It's the same old story: at the beginning of every new year, the newest and/or most popular diet fads make the rounds again, grabbing headlines when various celebs sing the praises of whatever nutritional trend they've discovered this time. Vegan, gluten-free and paleo plans are still incredibly popular, of course, but a new diet has recently surfaced that might be a bit more interesting to people of the lycanthropic persuasion.
I'm talking about the Lunar Diet, which has been getting heavy media coverage lately thanks to endorsements by Madonna and Demi Moore. Articles in TIME and Shape have spotted the trend, which mainly involves a schedule of fasting and cleansing based on the phases of the moon.
According to the site Moon Connection, this schedule is based around the effect the moon has on the human body, particularly when it comes to water content. There are short-term and “extended” versions of the plan, and while neither one specifically mentions hunting and devouring live prey during the full moon, the more rigorous schedule of the extended plan does remind me a bit of the “nutritional advice” documented in the book The Werewolf's Guide to Life by Ritch Duncan and Bob Powers.
I won't get into the pros and cons of this plan (some nutritionists are already calling it potentially harmful), but I can't help but picture the perfect fusion of a Lunar Diet calendar and Stephen King's novella Cycle of the Werewolf. Seriously, imagine the illustrations!