BEST DIETS RANKINGS FOR 2024 BY U.S. NEWS
Once again, it’s time for me to post the best diet rankings for the year from U.S. News. (This is the seventh year I’ve shared their rankings.) Here are excerpts from their article and lists from January 3, 2024, titled U.S. News Reveals the 2024 Best Diets.
For the seventh consecutive year, the Mediterranean Diet takes the No. 1 spot for the Best Diets Overall, with its focus on diet quality rather than a single nutrient or food group and daily consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, legumes, olive oil, herbs and spices. The Mediterranean diet also claimed the top spot in Best Diets for Diabetes, Best Heart-Healthy Diets, Easiest Diets to Follow, Best Diets for Bone & Joint Health, Best Family-Friendly Diets, and Best Diets for Healthy Living.
DASH Diet — known for fighting high blood pressure, receives praise for its nutritional completeness, safety, ability to prevent or control diabetes, and supporting heart health — comes in at No. 2 for Best Diet Overall this year. The No. 3 Best Overall diet is the MIND duet, which takes two proven diets, DASH and Mediterranean, with added focus on foods that improve brain health.
U.S. News & World Report is the global authority in health rankings and consumer advice. Partnering with The Harris Poll on the Best Diets methodology — and including input from a panel of leading health experts — this year’s rankings examine 30 diets, with six additional diets evaluated since last year’s Best Diets rankings.
“Choosing a diet can be tough. Each person has unique health considerations and goals, and there are many diets out there to choose from — and it’s hard to know which ones will actually work best for you,” said Gretel Schueller, managing editor of health at U.S. News. “That’s why U.S. News does the legwork for its users, gathering input from nationally recognized medical and nutrition experts to determine which diets rise to the top for nutritional completeness, ease of following and promoting a healthy lifestyle for the long term.”
The 2024 Best Diets rankings feature six newly evaluated diets, including the Vegan diet, which cracked the top 10 in all categories except for Best Diet Programs. Other new diets include:
U.S. News ranks diets in 11 categories: Best Diets Overall, Best Weight Loss Diets, Best Fast Weight Loss Diets, Best Diabetes Diets, Best Diets for Bone and Joint Health, Best Diets for Healthy Eating, Best Diet Programs, Best Family-Friendly Diets, Best Heart-Healthy Diets, Best Plant-Based Diets and Easiest Diets to Follow. The rankings follow a methodology devised by U.S. News in partnership with The Harris Poll, which factors in evaluations from 43 expert panelists— including medical doctors, registered dietitian nutritionists, nutritional epidemiologists, and academic weight-loss researchers.
2024 Best Diets Rankings
See the full rankings here.
Best Weight-Loss Diets
1.WeightWatchers (WW) diet
2. Mediterranean diet
3. Volumetrics diet
Best Fast Weight-Loss Diets
1. Keto diet 2. Atkins diet
3. HMR Program
Best Diabetes Diets
1. Mediterranean diet
2. DASH diet
3. Flexitarian diet
Best Diets for Bone and Joint Health
1. Mediterranean diet
2. DASH diet
3. Flexitarian diet
Best Diets for Healthy Eating
1. Mediterranean diet
2. Flexitarian diet
3. DASH diet
Best Diet Programs
1. Weight Watchers (WW) diet
2. Mayo Clinic diet
3. Noom diet
Best Family-Friendly Diets
1. Mediterranean diet
2. Flexitarian diet
3. DASH diet
Best Heart-Healthy Diets
1. Mediterranean diet
2. DASH diet
3. Ornish diet
Best Plant-Based Diets
1. Flexitarian diet
2. Mediterranean diet
3. Vegan diet
Easiest Diets to Follow
1. Mediterranean diet
2. Flexitarian diet
3. DASH diet
Those looking to choose a diet that’s right for them should consult a medical professional as part of their decision-making process.