Low Carb Diet To Lower Cholesterol

Low-carb diets have been shown to be effective for weight loss, resulting in about double the weight loss--21.6 lbs. versus 10.6 lbs.--when compared to low-fat calorie-restricted diets, as shown in the "Annals of Internal Medicine." Low-carb diets usually limit the daily carbohydrate intake to between 50 and 150 g a day and mainly focus on the consumption of non-starchy vegetables, healthy sources of fat and adequate amounts of protein.

Low-Carb Diets and Saturated Fats

Low-carb diets have been criticized for their high saturated fat content, mainly from animal fats, such as butter, bacon and meat as well as coconut oil. It has long been hypothesized that saturated fats were associated with an increased risk of suffering from heart problems. However, a meta-analysis including 347,747 participants followed for periods ranging between five and 23 years showed that the consumption of saturated fats was not related to the risk of developing cardiovascular or coronary heart disease, which is good news for people following low-carb diets.

Triglycerides Levels

Low-carb diets have been shown to be particularly effective at reducing triglycerides levels. In a 24-week long study, participants following the low-carb diet, which comprised less than 20 g of carbohydrates a day during the induction phase, lowered their triglycerides levels by 74.2 mg/dL compared to a reduction of only 27.9 mg/dL in the low-fat group, according to a study published in the "Annals of Internal Medicine." A meta-analysis regrouping five trials and a total of 447 participants also reported similar results, as published in the "Archives of Internal Medicine."

LDL Cholesterol

A study comparing low-carb and low-fat diets has shown that bad LDL cholesterol levels are usually unchanged when following a low-carb diet, while these levels were decreased by 5.4 mg/dL on average in the group following the low-fat diet, as published in the "Archives of Internal Medicine." Therefore, low-carb diets are not effective at reducing LDL cholesterol, but it is important to note that low-carb diets do not raise LDL cholesterol either.

HDL Cholesterol

HDL cholesterol is the good cholesterol known for its heart-protective benefits. It has been reported numerous times in scientific literature that low-carb diets are effective at raising HDL cholesterol levels, while low-fat diets tend to decrease the levels of good cholesterol in circulation, according to a meta-analysis published in 2006 in the "Archives of Internal Medicine." For example, a study showed a significant increase of 5.5 mg/dL in HDL cholesterol levels in the low-carb group compared to a reduction of 1.6 mg/dL in the low-fat group, as reported in "Annals of Internal Medicine."