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Read this the next time someone tells you the only way to loose weight is to cut out carbs.

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LucasWilland
LucasWilland Posts: 68 Member
in Debate Club
A low carb diet can be helpful for some individuals by controlling blood glucose and therefore hunger levels. There is also some research that ketones can suppress appetite in some individuals, but if you are under the delusion that you must cut out carbs to lose body fat, please stop. Do yourself a favor and find a pattern of eating that works for you and that you can stick to forever. Enough of this 8 week diet crap nonsense, seriously:
http://www.stephanguyenet.com/meta-analysis-impact-of-carbohydrate-vs-fat-calories-on-energy-expenditure-and-body-fatness/
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Replies

  • augustremulous
    augustremulous Posts: 378 Member
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    I've noticed that a lot of people who are "low carb" and see results are actually people who ate a ton of carbs and just reduced their intake to a normal, healthy amount of carbs. ie lots of white bread and pancakes and a switch to wheat bread and sweet potatoes and brown rice.
  • Jen_HealthCoach
    Jen_HealthCoach Posts: 4 Member
    edited March 2017
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    I agree with @fraklein There is no one-size fits all when it comes to nutrition for weight loss. I will say this: the main reasons why people lose weight on "low carb" diets are: 1. When they eliminate or reduce carbs, they are ultimately reducing their overall calorie intake which leads to weight loss. 2. There are studies that show that the body digests protein slower than carbs, thus making you feel full longer which leads to eating less food throughout the day. That being said, there are more studies coming out showing that decreased sugar consumption (even if consumed in the form of carbs such as fruits and breads) may reduce risk of a myriad of diseases including diabetes and certain cancers. I, for one, think the blood type diet is one of the best around. The future of nutrition is individualized meal plans based on your genetic makeup. The future should be interesting!
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
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    It seems to me that most people who stick with LCHF do so out of a need, like they can't moderate carbs well (raising hand) or have a health issue that is improved on a LCHF diet (hand raising higher). I agree that switching to a LCHF diet for 8 weeks for weight loss is not practical or needed, unless you are a body builder and need to shed some water weight quickly.
  • dfwesq
    dfwesq Posts: 592 Member
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    Does "cutting out carbs" mean "cutting out high-glycemic carbs"? Or does it mean cutting out foods with carbohydrates in them, even low-glycemic foods like sweet potatoes, whole grains, and legumes? I see it referred to here both ways.

  • rollerjog
    rollerjog Posts: 154 Member
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    lyle mcdonald knows about this stuff cheek his web page out , he knows what hes talking about, good stuff
  • leanjogreen18
    leanjogreen18 Posts: 2,492 Member
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    dfwesq wrote: »
    Does "cutting out carbs" mean "cutting out high-glycemic carbs"? Or does it mean cutting out foods with carbohydrates in them, even low-glycemic foods like sweet potatoes, whole grains, and legumes? I see it referred to here both ways.

    Generally cutting out carbs = low carb. Some only eat 20g others eat up to 150g and still consider themselves low carb.
  • rollerjog
    rollerjog Posts: 154 Member
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    i think cutting carbs has its place, say if your cutting and want to get leaner , but when your at maintenance or in a surplus you need to eat more carbs, every body has there own opinion on how many carbs you should take in what i found out is you need to figure out what works for you in certain stages
  • _Bro
    _Bro Posts: 437 Member
    edited March 2017
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    I can't argue with the title of this post but the referenced article was pretty weak.
  • pvogel1967
    pvogel1967 Posts: 2 Member
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    The key here is that the cited studies are looking at what happens when people are subjected to *tightly controlled* diets.

    The problem, in my experience at least, is that if I let myself have any carbs I want or even just over balance my diet towards carbs I stay hungrier and get hungry more often, leading to a higher daily calorie intake. Since bringing my carb intake to 45% and being mindful of my carb choices (more complex carbs, lower glycemic index) I'm much less hungry and it's been effortless to keep my daily CI to under 2K (more typically <1600) even though I also increased my exercise and therefore my calorie burn.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    pvogel1967 wrote: »
    The key here is that the cited studies are looking at what happens when people are subjected to *tightly controlled* diets.

    The problem, in my experience at least, is that if I let myself have any carbs I want or even just over balance my diet towards carbs I stay hungrier and get hungry more often, leading to a higher daily calorie intake. Since bringing my carb intake to 45% and being mindful of my carb choices (more complex carbs, lower glycemic index) I'm much less hungry and it's been effortless to keep my daily CI to under 2K (more typically <1600) even though I also increased my exercise and therefore my calorie burn.

    Typical American diet is about 50% carbohydrate, 15% protein, and 35% fat, so 45% is not really low. The issue is food choice within the macros being filling or not (or easy to overeat whether you are hungry or not, since I don't actually think people overeat to the point of obesity due to real hunger), sure. But some insist it's all about macros and you can't lose eating more than some percentage of carbs, etc.

    And of course usually when people talk about overeating "carbs" they don't mean the highest percentage carb foods like fruits, but more likely foods that are really half fat/half carbs like chips or fries or cookies or donuts or even foods that have plenty of carbs but also some protein and are high fat (like lots of fast food). Sure, there are exceptions: soda is pure carb, but it's also a beverage, which many don't perceive as filling at all.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,389 MFP Moderator
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    _Bro wrote: »
    I can't argue with the title of this post but the referenced article was pretty weak.

    And why do you believe that?
  • _Bro
    _Bro Posts: 437 Member
    edited March 2017
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    psuLemon wrote: »
    _Bro wrote: »
    I can't argue with the title of this post but the referenced article was pretty weak.

    And why do you believe that?

    When I read the PDF (of the study) it was missing significant details on the method used to collect/include the aforementioned studies.. IMHO this is a very important bit of data that should always be included in a meta-analysis.

    I see now that someone has posted a full link with some more supplemental information but I've not had time to digest it (pun intended):

    http://sci-hub.bz/10.1053/j.gastro.2017.01.052
  • Theo166
    Theo166 Posts: 2,564 Member
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    _Bro wrote: »
    I can't argue with the title of this post but the referenced article was pretty weak.

    It's a meta-analysis of 28 other studies, so how was it weak?

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