The Alarming Diet Trends of Silicon Valley

The Alarming Diet Trends of Silicon Valley

Silicon Valley is the technology haven found in the southern San Francisco Bay area of California. It is home to many start-up and global technology companies. Some of its most impressive companies to originate there include Facebook, Apple and Google.

What is astounding about Silicon Valley is not only the technological advancements that come from there, but also the various fad diets that residents rely upon. Many strange trends are undertaken for the sake of health and wellness.

Some Diets Appear Reasonable

Some diets seem rather practical, with the “Keto Diet” proving to be rather popular. Ketogenesis is a state where the body uses fat as a main source of fuel. The diet itself mainly involves eating foods that are high in healthy fats and protein whilst keeping carbohydrate consumption low. Additionally, the Keto Diet is very effective in controlling diabetes.

Other Silicon Valley Diets Are Questionable

Although some diets seem reasonable, there are still those that are rather questionable and potentially dangerous. For example, one resident of Silicon Valley uses his own “immortality diet”. This involves spending thousands of dollars per day on supplements and relying on whole grain carbs.

Other diets rely very heavily on intermittent fasting, with some people extending their fasts for as long as eight days in a row. Some people insist on consuming supplements and protein shakes of their own design. All the while, these people insist that they are happy, fulfilled and doing what is best for their body.

Dangerous Diets

The more dangerous and worrying diets include the use of a meal replacement drink called Soylent, which has caused controversy when customers began vomiting after consuming the drink. Nevertheless, the formula has been altered and it will be on sale for public consumption in the US.

One individual went on a ten day fast using only “raw water” which is supplied by the company Live Water. Raw Water is when water is consumed directly from springs and streams, without any filtering or treatment. However, nutritionists have explicitly warned that untreated, unfiltered water can contain animal faeces and a wealth of other health risks including: E. coli, parasites, Hepatitis A and Cholera.

Trying to Become Invincible

Those who reside in Silicon Valley have been described as “a group of highly motivated and entitled people who think anything can be reverse engineered”. The diets that they use each day are believed to improve health and longevity. It comes with a mindset that these people could potentially make themselves invincible.

A Sense of Community

Furthermore, these fad diets provide somewhat of a social aspect to them. Many people working at Silicon Valley have moved away from their family and friends to work in an intense, highly pressured environment. Essentially, the loss of a support system can be destabilising.

Although these groups of fad dieters may seem odd to others, for them it’s a sort of community of like minded people that can offer the missing support. Food is often the source of social gatherings, but there are better ways of establishing friendship groups without the need to take on a diet that creates an unhealthy and potentially dangerous relationship with food.

 

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