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These Are The 7 Diets Nutritionists Say You Should Follow In 2018

There was a tie for the No. 1 spot.

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Every year, U.S. News & World Report asks around two dozen health experts to rank the top 40 diets. Here are the ones that rose to the top of the list.

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Dish, Food, Cuisine, Salad, Greek salad, Ingredient, Vegetable, Feta, Produce, Waldorf salad,

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DASH Diet

Yogurt With Berries
Getty Images

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute promotes this way of eating to prevent and lower high blood pressure. It suggests you cut back on saturated fats, cholesterol, and trans fats, and up the amount of potassium, calcium, protein, and fiber in your diet. That means loading up on whole grains, low-fat dairy, fruit, and fish. 

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Mediterranean Diet

mediterranean fish dinner
Glenn Koenig

The Mediterranean Diet moved from the No. 2 position in 2017 to sharing the top spot with the DASH Diet. It's touted for helping with weight loss, as well as heart and brain health, cancer prevention, and diabetes control and prevention. Plus, you're tasked with eating meals that'll put you in a vacation mindset. Grab anything you'd find at an oceanside restaurant in Greece: fish, olives, nuts, whole grains.

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Flexitarian Diet

quinoa salad
Chelsea Lupkin

Flexible + vegetarian = Flexitarian. In other words, these are the veg-heads that won't drive you crazy with their incredibly strict diets. The goal is to have your meals revolve around plant-based proteins instead of animal ones. There are generally five food groups foods should stick to: New "meats", like tofu, lentils, and eggs; fruits and veggies; whole grains; dairy; and sugar and spice, which includes salad dressing and dried herbs.

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5

Weight Watchers

delish-weight-watchers
Jordan Strauss

Counting points sounds tedious, but don't knock it 'til you try it. Weight Watchers has been around for decades (even Oprah is a fan), and with the launch of its new Freestyle program, you can eat almost anything in moderation. People who follow the plan are told they can lose around two pounds every week.

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MIND Diet

berry salad
The Washington Post

This diet's meant to target brain health, and it's a combination of two others on this list: MIND stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay. There are five food groups to avoid — red meat, butter, cheese, sweets, and fried food — and 10 good-for-your-brain ones to focus on: green leafy vegetables, all other veggies, nuts, berries, beans, whole grains, fish, poultry, olive oil and wine. (Yes, wine!)

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7

TLC Diet

chicken breast
Lisa Wiltse

Anyone who's looking to lower their cholesterol should consider the TLC Diet. The creators of the plan claim your bad LDL cholesterol could drop 8 to 10 percent in six weeks. You'll need to cut back on foods high in saturated fat, including whole milk dairy, anything fried, and fatty meat. What you should eat: lean proteins, like fish, turkey, or skinless chicken; produce; and whole grains.

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Volumetrics Diet

Vegetables Peas
Getty Images

The idea behind this weight loss plan is that the amount of food you eat doesn't have to change, but the food's calories-per-gram should decrease. Anything low in calories is referred to as low-density, and it helps you feel full and satisfied as you diet. Meals revolving around fruits and veggies, broth-based soups, and low-fat meats are ideal.

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