ST LOUIS (KMOX) - If one of your New Year's resolutions was to lose weight, U.S. News and World Report might be able to help. It's out with its list of the best diets for 2020.
The best overall diet -- for the third year in a row -- is the Mediterranean Diet. The Mediterranean Diet also took the top spot in four other lists: Best Diets for Healthy Eating, Easiest Diets to Follow, Best Diets for Diabetes and Best Plant-Based Diets.
"I really love this diet," said registered dietician Jessica Stafford with SSM Health St. Joseph Hospital - Lake St. Louis. "Unlike other diets that tell you to restrict or to limit things, the Mediterranean Diet really wants you to eat a wide variety of healthy foods -- including fruits, vegetables and whole grains. It encourages you to use heart healthy oils like olive oil. It encourages you to eat fish and seafood at least twice a week. It doesn't tell you to stay away from anything. It encourages you to choose foods that are low in sugar and to limit your meat."
The DASH Diet comes in tied for the second best overall diet.
"DASH stands for Dieting Approaches to Stop Hypertension," Stafford tells KMOX. "It was a diet developed to help people who had high blood pressure learn how to manage their blood pressure through food and nutrition. It's very similar to the Mediterranean Diet. Again, the focus is going to be on fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low fat dairy. The difference is it really encourages you to chose those lower sodium foods, lower salt foods."
The DASH Diet tied with the Flexitarian Diet for second best overall diet.
"The Flexitarian Diet is another great diet," said Stafford. "The Flexitarian Diet again is very similar to the Mediterranean Diet and the DASH Diet. Again, you are eating a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. But the Flexitarian Diet encourages you to try and choose plant-based proteins more often."
WW -- or Weight Watchers -- continues to hold the number one spot for the best commercial diet.
"The focus with WW is improving your well being by eating health foods," Stafford said. "It uses a point system to help you manage what you eat. The really great thing about WW is that they have workshops and they have an app -- so there's a lot of support. It's really a built-in community to help you meet your health goals."
Jenny Craig and the Nutritarian Diet were the second and third best commercial diets.
The Best Heart Health Diet is the Ornish Diet. The Best Fast Weight-Loss Diet is the HMR Diet.