Just cutting calories is not the key to losing weight



[ad_1]

Just cutting calories is not the key to losing weight

Reducing calories is not the solution to losing weight, according to a new clinical trial. The researchers discovered that the secret to losing weight is to eat diets rich in fats and carbohydrates.

Of the 164 adults in a weight loss study, those on a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet burned more calories per day than those on high-carbohydrate meals. On average, their bodies used 250 extra calories a day for 20 weeks. Ingested carbohydrates were strictly limited.

The researchers estimated that over 3 years this would result in an additional weight loss of 20 lbs for a man of average height.

"This study refutes conventional thinking that only reducing calories is important," said Dr. David Ludwig, principal investigator. He is co-director of the New Balance Foundation's Center for Obesity Prevention at the Boston Children's Hospital.

Instead, he said, the source of these calories can make the difference to whether your metabolism is "working with you or against you".

According to Dr. Ludwig, the results support a theory called "carbohydrate-insulin model".

The principle is that diets high in processed carbohydrates significantly increase the level of insulin, which pushes the body to use fewer calories and store more in the form of fat.

"Our study suggests that you will do better if you focus on reducing refined carbohydrates, rather than just focusing on reducing calories," Ludwig said.

He and his colleagues reported the results online on Nov. 14 in the BMJ.

Over the years, many studies have attempted to answer the question of whether weight loss is better or lower in carbohydrates. They often concluded that there was little difference.

But these studies, Dr. Ludwig said, have generally been behavioral studies in which people can or can not follow their diet.

His team conducted a "diet study" to carefully monitor what people were eating.

First, 234 overweight and obese adults were recruited for a break-in phase in order to lose about 12% of their weight in 10 weeks. Their diet was low in calories and contained a moderate amount of carbohydrates.

Of this group, 164 lost enough weight and moved on to the next phase. They were randomly assigned to a low carbohydrate, moderate carbohydrate or high carbohydrate diet for 20 weeks.

People on a low carb diet get 20% of their calories from carbohydrates such as vegetables, fruits and beans; 60% of their calories come from fat, including meat, whole milk, cheese and nuts. The remaining 20% ​​of calories came from protein.

The situation was reversed for people benefiting from the high carbohydrate diet: 60% of calories from carbohydrates and 20% of fat. The moderate plan divides the 2 nutrients equally, at 40/40.

After 20 weeks, the low carb group seemed to burn more calories, averaging 250 more per day than the high carbohydrate group, and 111 more than the moderate carbohydrate group.

The researchers did not examine the effects on additional weight loss. Instead, each person's caloric intake was calibrated to maintain what they had already lost. Dr. Ludwig explained that the goal was to focus on the effects of different diets on the burning of calories.

According to Dr. Anastassia Amaro, Assistant Professor of Endocrinology and Metabolism at the University of Pennsylvania, "The study plan is very clever."

Dr. Amaro, who did not participate in the research, said that she already suggested that patients reduce their carbohydrate intake when they are trying to lose weight.

These results, she says, strengthen her confidence in this council.

However, Dr. Amaro said, the low carb diet used in this study is not ready for a "direct translation" in the real world. For 1, she explained, it is unclear if it was the lack of carbohydrates that was at the base.

"It's also a high-fat diet," said Dr. Amaro. "Is it the lack of carbohydrates, the fat content, or both?"

The Big Q: What about the nutritional value of such a diet?

Dr. A: Dr. Ludwig said it was healthy because it allowed legumes and legumes and an "unlimited" amount of vegetables. What it does not have is cereals and added sugar.

Dr. Ludwig agreed that more research was needed to determine if this approach was the best way to maintain weight loss. Along with his colleagues, he recently launched a new clinical trial of a very low carbohydrate diet, Vs 1, high in carbohydrate but low in sugar, and another type of diet, high in carbohydrates and sugar.

Big Qs 2 & 3: What about people who currently have a healthy weight? Would a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet burn more calories?

The Big A: "It's a good question, but this study can not answer it."

Eat healthy, be healthy, live alive

The following two tabs modify the content below.

Paul A. Ebeling, polymath, excels in various fields of knowledge. Specialist analyst in the recognition of forms in equities, commodities and currencies, and author of the "Technical Report of the Red Roadmaster" on the main US market indices, a very reputable and weekly letter on the financial markets, it is also a philosopher who has published information on a wide range of topics followed by more than 250,000 cohorts. An international public of opinion makers, business leaders and global organizations recognizes Ebeling as an expert.

[ad_2]
Source link