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Millions of people in the United States are dieting. The number one New Year’s resolution is to diet and lose weight.
In 1990, the diet industry revenue was $30 billion, which includes money spent on diet center, programs, group and individual weight loss, diet camps, prepackaged foods, over-the-counter and prescription diet drugs, weight-loss books and magazines, health professionals, exercise clubs with weight loss programs, “lite” food products, imitation fats and sugar substitutes.
Weight cycling is the continuing pattern of weight-loss and weight-gain. As unhealthy as it is to be overweight, studies have shown that weight cycling can actually be more unhealthy and can cause its own problems, such as increased risk for developing gallstones.
Fad diets are not new. Different diets carry different premises and promises as to how they work. There are low and Very Low Calorie Diets which range from 800–1,500 calories per day. Side effects of a VLCD include: fatigue, constipation, nausea, diarrhea, and gallstones. A VLCD causes the body to go into “starvation mode.” The body then hoards it’s stores of fat. Most weight loss is water loss and the body does not receive the nutrients it needs.
The other main type of diet, and the most popular diet is the High Protein / Low Carb / Low Glycemic (HP/LC) diet. The most popular of these are the Atkins diet and the South Beach Diet.
Some fad diets are a combination of these two types. There are scores of diets available to the public. A list of the most popular includes:
- 3 day diet – a dehydrating VLCD that uses caffeine to assist with weight loss
- 7 day diet – starts as a LCD and ends with 12 steaks in three days.
- Bread and butter diet – standard VLCD or LCD diet
- Grapefruit diet – weird diet, the premise is that grapefruit is a catalyst that makes you burn calories.
- Russian Air Force diet – a VLCD high-protein diet.
- Slim Fast Jump Start diet – a VLCD diet
- Caveman Diet – premise to eat what caveman could have eaten (eggs, meat, vegetables) and avoid what they couldn’t (cheese, grains)
- Chicken Soup diet – VLCD diet
- Metabolism diet – a VLCD, high protein diet that uses caffeine to assist with weight loss
- Scarsdale diet – combo between the grapefruit
Dr. Atkins writes very persuasively. I’ve read many of his materials and it’s near convincing. That is, if you don’t research the facts. I first want to cover some of the myths and deceptions of the HP/LC diet.
1. High-protein diets cause dramatic weight loss
Studies have indicated that the amount of weight loss in this type of diet is about the same as a low-fat vegetarian diet. A study this year supposedly supporting the HP/LC diet by showing that their dieters lost more weight than low-fat dieters. If you look more closely at the study, however, you will see that the supposed low-fat diet was actually a moderate-fat diet at 25-30% fat. A true low-fat diet contains 7-10% fat, as described by Ornish and others. Also, there was one participant who was hospitalized with chest pain and another who died—both on the Atkins diet. So if I were the proponents of this diet, I wouldn’t get too excited about announcing this so-called research.
2. Fat and cholesterol are not related to heart disease
Yeah, right. This is a more recent development that can be blamed mostly on the media. If there is one thing out there that is well-studied, it is the relationship between fat/cholesterol and heart disease. This relationship is clear. Why would the media skew the facts to make it sound like the evidence on this subject is weak, I don’t know.
3. Protein doesn’t boost insulin, only carbs do. That’s why carbs make people fat.
Nice try. The truth is, proteins DO stimulate the release of insulin, just like carbohydrates. In fact, studies have shown that beef and cheese boost insulin more than pasta, and fish more than popcorn. Fat is also shown to boost insulin.
4. People who eat more carbs gain more weight
Diets like Atkins note that carbohydrate restriction induces ketosis (more on that later), as well has reduced energy intake, which results in weight loss. This can be twisted to make it sound that carbohydrates cause obesity. But in clinical studies, the reverse has been shown to be true. Think about the diets of difference cultures. Take Asia. They eat large amounts of rice, noodles, and vegetables, which are all carbs. The average Asian is lower in body fat than are Americans who, even when not on a diet, consume way more meats, dairy products, and fried foods. Also, vegetarians, who also consume a high-carb diet, have lower body weights than your average omnivore.
Ketosis
These type of diets are designed to induce ketosis. When carbohydrates, the primary fuel of the body, are restricted, the body turns fat into fuel. Byproducts of this metabolism are called ketones, which are acids. The presence of ketones is called ketosis. Ketosis is associated with loss of appetite, nausea, fatigue and low blood pressure. Ketosis, by the way, is something that occurs when someone is starving. The metabolic acidosis that occurs in starvation (and also in out-of-control diabetes) does lead to decreased appetite and nausea, which is a kindness to the person who is starving, so that they don’t suffer severe hunger. This is the key to the low-carb dieter’s success. The problem however is that ketosis is a condition associated with serious illness. Also, while other organs can use fats and proteins as fuels, the brain cannot. The brain requires carbohydrates to function and survive.
High-fat, high cholesterol = heart disease
These diets are typically high in fat, cholesterol, saturated fat, and protein and are generally low in fiber. If you were trying to die of cardiovascular disease, this would be the way to do it. High protein, high fat and high saturated fat diets are all linked with heart and vascular disease. I analyzed some recipes on the Atkins website. One recipe, chocolate mousse, contains 45 grams of fat per serving (death by chocolate!). Plus they don’t mention how much cholesterol or saturated fat is in it. I calculated it: each serving contains 61 mg Cholesterol and 15 g Saturated fat. That assumes that a person will only eat one, approximately 1/3 cup serving (which is much smaller than what is portrayed in the picture) and that was calculated without the added the extra shaved candy bar on top, as the recipe suggests. Tell me how this recipe is healthy? Another recipe, Beef Stroganoff, which is on their Lifetime Maintenance menu, contains 44 g fat, 25 mg cholesterol and 7 g of saturated fat per serving. Lifetime maintenance? What’s the lifetime expectancy?
Malnutrition
This diet is an example of being overfed but undernourished. A nutritional analysis of sample menus show that the diet does not meet recommended dietary intakes for nutrients, particularly, iron, calcium, vitamin C, vitamin A, folate and thiamin.
Increased risk for colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer is a very common form of cancer and among the leading causes of cancer-deaths. Long-term high meat intake, especially red meat, and low fiber diets are associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer. This diet is a prescription for developing colorectal cancer.
Kidney Damage
Dr. Atkins wrote in the preface of his book that he couldn’t find a single study that linked high-protein diets with kidney disease. Well, I did and if he would have lived long enough, he could have, too. The study showed that those who already had kidney damage would further deteriorate on a high-protein diet. Those whose kidneys were healthy did not have kidney damage. However, the problem is that some people, such as many people with high blood pressure, do not realize they have kidney damage. An interesting side note of the study was that animal protein was found to damage kidneys, but plant protein did not.
Kidney Stones
Protein is acidic. A high-protein diet makes the body more acidic. The body must maintain a fairly precise range of pH balance to sustain life, therefore, calcium is removed from the bones in order to buffer the acid. This increase in blood calcium can lead to kidney stones. Also, animal protein is high in purines, which is a precursor of uric acid, which also can lead to stone formation.
Osteoporosis
As we just learned, calcium is leached out of the bones in order to buffer the increase in acid in a high-protein diet. Less calcium in bones leads to osteoporosis, or weak, brittle bones. In one study, participants were put on a HP/LC diet for 6 weeks. The researchers found that urinary calcium losses increased by 55% and concluded that the diet increased the acid load on the kidneys, increases the risk for stone formation, and may increase the risk for bone loss.
There are a lot of diets out there and many people desperate to lose weight who are willing to ignore serious, long-term health risks in order to achieve weight loss. My challenge to dieters and potential dieters is to be very cautious and carry out a plan that will help you lose weight and gain health.
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