If you thought today's weight loss trends are the most weird and unhealthy, think again. Weight loss pills, paleo diet, and Atkins don't come close to the wacky devices and methods that we had back in the day.
If you don't believe me, just check out the insane trends below:
1. The Cotton Ball Diet
It's a little hard to stomach, but back in 2013 people were so desperate to shed pounds that they started soaking cotton balls in liquids such as juice and eating them so they would feel full without having to eat a meal.
2. Tape Worms
Yes, parasites can make you lose weight, but it certainly isn't the healthy way to go about it (think stomach pain, bacterial infections, etc). In the 20th century, women were told they could eat as much as they wanted without putting on the pounds if they ate "jar-packed, easy to swallow tape worms."
3. Wonder Sauna Hot Pants
In 1972, a Spiegel Christmas Catalog featured a new weight loss aid called "Wonder Sauna Hot Pants", which were designed to "slenderize" problem areas by forcing you to sweat and drop some water weight. If excessive sweating actually made people lose weight, we'd all be skinny all summer long.
4. Reducing Records
Wallace Records came up with the genius idea of using music to help women lose weight. The ad even featured a testimonial to back up the claims that in just 7 days you can lose weight with Wallace's "Get Thin To Music" program. How does it work? No clue. You'll have to mail in the postpaid coupon to find out.
5. Vision Dieter Glasses
The creators of these Vision-Dieter glasses were probably high on a psychedelic when they came up with the idea. It was the 1970s after all. The Arkansas-based makers claim that these goggle-like eye glasses helped people lose weight by making food on the shelves of the grocery stores appear less appealing. Secondly, the blue and brown shades were a "secret European color technology" that is supposed to keep a person from feeling hungry.
If you think these are weird, wait until you read the rest of the gimmicks on the list.
6. The Vibrating Belt
Machine-assisted hip and thigh shaking is apparently all you needed in the 1950s to lose all the extra inches. As surprising as it may be, these machines haven't faded into obscurity just yet. They can still be purchased today, but don't expect a money back guarantee.
7. Reducing-Aid Cigarettes
Somehow these "clinically tested" and "harmless" weight loss cigarettes managed to get approved and made it on the shelves for a while before the FDA banned them in 1958. Trim supposedly could help you lose 20 pounds in just eight weeks by "drying" your mouth and shrinking your tissues. The catch? You gotta smoke one three times a day.
8. The Spot Reducer
The creators of the spot reducer were so confident in their product that they offered interested parties a 10-day free trial. The device works like a massage and helps "break down fatty tissues" without any health risks. So believable!
9. "Fat-reducing" Soaps
Who needs to excercise and diet when you can just a buy a soap that will "wash away pounds of fat, double chins and years of age?" Apparently, women in the 1920s, to whom companies like La-Mar marketed "fat-reducing" products.
