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The ideal "formula" for a healthy diet does not exist yet. But Harvard scientists are on the track. In a first round of research, they looked at fats and carbohydrates and discovered that they were important, but not as previously thought.
Which diet is the healthiest? While some swear by the lack of fat, others rely on a low carbohydrate Mediterranean diet or stone age foods. Some of these philosophies contradict very basic badumptions, for example, about whether fat is unhealthy or unhealthy. This confuses many people who want to eat as healthy as possible.
Scientists around David Ludwig of Harvard Medical School in Boston also acknowledged this problem and sought a solution. They asked themselves: is not it necessary to reach a scientific consensus on the amount of fat actually recommended?
The quantity is not so important
To this end, a team of experts from different disciplines and with partially opposing points of view met and evaluated previous conclusions on the subject. The result is a set of basic guidelines that researchers say can be used as a formula for healthy eating.
In particular, they draw the following conclusions: Whether it is low in carbohydrates or fat seems to be less decisive than it is often badumed. "Current data suggests that there is no ideal ratio of lipids / carbohydrates in food that is ideal for all," say the researchers. "In addition, no diet or source of calories has the same metabolic effects in all people."
A healthy body weight and a low risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and body diseases, which can reach most people with a wide range of carbohydrate-fat ratios.
Trans fat is taboo
However, people with insulin resistance typical of type 2 diabetes and its precursors are an exception. It may have been discovered that these patients particularly benefited from a high fat diet with a relatively low carbohydrate content. The same applies to glucose intolerant patients as well as to people whose body produces an excess of insulin.
Overall, however, the type of fat consumed seems more important than quantity. For example, as Ludwig and his colleagues point out, saturated fatty acids should be replaced by unsaturated acids. And: "Trans fats manufactured industrially are harmful and should be banned from the diet," they write.
Put the whole grain
In addition, the least surprising recommendations for a healthy diet are: consume as little sugar as possible and replace refined and highly processed carbohydrates with full alternatives. In other words: instead of white flour, polished rice, table sugar and other cereals, whole grains, fruits and especially vegetables must be on the plate.
According to scientists, these principles provide a good foundation, but many details should be clarified in future studies. For example, do different carbohydrate / fat ratios, regardless of caloric intake, affect body tissue composition?
How exactly can the metabolism of diabetics benefit from a ketogenic diet? And which lipid composition is optimal for people who consume very little carbohydrate? "If we find the answers to these questions, we can deduce other nutritional recommendations," concludes the team. (Science, 2018, doi: 10.1126 / science.aau2096)
This article was written by DAL
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