Low-carb diets are popular on the bookstore shelves and among fad dieters, but not many professionals are behind them. However, a study published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association" found that a calorie is a calorie. Whether it is a low-carb diet or a low-fat diet, it does not matter in losing weight according to the study. As long as you are restricting your calories, the weight will come off. There are many plans that can help you cut back on your calories and carbs.
Atkins
Atkins is probably the most well known of the low-carb diets. According to the University of Michigan Health System, its philosophy maintains that too many carbohydrates creates an influx of insulin in the body. By restricting them, you put your body in a state of ketosis that increases fat metabolism. It is followed in three phases. In the first phase, you eat less than 20 g of carbohydrates. In the second phase, you gradually increase your carbohydrates to eat as many as you can but still lose weight. The third phase is maintenance, when you can eat between 25 and 90 g of carbohydrates to maintain your weight.
The Zone
The Zone Diet focuses on eating all of the nutrients found in foods in the right ratio. If you eat foods in the right combinations, according to the University of Michigan Health System, you can increase your metabolism, lose weight and regulate insulin levels. The diet recommends eating 40 percent of your diet from carbohydrates, 30 percent from protein and 30 percent from fat. You are supposed to choose lean proteins and monounsaturated fats for your food choices. It can be very difficult to achieve this proportion in your diet at all times.
Protein Power
Protein Power has a similar philosophy to Atkins in that it contends that eating carbohydrates results in a large release of insulin. This release of insulin leads to obesity and other health problems. The secret to Protein Power, according to the University of Michigan Health System, is to eat 15 to 35 percent of your calories from carbohydrates, 30 to 45 percent from protein, and 30 to 50 percent from fat. The diet encourages low-carb vegetables and the inclusion of more than 25 g of fiber per day. It also expects you to limit carbohydrates to 30 g in the first phase, 55 g in the second phase and then to find a maintenance level for the third phase.
Sugar Busters
Sugar Busters goes one step further than Atkins and calls sugar "toxic" to the body. It also says that the insulin release causes your metabolism to slow down. The diet encourages the consumption of protein, fat and foods that have a low glycemic index. A food's glycemic index is a measure of how much a food impacts your blood sugar over a given amount of time. Sugar Busters also insists that you eat your fruit by itself. You should stay away from potatoes, white rice, corn and all refined white flour if you plan to follow this diet.
South Beach
The South Beach Diet is another widely popular low-carb diet. It focuses on eating the right carbs and the right fats to lose weight and be healthy, and claims that eating the wrong ones causes the body to gain weight. According to the University of Michigan Health System, there are three phases to this diet. In the first phase, you choose low glycemic index carbs and avoid fatty meats, whole-milk cheese, high glycemic vegetables, all fruit and all dairy. In the second phase, you can add some of those foods back, but still avoid bagels, white flour, potatoes, white rice, carrots, canned fruit and ice cream, among other foods. In the third phase, you make choices in moderation to maintain your weight loss.
References
- New York University Langone Medical Center; Low-Carbohydrate Diet; February 2011
- University of Michigan Health System; Fad Diets: Low Carbohydrate Diet Summaries
- "Journal of the American Medical Association"; Efficacy and Safety of Low-Carbohydrate Diets: A Systematic Review; D.M. Bravata, et al.; 2003
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