why do ppl do low carb for weight loss?

JisatsuHoshi

This is just in from National Geographic:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/08/sugar/cohen-text

It confirms that the boogeyman is Fructose, also known as fruit sugar. Fructose is in almost every fruit and plant we eat, although obviously the percentage is highest in fruits. When you eat low carb, you automatically eat low Fructose as well as long as you properly count the carb in fruits.

Yeah, fructose is something that some researchers are looking into.

Having done a lot of reading on the subject (I can be geeky that way) the issue with fructose doesn't seem to be saying to run screaming from fruit. It is perhaps a good reason to start wondering about high fructose corn syrup being placed into so many things these days. From what I've read, the center of research on the subject seems to arise from the way that fructose is metabolized by the body. (And I'm going to be really oversimplyfing this. I realize there's all sorts of things concerning ATP that I'm bypassing. I know that I'm over simplifying to an extreme degree, but it's complicated).

Fructose can only be metabolilzed by the liver, which does so by more or less splitting fructose into both glucose and fat. So basically, in order for your body to deal with fructose at all, part of it has to be turned into fat. The rest is turned into glucose.

Glucose can be absorbed without being shunted off to your liver the way that fructose is (where, again, fructose is turned into glucose + fat as the method of dealing with it). All the heavy work out folks complaining about low carb diets, saying that they have to have the carbs for their workouts, there's truth to that. Aerobic exercises depletes your glycogen stores in your muscles. If you're eating carbs, your body has a quick, efficient way to smoothely replinish the glycogen.

Where you start running into some of the low carb concept is that when glucose isn't readily available to replenish glycogen, your body can begin converting part of your consumed protein or consumed fat or can even start burning your body fat (or muscle) to do so. But, as your body prefers to use glucose -- and there are reasons for that that I'll get to in a minute -- if you have a lot of glucose available, you're body is going to default to the glucose first.

Burning fat or protein is far less efficient than converting readily available glucose, so if your focus is on athletic performance, you probably prefer the readily available carbs. If your object is to burn off fat stores that you already have, you may be willing to sacrifice atheltic performance for fat burning.

Where fructose comes in is that, again, the only part of your body capable of dealing with fructose is your liver. Fructose cannot be converted into glycogen without first having been metabolized by the liver which "splits" it into fat and glucose.

Sucrose (old fashioned table sugar) is metabolized by first splitting it into fructose and glucose, with the fructose then having to be split into fat and glucose.

Factoring this out into an equation (that is NOT proportionally accurate, it's just a 'thought experiment' representation), in order for your body to metabolize these sugars what you roughly have is something like

glucose = glucose
fructose = glucose + fat
sucrose = glucose + (glucose+fat)

So if your object is to replish glycogen stores for atheltic performance, best choice may be starchy carbs. Your body can metabolize it most efficiently and your liver doesn't immediately convert part of it to fat.

Flipping this around, though, fructose -- PURE fructose -- which is handled by the liver isn't regulated by insulin, meaning it's going to be far slower to trigger an insulin response than something starchy (after all, your liver has to 'convert' fructose into fat and glucose first). This is why less starchy fruits are lower on the glycemic index than starchy ones.

Once you start getting into insulin issues, however, you start talking about a whole host of other things.

Excesss glucose in your bloodstream is bad. It's toxic. That's diabetes. A healthy body prevents there being too much sugar in your bloodstream by releasing insulin which tells your body to stop poking around,burning your fat, etc, and burn this excess blood sugar instead. Right NOW! It keeps your blood sugar in the heathy range by your muscles using what they can burning through glycogen, your body fat absorbing/expanding as it can, and other parts of it converted into triglycerides (fat) in your blood. When you're body more or less goes '*ahem* I'm aborbing all that I can!' and there's still yet. more. suger., your body makes yet MORE insulin trying to try to make your cells absorb the excess... and now you're on the way to insulin resistance, requiring more and more insulin to accomplish the same result until your pancreas cries uncle because it's taking more insulin than it can produce to lower your blood sugar... at which point you are the owner of Type 2 diabetes.

So the resulting contradictions are that glucose stimulates your insulin faster than fructose, which stimulates your body to deal with the blood sugar NOW, which -- if you're taking in more sugar than your brain and muscles need -- is stored as fat.

Fructose on the other hand, doesn't immediately stimulate insulin, but to handle it at all, part of it is metabolized as fat ...and part of it is turned into glucose which in turn stimulates insulin, and so on.

So basically, what you're left with is: your body needs glucose but not too much glucose (and how much you need is going to depend on how much you're burning). Try to avoid sugar spikes. You don't want to over-stimulate insulin. You don't want more glucose in your bloodstream than your body can use. So yeah, calories in/calories out is part of the equation.

Now the pro-side of fruit is that between the FIBER they contain and the fact that fructose doesn't immediately stimulate an insulin response, fruit it a bit of a time release capsule. Your blood sugar load is strung out over a longer period of time which minimizes sugar spikes by spreading it out. This was the way that your body was meant to behave (and it's the way that your body deals with fructose, but yeah, to metabolize it, it's still going to be split into fat and glucose).

Glucose is handled far more efficiently by the body, but excessive amounts of it are going to cause sugar spikes that will stimulate insulin that... well, we've been there already.

Basically, don't overconsume.

Eat fruit. It has a lot to recommend it.

But maybe think about avoiding high fructose corn syrup. It looks like it could possibly be the worst of both worlds... but that hasn't been proven which why they're researching the subject.

Excellent and interesting post, thank you for taking the time.

Very informative indeed.

kenzietate

I tried a low carb diet, well I did lose weight within a month my kidneys actually hurt, like I could barely walk they hurt so much. High protein, low carb diets put a lot of pressure on your kidneys and can have adverse effects in the long run.

This is why you are supposed to heat a low carb/moderate protein/high fat diet. High protein isn't good for you in many ways. It is hard on your kidneys as well as it can cause similar insulin spikes as carbs do.

GamerGirly

Because they believe that carbs are unhealthy. It's not true of course.

That is untrue..

"They believe that carbs are unhealthy"

WOW .. If you're uneducated.. Why respond???

Carbs from fruits and vegetables ARE healthy carbs from starches and sugars NOT healthy.

Eating low carb or zero carb is a personal choice.. whether it be for medical reasons or because your body doesnt process carbs adequately.

No one is to judge based on preference.

For education material.. See my profile.. couple links regarding Ketosis, Effects of not eating "enough" carbs, and on Metabolism.

Enjoy

drefaw

Because they believe that carbs are unhealthy. It's not true of course.

That is untrue..

"They believe that carbs are unhealthy"

WOW .. If you're uneducated.. Why respond???

Carbs from fruits and vegetables ARE healthy carbs from starches and sugars NOT healthy.

Eating low carb or zero carb is a personal choice.. whether it be for medical reasons or because your body doesnt process carbs adequately.

No one is to judge based on preference.

For education material.. See my profile.. couple links regarding Ketosis, Effects of not eating "enough" carbs, and on Metabolism.

Enjoy

Your profile is set to private ......kinda hard to get edjumacated without the links .......

MakingAChoice

but a lot of people dont eat low carb and arent overweight?
so then why would carbs make some humans fat but not all of them?
just had this thought today at work
corworker is doing a low carb diet to lose weight
and there i was shoveling rice in my mouth and just shrugging. works for me.

Because the same thing does not work for everyone. Find what works for you and roll with it. You cannot care about what others do, especially if it is working for them.

Jusjerzy

I can only speak from personal experience, obviously everyone is different. I am following a low carb lifestyle, because it is the only way I am able to control my caloric intake. When I consume carbs such as bread, sugar, starchy vegetables, and junk food, I always overeat. When I remove those items from my diet, I am able to stick to a 1200 to 1500 calorie diet filled with healthy foods, not junk. It works for me. It's still all about the calories.

Ditto. Plus, things like sugar, gluten and starch make me feel like crap!

For me? Both of these......

EddieHaskell97

Because my motto is: "Go big / go hardcore or go home", and because Atkins was a way to lose almost 60 lbs over the summer if I put in the work. I also love that I rarely get hungry, and NEVER get the dreaded "5 o'clock low blood sugar".

I knew that it would take consistent effort, and I needed a plan that I couldn't "cheat" on without there being notable repercussions. In this case, it would be the loss of ketosis, and the end of "rapid" weight loss.

I don't cheat and I have/am put(ing) in the work, which I find rewarding. I am loving how clothing fits and looks better on me every day.

Almost forty pounds lost in two months, and I still have almost two months left over to finish another 20. It works for me!

danielle5243

[/quote]It's not the carbs that make the person overweight, rather than an over-abundance of the things.

Personally, if I eat a food that is high in carbs, I just crave more and if I am on a low ebb or my willpower is a bit on the fragile side, then I will just give in and eat more, before I know it, I am over my daily calorie amount, THEN I will most likely decide "oh well, I am over now anyway, I'll have another cake" on and on it goes. It would be okay if I stopped at just the one little cake, but I don't.

Many people do not have such a thing happen and control their carb intake, I have just learned that I do not tend to have much control in that area so I steer clear.

I guess this is where the quote "know thyself" comes in eh
[/quote]

^^ This!! I am the same way! I end up on a downward spiral. There is no "moderation" for me. If I make one poor food choice, it turns into a snow ball of bad food choices. I end up full, uncomfortable, unhappy, and searching for my next sugar rush. Eating lean meats, eggs, veggies, and nuts I am full, satisfied, happy with my decisions, and not concerned about what I'm going to eat next.

If you can stick to eating carbs and staying under your calorie limits, then more power to you! I WISH I could have just one small piece of cake/cookie/pasta/bread and then move on with my day and be satisfied. It's just not the way my mind/body work.

Long story short, agree to disagree, find what works for you, and move on.

soonergal76

:happy: I have been overweight since I was 7 years old. And as I got older, it just got worse. In high school, I would cry because I was starving while my 'size perfect' best friend stuffed her face. I never knew what was wrong or why I couldn't seem to lose weight - only gain it. And I was very active - always out with friends, going to social events, amusement parks, etc. In my 20's I danced every Friday and Saturday night (and didn't drink alchohol while I did it). Every diet I ever tried, failed... in fact I would usually gain weight while following a so called balanced diet. In my early 30's I finally was diagnosed as hypothyroid and border-line anemic. I was border-line anemic because I had been severely restricting my diet of anything I thought would make me fat(ter)... which usually meant meat, etc. because all my life I'd been told fat makes you fat. I was undeducated and uninformed. I moved and therefore, with a move, I changed doctors. My new doctor, after doing blood work, etc. asked me if I had ever tried a low-carb diet. I didn't know what that was. I'd never been concerned about carbohydrates, only fat and calories. He himself maintains a low-carb lifestyle and has done so for 20+ years. He said when he started college he weighed almost 300 lbs and he didn't think anyone would take an obese doctor serious, so after much research, he embarked on a low-carb diet and now maintains his weight at around 155-160 lbs. My doctor is 6'0" tall. I asked him for more information and he told me he would email me all the information he had and send me links to sites where research has been done, etc.

Bottom line is this - for the first time in my life (since I was 7 years old), I have lost weight! I have lost 35 lbs. I started 01/12/14 and it is now 04/14/14... so that's basically 35 lbs. in 3 months and you know what? I feel fabulous. I have much more weight to lose and I won't give up. But here's the thing... I rarely even desire to snack. I did miss my sweet tea in the beginning, cuz let me tell you this girl loved nothing more than sweet tea. And while sometimes I think it would be nice to have a baked potato... I shake my head when I think about it and then think about stepping on the scale and seeing another pound lost.

My doctor told me when I have lost 100 lbs. (which that sounds like a fantasy at this point!), he will then teach me how to incorporate one "cheat weekend" a month to eat whatever I want and drink whatever I want and still lose the weight. He said in the beginning for him it was exciting, but more and more as his body adapted over time, his "cheat weekend" only happens maybe every 3-4 months because he has finally gotten to a point where he doesn't desire the same things he used to.

My typical daily diet for anyone who is curious:

Calories 1925 - 2000
Carbs 30-35
Fat 100-125
Protein 130-150
Sodium 2000-2500

And not everyone is the same, but for some people (like me) this was the only answer. And I don't feel restricted or tired or bad.... in fact, quite the opposite, I am full, satisfied, full of energy and I feel great. What's better, is almost daily people tell me how much better I am starting to look. And as for my blood work, it is DEFINITELY better.

EDITED: I forgot to add the age I am now: 38 and I am 5' 2.5" tall.... and as for the starting weight: 388 lbs.... now 353 lbs.... and going down.

justal313

why does this OP always post questions that will get people in a tizzy, never to return to the thread?

Wtn_Gurl

I'm losing weight better when i go lower carb. I still get to eat a yogurt or two a day plus a fruit a day plus a small glass of milk. That seems to satisfy my hunger. when i was hungry i used to get a bowl of cereal, but this week im trying to go for cheese sticks when im hungry. lets see how this works. I seem ton eed about 100 carbos a day to feel like im not depriving myself and its sustainable.

I also have to eliminate a lot of restaurant food, and bring my own lunch, this is working the best.. so i hope to lose about 4 more pounds this month.

I'd like to try for a week to go very low carb and see how that works. i can still enjoy a fruit and yogurt each day.

I feel fine, not tried, nor weak. if i start to feel ill, then i will up the carbs.

jasonmh630

You lose a lot of weight to begin with, though it's not fat.

^^This = BS

My brother has lost 117 pounds, using a low carb diet. If you think that was all water weight and not fat, then you're delusional. Maybe 1/4 of it was water weight.

mamaomefo

LC for me! It's working much better than low fat ever did!

Dragonwolf

I tried a low carb diet, well I did lose weight within a month my kidneys actually hurt, like I could barely walk they hurt so much. High protein, low carb diets put a lot of pressure on your kidneys and can have adverse effects in the long run.

Low carb does not equate to high protein. In fact, low carb, low fat, high protein is very very bad, because you're depriving your body of not only fuel (protein should not be considered a fuel source -- its primary purpose is building and repair). If you have kidney issues, it's either because you have an underlying issue that the diet has brought to light, or you're doing it wrong.

Fat and carbs are fuel sources. If you lower one, you have to raise the other (provided you're already getting adequate protein to handle the aforementioned building and repairing needs). If you don't, you run the risk of protein toxicity, or "rabbit starvation." Without adequate sources of fats and/or carbs, you're not getting the micronutrients you need, nor do you have adequate dietary fat to absorb or produce said nutrients. You can fulfill the body's needs through very few carbs or very few fats, but not very few of both. Without enough of the fuel macros, your body is forced to convert protein to glucose, which is done partially in the kidneys. Technically, this happens all the time (particularly at night). Your kidneys are equipped to do it to a certain extent, but not full-time. Increasing fats takes the stress off of the kidneys, because the body can use some types of fats directly, and the liver converts other fats to usable fuel (including ketones, a glucose substitute).

If you want to try low carb, you have to get over the fear of fat the lipid hypothesis has instilled in our society. Fats are not bad, not even saturated fats or dietary cholesterol. The only bad fat is artificial trans fat (usually present in processed foods as oils that have been hydrogenated to some extent). And no, the science does not support that saturated fat is bad. In fact, the science has ample evidence to the contrary (check out the Framingham Heart Study for a ton of interesting information on what does and doesn't actually matter in terms of cardiovascular health and detection).

OP - I've gone low-carb for a number of reasons, many of which have already been stated here. Not only am I hyperinsulinemic (too much insulin) and showing signs of insulin resistance due to having PCOS, I also couldn't maintain a caloric deficit without feeling like I was starving. Once I dropped my carbs under 100g, I was able to feel full on fewer calories than what I was previously feeling deprived and starving on. I still need help on the insulin front with Metformin, but the lower carb will help me wean off the Metformin without having to worry as much about gaining weight back.

Yes, limiting carbs includes the so-called "good carbs," from whole food sources. Carb sources, even fiberous ones, don't fill me up. I get sick before I ever feel satiated if I eat carbs in near absence of protein or fat (prime example - large salad without a fatty dressing and little or no meat or cheese on it). Even starchy carbs are like that -- I can put away hundreds of calories worth of potato without feeling full/satiated.

PCOS also puts me at risk of things like elevated triglycerides. Triglycerides are most frequently created by the conversion of glucose into fat. Since most carbs are at least partially glucose, that includes limiting even the so-called "healthy" carbs from starchy vegetables. NAFLD is also a risk, which is mitigated by limiting fructose intake. By limiting my carbs, I've taken my triglyceride levels from something to be watched to nearly perfect.

Being low carb doesn't mean not eating any fruits and vegetables. You can fit a ton in to even 50g of carbs a day. Non-starchy vegetables, such as dark leafy greens, and low-sugar fruits, such as berries, are nutritional powerhouses, and fulfill all nutritional needs from carbs as long as you're eating some semblance of a variety.

JoRocka

Low carb diets by definition are high protein, high fat diets. Protein and fat are both very satisfying, so usually low carb diets fill you up with less calories and lead to weight loss through a calorie deficit. That being said, low carb diets are certainly not necessary to lose weight.

this.

carbs tend to be calorie dense- so it's easy to over eat them- you can eat more food with protein and fat and feel satisfied AND still be on a deficit.

I am not big on low carb- I don't like it-I love pizza and ice cream to much but it works great for me for keeping a heavy deficit- so I use it.