The cabbage soup diet: does it actually work, what can you realistically expect to lose, and is it safe?

In our series looking at diets that are generating conversation among Australians trying to shift weight in their 60s, we turn today to one of the oldest and most enduring: the cabbage soup diet. It has been circulating since the 1980s under various names – the Sacred Heart Diet, the Wonder Soup Diet, the Military Diet – and it keeps coming back because, for one week at least, it tends to do what it promises.

Whether that makes it a good idea is a rather different question.

What is the cabbage soup diet and how does it work?

The concept is straightforward. The cabbage soup diet is a short-term, low-calorie eating plan centred around unlimited servings of a specific vegetable soup made primarily from cabbage, broth and non-starchy vegetables. It typically lasts seven days and follows a strict daily food schedule.

Because cabbage soup is very low in calories, there is no limit to how much a person may consume while following this diet. While following the cabbage soup diet, individuals can eat as much cabbage soup as they want, along with unsweetened, low calorie drinks such as herbal tea and black coffee.

The diet works, to the extent that it does, through simple calorie restriction. The soup itself is extremely low in calories, often under 100 calories per bowl depending on ingredients. Because cabbage and vegetables are high in fibre and water, they create fullness with minimal energy intake.

The seven-day plan

At certain points throughout the week, a person may add other low-calorie foods back into the diet as follows:

Day 1: cabbage soup and raw fruits but no bananas.

Day 2: cabbage soup and cooked or raw vegetables but no potatoes.

Day 3: cabbage soup and raw, low-fat fruits and vegetables but no potatoes or bananas.

Day 4: cabbage soup, skim milk and no more than eight bananas.

Day 5: cabbage soup, six tomatoes and lean beef, pork, fish or chicken.

Day 6: cabbage soup, unlimited vegetables but no potatoes, and unlimited lean protein.

Day 7: cabbage soup, sugar-free fruit juice and brown rice.

It is, by any measure, a repetitive week. By day four, most people report being tired of soup. That said, the structure is simple enough that most people can follow it without complicated meal planning or expensive ingredients.

What can a 100kg person realistically expect to lose?

Most individuals report losing between 2 and 5 kilograms in seven days. However, much of this initial loss is water weight rather than pure body fat.

For someone weighing 100 kilograms, a realistic expectation is three to four kilograms – with the important caveat that a meaningful proportion of that is fluid rather than fat. When carbohydrates and calories are severely restricted, the body depletes its glycogen stores and releases the water bound to them. The weight is real. The fat loss behind it is more modest.

One person who has tested the diet three separate times between 2022 and 2025 reported losing between 3 – to – 4 kilograms each time, with the most recent attempt in December 2025 resulting in 4 kilograms lost over the week. They noted that returning immediately to previous eating habits saw most of it regained within two weeks, while following the diet with a controlled transition to lean proteins and vegetables helped maintain more of the results longer term.

This is the consistent pattern with the cabbage soup diet: the results at the end of the week are real, but they depend heavily on what comes next.

Is it suitable for Australians in their 60s?

This is where honesty matters most – and where a conversation with your GP before starting is genuinely important rather than a standard disclaimer.

There are reasons older Australians find this diet appealing. It is cheap, the rules are simple, the ingredients are ordinary supermarket staples and the short time frame – just one week – feels manageable in a way that longer commitments often don’t. For someone who wants a reset before an event, or a circuit-breaker from a dietary pattern that isn’t working, it can provide exactly that.

But the cabbage soup diet is a fad diet without scientific research to support its safety or effectiveness. It carries health risks and drawbacks, some of which can be severe. People should never follow the diet for longer than one week.

For people in their 60s specifically, several cautions apply. The very low calorie intake – generally far fewer than 1,000 calories per day during the first three days – is a significant reduction that can cause fatigue, dizziness and light-headedness, particularly for anyone on blood pressure medication or managing diabetes, where dietary changes can interact with medication in unpredictable ways. Because the diet provides so few calories, people following it should not exercise during the week – their bodies simply will not have enough caloric energy to healthily expend during physical activity. For older Australians for whom regular movement is important for bone density, muscle preservation and cardiovascular health, a week without exercise is itself a consideration.

The high sodium content of many cabbage soup recipes is also worth noting for anyone managing blood pressure or heart conditions.

The recipe

Here is the classic cabbage soup, with enough flavour to make a week of it bearable:

The classic seven-day diet soup – high in fibre, very low in calories and genuinely more flavourful than its reputation suggests. Make a large batch at the start of the week and refrigerate.

Servings 8

Ingredients

1 large head green cabbage, roughly chopped
6 cups cups chicken or vegetable stock (low sodium)
400 grams tin diced tomatoes
3 stalks celery, sliced
3 medium carrots, sliced
1 large onion, diced
2 red or green capsicum, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoons tbsp olive oil
1 teaspoons tsp dried oregano
1 teaspoons tsp dried basil
0.5 teaspoons tsp red chilli flakes (optional)
1 pinch salt and pepper to taste
2 cups cups water, added as needed

Method

1 Soften the vegetables: Heat 1 tablespoons tbsp olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add 1 large onion, diced, 3 stalks celery, sliced and 2 red or green capsicum, diced. Cook for 5–6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and beginning to colour.

2 Add garlic and spices: Add 4 garlic cloves, minced and cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Add 1 teaspoons tsp dried oregano, 1 teaspoons tsp dried basil and 0.5 teaspoons tsp red chilli flakes (optional) if using.

3 Add stock and tomatoes: Pour in 6 cups cups chicken or vegetable stock (low sodium) and add 400 grams tin diced tomatoes, 3 medium carrots, sliced and 3 stalks celery, sliced. Stir well and bring to the boil.

4 Add the cabbage: Add 1 large head green cabbage, roughly chopped to the pot – it will seem like too much but will wilt down considerably within a few minutes. Add 2 cups cups water, added as needed if needed to ensure everything is submerged. Stir well.

5 Simmer until tender: Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 20–23 minutes until the cabbage is completely tender and the flavours have come together. Season generously with 1 pinch salt and pepper to taste. Taste and adjust — it can take more seasoning than you expect.

6Serve and store: Ladle into bowls and eat as much as you like throughout the day. Store remaining soup in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to five days, or freeze in portions.

Tips

This soup keeps well in the fridge for up to five days and freezes beautifully – make a double batch on day one and freeze half for the second half of the week. To prevent flavour fatigue across seven days, consider making three variations: a spiced version with cumin and turmeric, an Asian version with ginger and a splash of soy sauce, or a heartier version on protein days with a cup of shredded cooked chicken stirred through. Each bowl of this soup contains approximately 60–90 calories depending on how much oil and stock is used.

Tipping the Scales

The cabbage soup diet delivers what it promises for most people who follow it strictly: a meaningful drop on the scales in seven days, reduced bloating and a sense of having reset eating habits. For someone who needs a short-term jump-start before committing to a longer-term approach, it can genuinely be that.

What it is not – and what no honest account of it can claim it to be – is a sustainable weight loss strategy. Health authorities recommend gradual weight loss of one to two pounds per week for sustainability. This approach works best as a short-term reset rather than a permanent eating strategy.

For Australians in their 60s, the message is consistent with the advice for any restrictive short-term diet: talk to your GP first, particularly if you are managing any health conditions or taking regular medications. Follow it for no more than seven days. And plan carefully for what comes after the week ends — because that transition, far more than the week itself, determines whether the results last.

DAY ONE: The Carnivore Diet