Home
>
Weight Loss
>
High Carb & Low Carb Diets: How To Avoid The Dangers

High Carb & Low Carb Diets: How To Avoid The Dangers

There's a two hundred year history of people prescribing both high and low carb diets for weight loss. So how does one choose? One factor you should consider is the dangers associated with each diet.

What is a carbohydrate, anyways?

There are three types of nutrients that every body uses: *Proteins in our diet usually come from Meat and soy products like tofu. Amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, are used to make muscles and enzymes (the proteins that do most of the work our bodies need to survive)

* Carbohydrates are sometimes described as "sugars," but they're not just white stuff in you find in the baking aisle. Simple sugars include the sugar you put in coffee; pasta, bread, and potatoes are among the source of starches, or complex carbohydrates. Most of your body uses carbs for energy, and it's the preferred energy source for the brain.

* Fats are long, chainlike molecules that are don't mix with water (oils are fats). They are an efficient way for the body to store energy.

You can see that all three nutrients are crucial for functioning. What happens if you take in more or less of a given nutrient than you need?

The Low-Fat Diet

The low-fat diet reduces fat intake, following the governmental food pyramid that suggests using fats sparingly. There are many good reasons to limit the amount of fat in your diet:

*cholesterol and fats can result in clogged up arteries, leading to heart disease and possible cardiac damage (in the form of a heart attack), stroke, and kidney disease

*fat packs a lot of calories - if you don't use those calories up in your daily activities, they will be stored in your fat cells and cause weight gain

Low-fat diets are often higher in carbohydrates than the average American's diet. Low-fat products take advantage of the fat-carbohydrate trade-off; if you compare "lowfat" cookies with their "normal" counterparts, you may notice that the fat per serving is lower but there is more carbohydrate per serving than the "normal" alternative. Because fat is flavorful, simple sugar and loads of salt may be added to lowfat products to enhance taste.

Carbohydrates are not as good a signal of satiety. In contrast, when you eat a bit of fat, your body "recognizes" it as a signal to limit the amount of intake. So, while a low-fat diet can help you stay healthy, a no-fat diet may encourage you to eat more than you need. If you make up in carb-calories what you lose in fat-grams, excess carbs will be stored as starch in the liver and fat in your fat cells! So even though your diet is low-fat, you may end up gaining weight if you eat more carbs than you use in daily activities.

Lastly, you need the right sorts of carbs to keep healthy and assist weight loss. Simple sugars are quickly absorbed and use little energy to process - in other words, they add lots of calories to your meal. In contrast, foods with more complex carbohydrates, like starches in whole grain breads - take longer for your body to absorb and use more energy. They also give your body time to recognize that you're full. Complex carbohydrates are more likely to have vitamins (like potato skins which have lots of B12) and fiber (like whole grain bread), both of which are important for good health.

Low-Carb Diets

Low-carb diets may help you lose weight by:

* making sure that you're satiated, since both fats are better signals to your body that "food's here!" than carbohydrates

* promoting ketosis: in ketosis/ Ketones are a byproduct of burning fats and proteins instead of carbohydrates.

* leveling out your hormonal response to carbohydrates. We make the hormone insulin in response to food, particularly sugar, entering the body. It's been hypothesized that large changes in insulin levels (for example, a large increase in response to a carb-heavy meal) trigger the storage of sugars as fat.

However, if decreasing carbs increases your fat intake, serious problems can result. In some studies, about 30% of people on low-carbohydrate diets showed an increase in cholesterol levels, even if they lost weight on the diet. Studies have also shown that low-carb diets may increase in kidney problems, especially in people who already had some kidney disease.

In addition, some studies suggest that ketosis in the Atkin's diet is not caused just by fat burn but by burning muscles instead. Muscle loss does result in weight loss, but is unlikely to give you the look you want, or to help you function. Lastly ketosis can be fatal in diabetic - if you're diabetic, you should speak with your doctor before starting any diet.

Women have some special issues to think about when looking at a low-carb diet. Some studies show that people on these diets lose a lot of calcium, which makes them a bad idea for women at risk for osteopenia or osteoporosis. In addition, some low-carb diets do not include the right foods for a balanced intake of vitamins; while a few days of missed vitamins aren't a problem, chronic deficiencies can lead to skin, eye, and bone damage. And for women who are pregnant or trying to become pregnant, ketones can be dangerous for a fetus as well as for you.

Which Diet Should I Use?

The keys to weight loss are moderation and tailoring. If you're interested in losing weight, talk with your healthcare provider about tailoring a weight-loss plan that takes into account your current health and weight-loss goals. Lowering calories and balancing nutrients, rather than focusing on a single "culprit" gives you the best chance of long-term weight reduction.

Auchincloss, E, "Byron's Weight," Times Literary Supplement, 4896, p 15, 1997

Bravata DM, et al." Efficacy and safety of low-carbohydrate diets: A systematic review," Journal of the American Medical Association, Volume 289, issue 14. p 1837?1850. 2003.

Meckling, K, "Comparison of a low-fat diet to a low-carbohydrate diet on weight loss, body composition, and risk factors for diabetes and cardiovascular disease in free-living, overweight men and women," Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, Volume 89, issue 6, pages 2717-23

Westman, EC, et al "Effect of 6-month adherence to a very low carbohydrate diet program," American Journal of Medicine , Volume113, p. 30-36, 2002

Olsen, M., et al,"A low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diet versus a low-fat diet to treat obesity and hyperlipidemia," Annals of Internal Medicine, Voume 140 pages769-777, 2004

Learn more about health, diet and exercise at our weight loss forum.

PhenForum.com is a popular discussion forum for weight loss programs, weight loss forum, and support to help you burn more fat and lose weight permanently.

home cleaning services Deerfield ..

In The News:

Google warns Android users about dangerous fake VPN apps hiding malware that steals passwords, banking details and personal data from phones and tablets.

Apple's digital passport feature lets iPhone users breeze through TSA checkpoints this holiday season using Digital ID technology at 250+ airports.

A new phishing scam targets family photos with fake "Cloud Storage Full" alerts. Criminals steal credit card information through fake sites. Learn protection tips.

South Korean scientists create ultra-thin fabric muscles that turn clothes into robotic assistants, lifting 33 pounds while weighing under half an ounce.

Archer Aviation has acquired Hawthorne Airport for $126M to launch an LA air taxi network ahead of the 2028 Olympics, featuring AI-powered eVTOL operations and next-gen aviation tech.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Fake AI apps disguised as "ChatGPT" and "DALL·E" are flooding app stores with dangerous malware that steals data and monitors users without detection.

Fake buyers demand specific vehicle reports from unknown sites to steal credit card information from car sellers, but warning signs can help identify these scams before paying.

Android users can now manage apps across multiple devices more easily with Google Play Store's updated remote uninstall button in the latest update.

NASA's Perseverance rover discovers shiny metallic rock on Mars that could be a meteorite from an ancient asteroid, containing high levels of iron and nickel.

Holiday scams spike during Black Friday and Cyber Monday as criminals exploit your leaked personal data. Learn how to protect yourself from fake stores and phishing.

Commerce Department proposes TP-Link router ban over Chinese security risks. Learn how this potential prohibition could affect your home network and devices.

Hyundai AutoEver America suffered a data breach affecting 2,000 current and former employees, exposing names, Social Security numbers and driver's license information.

Washington court rules automated license plate reader images are public records, even when stored by vendors like Flock Safety, setting precedent for transparency.

Fake airline texts claiming flight cancellations are targeting travelers with convincing scams. Learn how cybercriminals steal personal data and credit card info.

Discover how iOS 26's new Adaptive Power feature automatically extends iPhone battery life by learning your usage patterns and adjusting performance intelligently.

New TikTok malware campaign tricks users into running PowerShell commands that download Aura Stealer, which steals credentials and authentication tokens.

Gaia Family offers fixed upfront pricing for IVF cycles with unlimited embryo transfers and financial protection, partnering with over 100 U.S. fertility clinics.

The Jetsons Act aims to position Pennsylvania as a leader in advanced air mobility by establishing regulations for hybrid ground-air vehicles.

Fake Geek Squad invoice emails are targeting users with convincing charges and urgent phone numbers to steal personal information and money.

Fox News Digital's artificial intelligence newsletter digs into a robot in Russia that faceplanted, George Clooney's alarm and OpenAI's rivalry with the New York Times.

Major data breach at Conduent exposes personal information of 10+ million people. Government contractor hit by cyberattack affecting Medicaid, child support systems.

Texas startup Janta Power raises $5.5M for innovative vertical solar towers that generate 50% more energy than traditional panels while using just one-third the land.

NASA's twin ESCAPADE spacecraft launched aboard Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket Thursday afternoon from Cape Canaveral, beginning their journey to Mars with arrival expected in 2027.

Learn how to set email reminders on iPhone and Android so you never forget to reply again. Simple built-in features help you stay organized and on top of messages.

High Carb & Low Carb Diets: How To Avoid The Dangers

Weight Loss