More evidence that fat free isnt the way to be

Jbarbo01

http://health.yahoo.net/experts/dayinhealth/what-really-makes-us-fat


What Really Makes Us Fat?

By Lisa Collier Cool
Jul 26, 2012


For over a century, doctors have believed that people gained weight because they ate more calories than they burned. Now, a surprising new study challenges that notion, by showing that the quality of the calories—not just the quantity—is what triggers obesity. In fact, carbohydrates—not just calories—are what’s fueling the obesity epidemic.

The new research shows that the secret of losing weight and keeping it off is eating fewer carbs, or sticking to those that are digested slowly. This diet can torch more calories—and help us drop more pounds—than following the conventional low-fat diet recommended by both the USDA and the American Heart Association.

Eating fewer carbs makes your body burn calories as efficiently as if you’d exercised an extra hour, the researchers reported.

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Not All Calories Act the Same

In a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, 21 obese adults lost 10 to 15 percent of their body weight over a 12-week period. After a month-long stabilization period, in which study participants simply maintained their new weight, they then followed three different diets regimens, in random order, for a month each.

The results indicated that, despite the age-old “calories in, calories out” adage, not all calories are equal. Although participants were fed the exact amount of calories they expended daily, each of the three diets had different effects. “The quality of the calories going in can affect the number of calories being burned off,” study author David Ludwig said to HealthDay.

Which diets were studied?

The three diets tested were:

a low-fat diet, which included whole grains, lean meat, fruits and vegetables. About 60 percent of calories in this conventional diet come from carbohydrates, with 20 percent coming from protein and 20 percent from fat.
a low-glycemic load diet, which replaces some grain products and starchy vegetables with healthy fats, non-starchy vegetables, fruits and legumes. Carbs in this diet are those that digest slowly, keeping blood sugar levels stable rather than stimulating the secretion of insulin. About 40 percent of calories in the low-glycemic diet used in the study came from carbs, 20 percent from protein and 40 percent from fat.
a very low-carb diet, modeled after the Atkins diet. This diet included meat, fat and vegetables. About 10 percent of calories came from carbs, 30 percent from protein and 60 percent from fat.
How did the three diets stack up?

Surprisingly, the low-fat diet fared the worst. It led to the fewest calories being burned, a high level of insulin resistance (which increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, stroke and coronary artery disease), and an unhealthy lipid pattern.

The low-carbohydrate diet torched the most calories, but had some negative results as well. It led to higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol, and increased levels of C-reactive protein levels, both of which can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.

The low-glycemic load diet burned more calories than the low-fat diet, but not as many as the low-carb diet. However, there were no negative affects to cortisol or C-reactive protein associated with this diet.

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How many calories were burned?

On a very low carb diet, study participants burned about 320 more calories per day than those who ate the same number of calories on a low-fat diet, which, as Ludwig pointed out in a press release, is “equal to the number of calories burned in an hour of moderate-intensity physical activity.” Those on the low-glycemic load diet burned about 200 calories more daily than the low-fat diet.

How can dieters make use of this information?

Previous research has shown that obese young adults who secrete high levels of the hormone insulin, which stores fat in our fat cells, benefit more from a low-glycemic diet than a low-fat diet, leading to around 12.8 pounds lost in 6 months and kept off a year later, as compared to about 2.7 pounds in the low-fat diet group.

Body fat percentage was also improved in this group of high insulin secretors, who lost an average of 2.6 percent body fat, as compared to a 0.9 percent loss in high insulin secretors on a low-fat diet. The low-glycemic diet also improved HDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels in all study participants, regardless of their levels of insulin secretion.

This research indicates that reducing glycemic load may be more effective for weight-loss maintenance and preventing cardiovascular diseases than reducing dietary fat is.

Keeping Weight Off

Although most people can make dietary changes leading to weight loss, keeping the weight off is a different story. One reason may be due to the difficulty in sticking to a diet over the long-term. One solution is by following a weight loss support program that encourages self-monitoring of food intake and weight, which makes you less likely to eat impulsively.

A new study found that obese men and women who participated in 12 weeks of a commercial weight-loss program, in this instance Weight Watchers, increased self-regulatory behaviors, such as tracking their food and weight, leading to greater weight loss. Other research shows that simply writing down what you eat—a habit encouraged by Weight Watchers—leads to greater weight loss than not keeping a food diary.

taylor5877

Thanks for posting.

The diet I wish they'd do more study on is a high protein diet, with typically low glycemic index carbs (not really "restricted") and a diet adequete in fat.

About the only place you find articles on this is in bodybuilding/fitness sites.

It would be nice to read a peer reviewed article studying it. IMO this diet gives you the benefit of the low glycemic diet and the benefit of the "low carb" because you end up eating about the same amount of protein without the minuses of the low carb diet because you're not really restricting carbs.

Springfield_Rocks

Thanks for sharing.

DanaDark

A lot of it depends on the nutritional value of the foods you consume, more so than the simple category the food is in.

Fat soluble vitamins in carbs will benefit greatly from fats for absorption. But fats have several types so it's good to stick to the unsaturated fats more so than transfats. As well, protein intake is a must.

Sure wish they talked about how they determined the caloric burn per day (as that is already a sketchy field, would love more details on that weak link in the study).

Also, wish they had mentioned about actual weight loss.