A History of New Year’s Diet Resolutions

New Year’s Diet Resolutions: It’s that time of year when humanity has to ghost those carbs.

Clean out the crime scene from those refrigerators! Did someone say carbs? Oh no! They are still hanging out in my kitchen. Bread is officially public enemy #1. Be gone, sugar! A relative announces they’re “doing dry January”. Is that a thing?

Amid New Year’s diet resolutions, the idea of resetting your eating habits isn’t novel — not even close. New Year’s diet resolutions are thousands of years old. We’ve swapped offerings to the gods and barley beer for calorie trackers, green smoothies, and a crazy amount of kale.

Let’s rewind the guilt tape.

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The Babylonians Were Serious About This

The earliest known New Year’s resolutions date back about 4,000 years to ancient Babylon. During their 12-day New Year festival, Akitu, people made solemn promises to the gods. Some of these included repaying debts, returning borrowed goods, and living in ways that maintained divine order.

Food and feasting were central to the celebration, and moderation was about keeping the gods on your side. If you failed your vows, the consequences could be dire — poor harvests, social chaos, or divine punishment.

Romans: Less Wine, More Discipline

In ancient Rome, January takes its name from Janus, the two-faced god of beginnings and endings. This concept is fitting. By the time February comes around, we all become two-faced about our resolutions.

Romans also made New Year promises. But let’s be honest, they loved excess. Feasts were elaborate, wine flowed like the Tiber, and indulgence was almost patriotic. New Year’s diet resolutions included: Eating simpler foods, practicing restraint, and, in theory, avoiding gluttony.

The “I’ll start Monday” concept came from the Romans. Except it was “I’ll start after this 7-course banquet and theatrical production.” I can totally relate to this. It’s my philosophy to a “T”.

Medieval New Year’s Diet Resolutions

By the Middle Ages, religion played a big role in dietary restrictions. People consumed large amounts of food, such as meat, pies, spiced wine, and rich breads, during Christmas. After the celebrations, Christians would engage in periods of fasting and abstinence. This practice was intended to purify both the body and the soul.

This was the ancient detox way before intermittent fasting. There were no blenders, no wellness influencers, only good old church doctrine.

Some of the restricted foods included: meat, dairy, and luxury foods (including sweeteners)

The goal was more for humility than vanity. The objective was repentance and a fresh start in God’s eyes.

Skipping the rituals wasn’t really an option. Medieval faith and the community laws enforced fasting. Everyone was committed.

The Birth of Guilt In the Modern Era

The weight-focused, guilt-heavy New Year’s diet resolutions are mostly a 20th-century invention.

As industrial food was more processed, sugar became cheap and abundant. Not to mention portion sizes! Hello supersize.

Eating anxiety took root.

In the mid-1900s, New Year’s diet resolutions went from religious abstinence to weight control. Calories were counted. Carbs became villains. Fat was first demonized, redeemed, then banned again, depending on the decade.

Suddenly, January became the month for New Year’s diet resolutions. Out the window goes the joy! It’s the decision we make to “look good” with a large amount of guilt.

New Year’s Diet Resolutions: Forbidden Foods

Some traditions never change. Your typical New Year diet sacrifices include LESS:

• Sugar: accused of everything from fatigue to global collapse
• Alcohol: Dry January and shunned until possible Valentine’s Day
• Bread & pasta: gone, despite entire civilizations surviving on them for millennia. Carbs are evil today.
• Red meat? I don’t get this one. I don’t eat it, but my parents survived on it.
• Processed foods: Oh no! These guys are the deeply feared sect, but also the most delicious!

Oddly, so many of these foods were once symbols of survival, celebration, and wealth. But now? They’re on the “bad for you” list.

A New Perspective: New Year’s Diet Resolutions as Ritual?

Historically, New Year’s Diet Resolutions weren’t punishment or guilt at all. It was all about intention. They adopted a lifestyle appropriate to the circumstances—perhaps a seasonal shift, a moral reset, or simply a break for your overworked body. In ancient times, anxiety was never part of this equation.

Maybe the real tradition isn’t cutting back but pausing long enough to reflect on how and why we eat.

Thousands of years ago, people didn’t ask: “How do I lose weight?”

They asked: “How do I live better this year?”

That might be the resolution worth keeping. Maybe for the incoming year, it’s worth trying a little self-compassion. I’m up for trying this out myself. 

Happy and healthy New Year.

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Note to my readers: My research draws on travel experiences, books, and, sometimes, AI tools. I love using my own photos whenever possible, but occasionally I include stock or AI-generated images to help illustrate the story.