Coffee loophole weight loss trend will ‘wreak havoc’ on your body, doctor warns

TikTok is filled with countless health ‘gurus’, ‘hacks’, recipes and tips, but not all of them can be trusted, as one doctor has now revealed. The latest weight loss trend taking the social media app by storm is the Coffee Loophole diet.

It started with some influencers claiming they’d lost weight by drinking black coffee instead of eating whenever they had cravings or became hungry. The trend soon spiralled with countless content creators saying adding specific ingredients would speed up the weight loss process.

This ranged from adding cinnamon and cayenne pepper to apple cider vinegar and lemon juice into their black coffee. Paired with before-and-after snaps, these claims can be very convincing but Dr Masarat Jilani from Jude has warned it will “wreak havoc on your health and well-being”.

READ MORE: Doctor explains why you should never have coffee first thing in the morning

READ MORE: Urgent warning as change 'increases heart attack and stroke risk'

While black coffee is known to be a genuine appetite suppressant, the expert highlighted the first “red flag” that a health trend is “dangerous” is the claims it will help you ignore hunger pangs. The doctor explained: “Hunger pangs are your body's way of signalling that it needs nourishment. If you ignore these signals, you deprive your body of the energy it needs to function properly.

“Over time, this will lead to fatigue, brain fog, and mood swings as your blood sugar levels drop. Responding to hunger pangs with coffee (even if it’s full of healthy spices) instead of food is a diet hack that belongs in 1974 and has no place in 2024.”

She warned that following diet trends like this could even be a “slippery slope” to disordered eating and can result in nutrient deficiencies, dehydration or bladder irritation as a surplus of black coffee has its own downsides.

On top of that, replacing food with coffee over time can result in nutrient deficiencies, dehydration, and bladder irritation. Instead, Dr Jilani recommended: “A low-fat Greek yoghurt, a boiled egg with a slice of wholemeal toast, or hummus with some chopped veggies are far better options."