Sales Of Baby Food Soar Thanks To Hollywood Diet Loved By Cheryl Cole &Amp; Jen Aniston

With stars constantly seeking to shift a few extra pounds, we've been treated to some weird and wonderful diet fads over the years - maple syrup or cabbage soup diets, anyone? - but this most recent trend is taking supermarkets by storm.

The Baby Food Cleanse, created by Hollywood personal trainer Tracy Anderson, is reportedly favoured by the likes of Lady Gaga - prompting sales of baby food to soar in UK supermarkets.

According to online store Ocado, sales of wet baby food have risen by 20 per cent in the last year, while dry baby food sales are up 59 per cent in comparison to the same two-week period in 2010.

"Liquid cleanses do help you lose weight but you will gain more the next week," explains diet creator Tracy.

"I wanted something where you can eliminate toxicity, break bad habits but still have your digestive system going. That is when the baby food cleanse was born."

Pots of baby food contain, on average, between 100 to 150 calories, and are subject to strict nutrition controls - limiting the salt, sugar and additive content.

Jennifer Aniston was thought to be advised to consume up to 14 pots per day, combined with one healthy balanced meal.

While nutritionists are happy that the diet won't do you any harm, they will - quite obviously - always recommend you snack on some actual fruit or veg over the pureed version.

"Although fruit and veg are included [in the diet] they are pureed so have much less fibre and texture," says a spokesperson from the British Dietetic Association.

"Chewing food is associated with feelings of fullness, so reach for an apple or a carrot rather than a jar."