Note: Do not rely on this information. It is very old.
Banting
Banting, Mr. William, a London merchant, published in 1863 an account of the diet he had found effectual in reducing his own dimensions. The use of lean meat and the avoidance of sugar and starchy foods were its chief features. The subject made a considerable stir for some time. Popularly, his name was treated as a participle from the imaginary verb "to bant."