Banana Diet
Background
When the Morning Banana Diet was promoted on the Japanese social networking site ‘Mixi’ in March 2008 it became so popular that it resulted in a nationwide banana shortage.
The diet was created by Hitoshi Watanabe who has studied preventative medicine and his wife Sumiko who is a pharmacist.
The Morning Banana Diet Basics
The creators of the Morning Banana Diet claim that eating only bananas and drinking room temperature water for breakfast leads to weight loss regardless of what is consumed for the rest of the day.
The diet is extremely simple and easy to follow however many Japanese have reported rapid weight loss when experimenting with this diet.
One of the reasons why the diet may work is that bananas are said to improve digestion and boost metabolism. Another possibility is that bananas are high in resistant starch, which is a type of fiber that can promote the feeling of fullness and may block the absorption of some carbohydrates.
The reason why the water has to be room temperature is not certain but many theories have been speculated on the Internet such as that it improves digestion or reduces hunger.
Dieters are also advised to eat their evening meal before 8pm and to avoid desserts after dinner. If feeling very hungry it is acceptable to have a piece of fruit.
Aside from eating bananas for breakfast and avoiding late night eating another rule of the diet is that you must go to sleep before midnight every night. The rationale behind this advice is sound as scientific studies show a relationship between sleep deprivation and obesity
At all times dieters should follow the Japanese principle of eating until only 80% full.
Dairy products and alcohol are also not allowed on this diet. In addition the only beverage that may be consumed with meals is room temperature water.
Recommended Foods
Bananas – must be raw, not cooked and not frozen.
Sample Diet Plan
| Breakfast
One or more bananas (as many as desired until full) |
| Lunch
Meal of choice |
| Afternoon Snack
A small sweet snack is allowed around 3pm if hungry |
| Dinner
Meal of choice but must be eaten before 8pm |
Low Calorie meal options can be found here.
Exercise Recommendations
Dieters are told they should exercise only if they want to.
You may want to try these exercises with the Morning Banana Diet.
Costs and Expenses
See The Morning Banana Diet Official Website
Pros
- Eating breakfast every day may increase metabolism and reduce the likelihood of overeating later in the day.
- Avoiding caffeine at breakfast may lead to more stable blood glucose levels and reduced appetite.
- Not eating after 8pm will reduce tendency for late night snacking on high calorie foods.
- Avoiding dairy products and dessert will reduce calories by limiting fat and sugar intake.
- Bananas are a nutritious food and high in fiber, vitamins B6 and C and potassium.
- Discourages overeating.
Cons
- Some dieters may not respond well to a pure carbohydrate breakfast particularly those with hypoglycemia.
- Easy for dieters to consume excess calories if they eat whatever they like for lunch and dinner.
- Does not encourage exercise.
- Does not address psychological factors involved in dieting.
Conclusions
If dieters are experiencing success on this diet it is not likely to be due to any special fat burning qualities of bananas. It is much more likely that it is related to following the other rules of the diet such as eating only at specific times of the day and avoiding desserts.
This will result in a reduction of calories that will promote weight loss so long as dieters do not consume excessive calories in their other meals.


Ripe ones
anyone thats tried this please let me know if this works
raw green bananas or the ripe ones? please reply.i need to start ASAP.
i will try it hope it works
wow…. i definatly try this diet, it’s so easy to follow!
i try this & tell u soon.this is so easy & simple.
yes!
i try this banana diet also.
i wanna try this..very easy and simple..
I’ll be trying this diet! Hopefully it works with my hour of working out per day
THIS DIET IS VERY SIMPLE TO FOLLOW AND AM WILLING TO GIVE IT A TRY TOO.
Well i have tried everything. Guess i will give it a try too. I had a gastric bypass 3 years ago. Was doing really fine until i lost my son and then food became my security blanket again. I have regained almost 20 pounds back and need to start loosing again. I really love bananas. I usually ask the fruit manager for the ones that they bag up. Hey you can get them for .99* a bag that way. So i guess i will be giving this a try in the morning. Will let yal know if it starts to work.
I hope it will work alot. I go 4 this and i wil let 2 know after a week if there a good result.i do alot exercise but i am not on diet i hate of this, i love 2 eat yummy fatty foods.
just combine this diet with the apple diet and there u go!
easy peasy.
banana 4 breakfast and apple before lunch and dinner.
Eating bananas before each meal surely makes you eat less calories.fruits always have a positive aspect on our lives.
Sounds easy enough. We’ll try it this week.
do you do this every day ?
will try this diet asap. I weigh 128 lbs now.Hope this Banana diet works.
I guarantee it works. Almost 30 years ago my best friend lost more than 80 pounds on a banana diet and has stayed slim ever since. I have been recommending it to many people through the years and it always seems to work.
hey all i wanted to try this and i will tom.
dose anyone know if i can loose 80 pouns on this ??
and how much pounds will i lose a week?
I did this for 2 weeks, lost 20 pounds. But I eat the Saba (local variety), boiled, about 2-3 bananas for breakfast.
Mostly my food for those two weeks were boiled sweet potatoes, boiled egg (white only), lots of greens, nuts, fruits especially (turnips, watermelon, oranges), coffee, grilled porkchops without the fatty portion, chicken, fish, vinegar.
For exercise, I bike whenever there’s opportunity, dance to sweat, just a little weight lifting for the arms.
i’m on this diet right now, and honestly if you do a little bit of excercise, it’ll be easier for you to notice some kind of weight loss
Caan someonee please email me saying if this works ?
<3
hi .. everyone :] i want to try this .. hey anna ?? is this true ? because i read your comments so i thought it works well good luck .. i hope this is really good banana in the morning .. thanks for the one who upload it. :] more powers :]
i am currently into this diet…. but i prefer to eat cooked bananas…. i guess i’ll just have to eat them raw then… i noticed that i do lose weight so i guess it does work… i just have a problem with sleeping before 12md cause i work at night….
and the thing is, when i go home i just sleep. so i dont take my lunch. and i take dinner only when im in the office which is past 12md already…
how long does it really take before one loses weight? i guess that depends on a lot if things…
Well I drink coffee every day. that I will not stop. I am an addict to coffee!
But I will try eating a banana every morning, with lukewarm water, plus the diet I am on(low cal diet) SO this diet doesn’t really ruin the diet I am on. But it’s nice to know there is something that can boost my metabolism-a food that I happen to LOVE (bananas) I will post my results if I get any.
i can’t eat bananas by themselves only in a smoothie or like bread
Funny, My husband did this diet completely unintentionally without knowing it was a “diet”. He just really likes banana’s. Although he drank coffee, and didn’t go to bed before 12. But he lost 20lbs..So I guess it works. He tried to get me to do this. But I hate banana’s so much that I won’t go near my kids after eating them until my husband wipes the banana smell off their hands and face…
hi everybody. does anybody know if this works? and is it only working if your obese? please answer! thanks!
Does it really work..
this was put together perfectly . very easy to read.