Carbohydrates: People assume that bread, pasta and potatoes make the body store excess fat.
Celeb quitters: "Celebrity Big Brother" star Sam Faiers went from a size 10 to a size 8 after ditching carbohydrates.
Pros: There's evidence that avoiding carbohydrates can help the body to burn fat stores. Swedish research found that low carbohydrate diets were better than low fat diets for weight loss.
Cons: Experts have found that people who cut out carbohydrates completely perform worse in mental tests. There is also evidence that people on low-carbohydrate diets have higher rates of heart disease and strokes.
