Low-Carb Diet Beats Low-Fat for Best HDL-Cholesterol
Improvement After Two Years
Both groups had lost a clinically significant amount
of weight (about 7% of body weight) in the two years
Aug. 3, 2010 – Millions of senior citizens battling
obesity and the associated health detriments have considered the dieting
choices – low-carb or low-fat. The effectiveness of each for weight loss
has been frequently debated. An answers comes from a new study published
in Annals of Internal Medicine: both diets produce identical
weight loss when coupled with comprehensive behavior treatment, but a
low-carbohydrate diet may help improve cardiovascular risk factors.
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waist size from baseline to the third follow-up visit had a 70 percent
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“Despite the conventional wisdom that a
low-carbohydrate diet would actually make cardiovascular risk factors
worse, it appears that across a lot of risk factors including blood
pressure and lipid profiles, that a low-carbohydrate diet was associated
with significant improvements,” said study lead author Gary Foster, PhD,
director of the Center for Obesity Research and Education at Temple
University, Philadelphia.
Three hundred and seven patients were randomly
assigned to either a low-carbohydrate (153) or low-fat (154) diet with
behavior treatment. Weight at two years was the primary outcome, but
other effects were measured throughout the study period.
At three, six, and 12 months, patients were
evaluated for weight, serum lipid concentrations, blood pressure,
urinary ketones, bone mineral density, and body composition.
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August 8, 2006
The researchers found no differences in weight,
body composition, or bone mineral density between the two groups at any
point during the study. However, dieters in the low-carbohydrate group
had double the increase of good cholesterol levels over the low-fat
group (23 percent versus 11 percent, respectively) at two years.
“I think an important outcome from a study like
this is to think about which diets fit best for which people,” said
Foster. “This study would suggest that perhaps for those with low HDL-cholesterol
levels to begin with, that a low-carbohydrate approach to weigh loss may
have some advantages.”
At two years, both groups had lost a clinically
significant amount of weight (about 7 percent of body weight), showing
that successful weight loss can be achieved with either approach when
coupled with a behavioral modification program.
“At the end of the day, behavior interventions are
key,” said Foster “Dieters should be less concerned about what diet they
follow, and more concerned with employing effective behavioral
strategies, such as recording what they eat, logging their exercise, and
limiting the triggers for overeating, like watching TV or eating in the
car.”
About Information Source
About Annals of Internal Medicine Annals of Internal Medicine is one of the five most widely cited
peer-reviewed medical journals in the world, with a current impact
factor of 16.2. The journal has been published for 82 years. It accepts
only 7 percent of the original research studies submitted for
publication. The public can follow Annals on
Facebook and
Twitter.
About ACP The American College of Physicians is the largest medical specialty
organization and the second-largest physician group in the United
States. ACP members include 130,000 internal medicine physicians
(internists), related subspecialists, and medical students. Internists
specialize in the prevention, detection, and treatment of illness in
adults. Follow ACP on
Twitter and
Facebook.
Links to More on Senior
Citizens and Obesity in SeniorJournal.com Archives
With the metric system, the
formula for BMI is weight in
kilograms divided by height
in meters squared. Since
height is commonly measured
in centimeters, divide
height in centimeters by 100
to obtain height in meters.
Example: Weight = 68 kg,
Height = 165 cm (1.65 m)
Calculation: 68 ÷ (1.65)2
= 24.98
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