There’s nothing wrong with skipping meals or going a day or two without eating, or even a week or two without
eating, for most patients. No one ever came out of a POW camp fat. You lose weight by starving. Most patients
can live on nothing but water for a month or two, before they get into any serious metabolic trouble with muscle
wasting. This is not reasonable and not going to happen. Food is way too much fun. The reason you eat protein
on my diet, or any diet, is that protein helps minimize the loss of muscle tissue while you are losing weight. The
loss of muscle tissue is called negative nitrogen balance and happens whenever you cut calories and lose weight.
It’s unavoidable. Eating protein and exercise can help minimize negative nitrogen balance and minimize the loss of
muscle tissue while you are dieting, but any time you lose weight, your body goes into negative nitrogen balance,
and there’s nothing you can do to avoid this.