Could a Diet Kill You?

There are combinations of diets that might harm your health. Some diets have the same weight loss effect, but harm your heart. It depends on what you want – lose weight and be healthy, or lose weight and suffer from heart disease?  

Dr. Steven Hunter (the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast) and his colleagues concluded in their study that a high fat low carb diet might raise risk of heart disease. Both high carb low fat diets and high fat low carb diets have the same effects on glucose metabolism and weight loss, according to FOODCONSUMER.

The popular Atkins diet is a high fat low carb one which promotes an effective short-term weight loss. However, nutritionists are worried people who follow this kind of diets that might lack essential nutrients like those fat-insoluble nutrients, predisposing them for many diseases.

I note with X the high fat low carbohydrate diet and with Y the low fat and high carbohydrate diet. Dr. Hunter compared X (60% fat, 20% carbs) with Y (20% fat, 60 carbs) to see what are their effects on arterial stiffness, blood sugar, insulin, and cardiovascular risk factors.

The participants were divided in two groups following the X diet, respectively Y diet. Both groups lost weight equally. There weren’t any differences in the way they handled glucose uptake and the insulin secretion. A significant difference appeared in the arterial stiffness for the group who was on the X diet – they had an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Y diet approaches a safer manner in weight loss.

So don’t follow a high fat low carb diet; the best combination is a low fat high carb diet with exercise; the easy way is not always the best.