Low-carb vegetarianism cuts cholesterol

Tuesday June 9th, 2009

A near vegetarian diet, low in carbs, may be the best way to reduce weight and improve heart health, researchers claimed last night.

A small-scale study in Canada showed dramatic weight loss from the so-called "eco-Atkins" diet over a four week period.

The new diet was compared with a low-fat vegetarian diet high in carbohydrate and including eggs, milk and whole grain.

Researchers found that both diets led to a weight loss of some 8.8 lbs or 4 kg during the period.

However they found the low-carb eco-Atkins diet led to greater reductions in so-called unhealthy cholesterol - low density lipoprotein. There were also "small but significant" improvements in blood pressure from the low-carb diet.

Food in the eco-Atkins diet included gluten, soy, nuts, fruits, vegetables, cereal and vegetable oil. Some 22 people tried it whilst another 22 tried the high-carbohydrate vegetarian diet.

Dr David Jenkins, of St Michael's Hospital and the University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, reports the study in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

He says a "plant-based low-carbohydrate diet high in vegetable proteins and oils may be an effective option" for treating people with high cholesterol levels.

Writing in the same journal Dr Katherine Tuttle and Dr Joan Milton, of the University of Washington, Spokane, Washington, USA, call for more research into the new diet.

They write: "Most of these diets have been promoted within popular culture and until recently have been subjected to little scientific scrutiny. Substantial concern has been raised about the potential for adverse effects.

"Meat is commonly consumed as a major source of dietary protein. However, meat derived from animal muscle also typically contains large amounts of saturated fat and cholesterol."

They say the new research is "debatably more effective and possibly safer tactics for designing higher-protein diets for weight loss and cardiovascular risk reduction.

"However, it is premature to recommend the Eco-Atkins diet as a weight loss diet of choice without confirmation of its efficacy in larger studies of more diverse and higher-risk individuals. Long-term studies are also essential to ascertain both sustainability and safety."

* A second study reported today suggests that eating plenty of oily fish could help tackle an unpleasant eye disease.

The study, reported in the British Journal of Ophthalmology from Tufts University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, suggests that a diet rich in omega-3 oils can slow down the advance of age-related macular degeneration.

Arch Intern Med. 2009;169[11]:1046-1054, 1027
Br J Ophthalmol 2009; doi: 10.1136/bjo.2008.143412

Tags: Diet & Food | Fitness | North America

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