Month: July 2014

I kept seeing a research study about low carb diet and cholesterol that came out yesterday but was to far away from a good computer to post about it.

Over the long term, a low-carb diet works just as well as a low-fat diet at taking off the pounds — and it might be better for your heart, new research suggests. This study was even done on a fairly large number of people so it seems to be valid.

low carb diet and cholesterol

Both diets improved cholesterol in a two-year study that included intensive group counseling. But those on the low-carbohydrate diet got a bigger boost in their so-called good cholesterol, nearly twice as much as those on low-fat.

Low carb diet and cholesterol

In previous studies, low-carb diets have done better at loss at six months, but longer-term results have been mixed. And there’s been a suggestion of better cholesterol from low-carb eating.

The latest test on low carb diet and cholesterol is one of the longest to compare the approaches. At the end of two years, average loss was the same for both — about 15 pounds or 7 percent.

The real problem the way I look at it usually is that a low barb diet will starve you of lots of nutrients. If you skip veggies and fruit you are going to have trouble staying healthy but the potatoes and rice and pasta? I say ditch them if you can.

Low carb Diet increases HDL Cholesterol

The key difference with the low carb diet and cholesterol was in HDL, or good cholesterol: a 23 percent increase from low-carb dieting compared to a 12 percent improvement from low-fat, said Gary Foster, director of Temple University’s Center for Obesity Research and Education, who led the federally funded study.

He said the low-carb boost is the kind one might get from medicines that improve HDL.

“For a diet, that’s pretty impressive,” Foster said.

The findings, published in Tuesday’s Annals of Internal Medicine, are based on a study of 307 adults, two-thirds of them women. Participants were obese but didn’t have cholesterol problems or diabetes.

Half followed a low-carb diet modeled after the Atkins’ plan and half went on a low-calorie, low-fat diet. All attended group sessions to help them change bad eating habits, get more active and stick to their diets. This low carb diet and cholesterol study is very interesting, we will see where it leads.

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Fad diets such as Atkins recommend an almost total abstinence from carbs. Apart from that, even many experts believe that carbs are the real culprits behind the rising cases of obesity. They recommend a carb-free diet as the ‘healthy’ way to lose.

Truth however, is that Carb Free is an ‘unhealthy’ loss method.

Carbs are needed by your body for producing energy. You use this energy for performing your daily activities. This energy also helps your body in performing its ‘bodily’ functions. If your body doesn’t receive an adequate amount of carbohydrates, it will start burning off your lean muscles for the purpose of energy production. This is known as ketosis.

If you are a pregnant woman or a diabetic patient then ketosis can result in your untimely death. As you can see, carbs are your friends and not enemies. A healthy diet is one which contains a healthy dose of all nutrients, including carbs.

On another note, it is not all carbs that are bad for you. There are carbs that you should consume regularly and then there are also carbs that you should avoid at all costs. In this article I will tell you about both.

Carbs to Avoid, Carbs to Eat

1. Which carbs to eat and which ones to avoid: As a matter of fact, there are two types of carbs: simple and complex. Simple carbs are called so because they are very simple and easy ton digest.

Simple carbs will give you a sudden outburst of energy which you obvious won’t use up instantly. The end result is that this excess energy would be stored as fat by your body.

Complex carbs, on the other hand, take more time to digest than the simple carbs. Unlike simple carbs, complex carbs won’t give you a sudden burst of energy; far from that, they will boost your metabolism and energy level in a natural way.

When your metabolic rate is high, you burn calories at a high rate.

Natural fruits contain complex carbs, while processed fruit juices, fizzy drinks, soda, while flour, etc., are examples of simple carbs.

2. Calories, rather than carbs, make you gain : Studies point out that if you regularly consume more calories than you burn off, you will gain . Unlike what the experts say, you would gain even by not eating carbs.

As per the principle, if you follow a diet that is devoid of carbs and rich only in protein and fat, you will still gain unless you restrict your calorie intake. After all, calorie is calorie, and no matter where it comes from, your body will always store excess calories as fat.

That is why it pays to count your daily calorie intake.

If that is impossible for you, your only other alternative is to workout regularly. That way, you will be burning off whatever extra calories you have.

Related Blogs

• Related Blogs on Fitness

Fad diets such as Atkins recommend an almost total abstinence from carbs. Apart from that, even many experts believe that carbs are the real culprits behind the rising cases of obesity. They recommend a carb-free diet as the ‘healthy’ way to lose.

Truth however, is that Carb Free is an ‘unhealthy’ loss method.

Carbs are needed by your body for producing energy. You use this energy for performing your daily activities. This energy also helps your body in performing its ‘bodily’ functions. If your body doesn’t receive an adequate amount of carbohydrates, it will start burning off your lean muscles for the purpose of energy production. This is known as ketosis.

If you are a pregnant woman or a diabetic patient then ketosis can result in your untimely death. As you can see, carbs are your friends and not enemies. A healthy diet is one which contains a healthy dose of all nutrients, including carbs.

On another note, it is not all carbs that are bad for you. There are carbs that you should consume regularly and then there are also carbs that you should avoid at all costs. In this article I will tell you about both.

Carbs to Avoid, Carbs to Eat

1. Which carbs to eat and which ones to avoid: As a matter of fact, there are two types of carbs: simple and complex. Simple carbs are called so because they are very simple and easy ton digest.

Simple carbs will give you a sudden outburst of energy which you obvious won’t use up instantly. The end result is that this excess energy would be stored as fat by your body.

Complex carbs, on the other hand, take more time to digest than the simple carbs. Unlike simple carbs, complex carbs won’t give you a sudden burst of energy; far from that, they will boost your metabolism and energy level in a natural way.

When your metabolic rate is high, you burn calories at a high rate.

Natural fruits contain complex carbs, while processed fruit juices, fizzy drinks, soda, while flour, etc., are examples of simple carbs.

2. Calories, rather than carbs, make you gain : Studies point out that if you regularly consume more calories than you burn off, you will gain . Unlike what the experts say, you would gain even by not eating carbs.

As per the principle, if you follow a diet that is devoid of carbs and rich only in protein and fat, you will still gain unless you restrict your calorie intake. After all, calorie is calorie, and no matter where it comes from, your body will always store excess calories as fat.

That is why it pays to count your daily calorie intake.

If that is impossible for you, your only other alternative is to workout regularly. That way, you will be burning off whatever extra calories you have.

Related Blogs

• Related Blogs on Fitness