Low-carb diets may be an effective weight loss tool for some people. Various diets suggest that you count carbs instead of calories, and weight loss will result. Carbohydrates are a macronutrients in foods that supply your body with quick energy. High levels of carbohydrates are found in grains, flours, baked goods, fruits, starchy vegetables and sugars. Instead of eating these foods, low-carbohydrate diets often recommend that you eat animal protein, fats, low-starch vegetables such as leafy greens, and low-sugar fruits such as berries.
History
Low-carbohydrate diets came into prominence in the 1970s when Dr. Robert Atkins wrote "Dr. Atkins Diet Revolution" in 1972. People loved the idea of being able to eat favorite foods like bacon and cheese and still lose weight. In 1992, Dr. Atkins re-released his diet plan with a few modifications in the book "Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution." The diet quickly gained popularity, and other low-carb diets followed.
Theory
Gary Taubes, author of "Good Calories, Bad Calories," explains the theory behind carbohydrate limitation and weight loss. According to Taubes, carbohydrate intake causes spikes in blood glucose, which leads to the release of insulin into your bloodstream. Insulin is a hormone responsible for fat storage. When it is present in your bloodstream, your body absorbs food as fat and retains fat stored in the fat cells instead of burning it for fuel. If you can control insulin by limiting carbohydrate intake, then your body is able to burn stored fat as fuel, which results in weight loss. Dr. Atkins refers to this process of burning stored fat as fuel as "ketosis."
Types
Many low-carb diets exist. Atkins is still a popular choice. Other low carb-diets include Protein Power, PaNu Paleolithic Nutrition and the Zone diet. The specifics of the diets vary; however, all call for some method of carbohydrate limitation.
Early Stages
Several of the diets recommend an initiation stage of the diet that typically lasts about two weeks and has the most severe level of carbohydrate restriction. Atkins calls this phase "induction," and he recommends that you eat no more than 20g of carbohydrates from leafy green vegetables each day. For the Protein Power diet, doctors Michael and Mary Dan Eades call this initial phase "intervention," and they recommend eating between 7g and 10g of carbs per meal and no more than 40g of carbs per day. Barry Sears, author of the Zone diet, suggests limiting carbohydrate intake to 30 percent of your caloric intake at every meal. PaNu's creator, Dr. Kurt G. Harris, doesn't make any specific carbohydrate level recommendations, but instead recommends eating carbs only from certain fruit and vegetable sources throughout the diet.
Ongoing Weight Loss
Both Atkins and Protein Power suggest increasing carbohydrate intake during the ongoing weight loss phase of the diet---Atkins calls this phase OWL, while Protein Power refers to it as the "transition." The Atkins diet recommends discovering your own personal carbohydrate threshold by gradually increasing daily carb intake a few carbs at a time until you stop losing weight, and then backing off by about 5g of carbs to continue weight loss. Protein Power recommends eating 15g of carbs per meal or snack and no more than 60g per day during the transition phase.
Maintenance
Most low-carb diet designers agree that low-carb eating is a way of life. Once you have lost all the weight, you will need to continue to restrict carbohydrates in order to maintain your loss. Protein Power suggests this level is between 20g and 30g of carbs per meal, with no more than 80g to 120g of carbs per day, while Atkins utilizes the individual approach, suggesting that you return to your previously discovered carbohydrate threshold and eat that amount to maintain your weight. Other diets like the Zone and PaNu have the same recommendations for carb levels throughout the diet, including maintenance.
References
- "Good Calories, Bad Calories"; Gary Taubes; 2007
- "Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution"; Robert C. Atkins, M.D.; 1992
- "Protein Power Lifeplan"; Michael R. Eades, M.D. and Mary Dan Eades; M.D.; 2000
- "Enter the Zone"; Barry Sears, Ph.D., and Bill Lawren; 1995
- PaNu: Paleolithic Nutrition: Duplicating the Evolutionary Metabolic Milieu; Kurt G. Harris, M.D.
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