 results worldwide.
Source: Daily Express | Diet
