What it means
رژیم (rezhim) is borrowed from French régime and in Persian almost always refers to a dietary plan rather than a political regime. When someone says rezhim gereftam, they mean they have started a diet. The word covers weight-loss programs, medically prescribed eating plans for conditions like diabetes, and general nutritional discipline. The pronunciation, with the zh sound, reflects its French origin and sets it apart from native Persian vocabulary. A common related phrase is rezhim-e ghazâyi (dietary regimen). The word can also carry the political meaning of regime, but in everyday spoken Persian the diet sense is far more common.
How to use it
- رژیم گرفتم، شیرینی نمیخورم. (Rezhim gereftam, shirini nemikhuram.) “I’m on a diet, I’m not eating sweets.”
- دکتر برام رژیم غذایی نوشت. (Doktor baram rezhim-e ghazâyi nevesht.) “The doctor wrote me a dietary plan.”
- این رژیم خیلی سخته. (In rezhim kheyli sakhte.) “This diet is really hard.”
- رژیم کمکربوهیدرات امتحان کردم. (Rezhim-e kam-karbuhidrât emtehân kardam.) “I tried a low-carb diet.”
Cultural note
Diet culture is widespread in urban Iran, and rezhim gereftan (going on a diet) is a topic that comes up regularly in social settings. Many Iranians consult nutritionists (metakhasses-e taghziye) for a formal rezhim rather than following online programs. The word is also used in compound medical contexts, such as rezhim-e namak (salt-restricted diet) for hypertension patients. Because the same word means political regime, jokes about the double meaning occasionally appear in Persian social media humor.