Dieting, the conscious control or restriction of the diet to lose weight, has a long and colorful history. One of the first dietitians was the English doctor George Cheyne. Because he was tremendously overweight, Cheyne began a vegetarian diet, consuming only milk and vegetables. He lost a lot of weight and soon regained his health. In 1724, he wrote a book in which he recommended fresh air and avoiding calories-rich foods to lose weight.
In 1903, U.S. President William Howard Taft pledged to slim down after he got stuck in a bathtub in the White House. In the 1950s, according to legend, the famous Greek opera singer Maria Callas dropped 65 pounds (a little more than 29 kg) on the "tapeworm diet," after swallowing a pill containing the parasite. Lord Byron, the famous English poet, popularized the "vinegar diet" in the 1820s. In order to cleanse his body he would drink plenty of vinegar and water daily.
Today, dieting to lose weight is practiced worldwide, including adolescents and young people. Although in many cases it may be good for people's health, when diets are followed in an unsupervised way — particularly by adolescents who want to be excessively slim — it can be dangerous.