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Diet on cabbage: reviews and results
Last reviewed: 03.07.2025

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Cabbage, which occupies a place of honor on the tables of many nations, is not just tasty and healthy, like most vegetables. It is well suited to heat treatment, pickling and fermentation, and is eaten fresh. All types of the plant contain substances that promote weight loss. This property is the basis of various cabbage diet methods designed to normalize weight and improve the health of the body.
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Indications
Initially, the cabbage diet was created for patients who had undergone major surgeries. Today, the main indication for the diet is excess weight. When choosing a scheme, it is important to first decide what task you are setting, that is, how many kilograms you want to lose. And also - whether there are any contraindications for this method of nutrition.
In addition to weight loss, such a diet helps cleanse the intestines of toxins, saturate with useful components, and improve the overall health of the body.
- There are variants of soft and hard diets of different duration. The hard one suggests "sitting" only on salads, the soft one allows combining different types of cabbage with meat and vegetables. The menu is supplemented with sauerkraut. In both cases, alcohol, high-calorie and harmful food are excluded.
Cabbage preserves vitamins for a long time, so you can prescribe a cabbage diet in any season. And if we talk about pickled vegetables, then the amount of, for example, vitamin C in it increases several times, which is a sin not to use in the winter, for which, in fact, kvashenina is prepared.
Exotic varieties such as kohlrabi, savoy, broccoli are available if not fresh, then frozen, from them you can also prepare quite a variety of dishes. A creative approach will help everyone not only to use ready-made recipes, but also to come up with their own.
Cabbage is indicated for lowering sugar levels, improving the functioning of the liver, kidneys, stomach, eliminating joint and headaches, gout, mastopathy, increased nervousness, apathy.
It is not recommended to use a purely cabbage diet for more than two weeks. Then you can continue to eat cabbage, but gradually supplement the diet with more caloric ingredients.
Cabbage Diet for Weight Loss
Due to the popularity of cabbage, a huge number of dishes are prepared from it - salads, appetizers, hot dishes; it goes well with meat, cereals, other vegetables, sour cream, lean oil, sauces. Among them, there are enough recipes that will suit lovers of the cabbage diet.
The amount of vegetables is not limited, especially if a person feels hungry. Drinking is important: you need to drink at least 2 liters of green tea and water per day. It is recommended to start the morning with coffee, the function of which is to speed up metabolism.
The cabbage diet for weight loss also involves prohibitions, in particular, on the following products:
- salt;
- sugar;
- all types of alcoholic beverages;
- flour dishes;
- sweet pastries.
Sauerkraut contains many minerals and vitamins that strengthen the immune system. Daily consumption of sour vegetables for weight loss perfectly eliminates toxins and waste. There are known facts when people lost up to 7 kg in three days, eating sauerkraut instead of lunch.
A properly organized cabbage diet allows you to lose six kilograms of weight in 10 days. For variety, dishes are prepared from different types: cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Savoy cabbage. This diet option can last for different periods: 3, 5, 7, 10 days, 2 weeks or a month.
- Classic diet – up to 10 days. Then it is better to take a break. You should switch to a normal diet gradually, without overeating high-calorie food, which can again be stored in reserve.
In general, there is a rule that the shorter the diet, the higher the probability of weight return. Therefore, express weight loss is recommended only when you urgently need to put on your favorite clothes. Long-term diets give a slow but more reliable effect, without harm to the body, taking into account the individual characteristics of the body.
Benefits
Cabbage is a low-calorie vegetable rich in vitamins, minerals and fiber, which helps cleanse the body. All varieties are suitable for the cabbage diet, but white cabbage is used most often. The benefits of the diet will increase if, in addition to fresh vegetables, you eat sauerkraut twice a week.
- The main effect of the cabbage mono-diet is weight loss. It is also important that with the right approach, the lost kilograms do not return after the end of the diet.
Plant fibers perfectly cleanse the intestines and normalize digestion. Cabbage has a positive effect on the kidneys and liver. More effort is spent on its processing than is supplied to the body, due to which the result is noticeable in a few days.
Scientists never cease to be amazed, discovering new properties of the miracle vegetable. They claim that cabbage can even slow down the development of cancer processes. It is recommended for gastritis, high sugar, colds, back pain, gout, mastopathy. The leaves are used for headaches, they reduce stress and apathy.
What can and what can not?
What can you eat on a cabbage diet, in addition to the main vegetable? The list of permitted foods includes carrots, onions, lean fish, meat, and chicken in small quantities. At night, a serving of kefir or fruit (without grapes or bananas). Cabbage must be fresh and high-quality, and its quantity is not limited.
- During the cabbage diet, it is especially important to maintain a fluid balance. Ideally, drink 2 liters daily: 1.5 liters of quality water and at least 0.5 liters of juice and green tea.
To stimulate metabolic processes in the morning, unsweetened coffee is recommended. According to some nutritionists, coffee on an empty stomach is harmful; they advise eating oatmeal cooked in water without sweetening beforehand, and only then indulge in the invigorating drink.
In order not to break the cabbage diet, it is important to know what you should not eat?
- Products that slow down metabolism and are stored as fat are taboo.
- Alcohol, soda, flour, baked goods, fatty foods, canned goods are extra calories for the body.
- Hot spices, high-calorie sauces, and dressings (mayonnaise, sour cream) are excluded.
Contraindications
Before switching to a cabbage diet, you should consult a doctor to ensure there are no contraindications. Cabbage can have a negative effect on the gastrointestinal tract and cause an exacerbation of digestive problems. Therefore, patients with gastrointestinal problems, kidney problems, high obesity, and diabetics are at risk.
- The diet is prohibited for pregnant women and children under 14 years of age.
It is necessary to exit the diet carefully, so as not to harm the body. First, add an egg or a piece of chicken to breakfast and lunch. For dinner, instead of cabbage salad, eat something else. Introduce sweets and salty foods delicately, so that the body has time to adapt.
To avoid regaining excess weight after the cabbage diet, you need to stick to a balanced diet and calorie balance for a longer period of time.
Possible risks
When following a strict cabbage diet, the body receives a minimum of carbohydrates, which causes fatigue, indifference, decreased performance, depression. Reaction and attention deteriorate, headaches occur. In this way, the body demonstrates "dissatisfaction" with the fact that it is forced to spend energy stored for future use.
- The risks associated with diet should be taken into account by drivers and people in other professions who use equipment and machinery in their work.
The lack of fats has an adverse effect on reproductive cells and brain function, so you should take breaks from the cabbage diet. And some experts believe that in general it should not be followed more often than once a year. Moreover, after a week the body begins to use muscle mass as energy material, which is why the body loses elasticity and becomes flabby.
There are risks of diet failure caused by monotony of the menu. To prevent this, it is necessary to diversify the diet as much as possible, and to take pharmaceutical preparations to compensate for the lack of vitamins. And to mobilize your own willpower to overcome all the risks associated with the diet.
Reviews and results
In their reviews and results, people who have tried the cabbage diet give positive examples of weight loss: they lose 12-18 kg per month, 6 kg per week. From their own experience, they are convinced that the expected result is accelerated by taking vitamins and active physical exercise.
It is popular among adherents of various weight loss methods because it is short-term and inexpensive, and the main ingredient can be eaten in large quantities, filling the stomach and suppressing hunger. Many programs also include other low-calorie products. After weighing all the pros and cons, everyone can choose their own version of health improvement using ordinary cabbage.