Made popular by diets like Atkins, South Beach, Sugar Busters and the Zone Diet, low carb eating was all the rage in the 1990s. People dropped weight quickly by cutting back or eliminating carbohydrates and piling on the meat and cheese. Although the low carb fad seems to have ebbed slightly, some people still restrict carbohydrates to lose weight. With so many interpretations of low carb diets--what exactly does following a low carb diet mean?
Features
Three categories of food, called macronutrients--protein, carbohydrates and fats--make up our daily diet. A low carbohydrate diet restricts the percentage of your daily calories that come from the carbohydrate category. The extent to which you limit carbohydrates makes a diet high, moderate or low carb in nature. In general, the U.S. Department of Agriculture food pyramid suggests that getting 50 to 70 percent of your daily calories from carbohydrates is considered high carb. Low carb diets limit carbohydrates to 25 to 39 percent of daily calories, and very low carb diets (such as phase one of the Atkins diet) call for a scant maximum of 25 percent daily calories to come from carbs.
Typical Menu
With most low carb diets, you eliminate refined carbohydrates such as white bread, pasta, crackers, baked goods and sugary sweets. Many low carb diets also restrict your intake of healthy fruits (Atkins and South Beach ban them for certain phases of their diets) and many vegetables. Low carb diets feature meat, poultry, fish, dairy, eggs and watery green vegetables. Some low-carb plans allow small servings of healthy carbs such as fruits, starchier vegetables and whole grains.
Function
Proponents of low carb diets believe the diet helps control insulin and blood sugar levels better, leading to weight loss. Your body will turn to fat, instead of its primary choice of carbohydrates, for energy. People do experience weight loss on low carb diets, largely because of a loss of water weight, increased feelings of fullness because protein takes longer to digest, decreased appetite (perhaps because of lack of variety in the diet) and a generally low calorie eating plan.
Considerations
In order for any low carb diet to work in the long term, you must follow its principles for the long term. The dietary restrictions a low carb diet puts upon you makes lifetime adherence challenging. If you do go back to a mainstream diet, weight probably will return. The low carb craze fell out of favor somewhat when many of its fans regained weight after they quit the program. People also often suffer from low energy, bad breath and irritability when following a very low carbohydrate program.
Risks
No studies on the long-term effects of following a low carb diet have been conducted. A high protein diet can put stress on internal organs, particularly the heart and kidneys. Because fiber-rich fruits and vegetables are restricted, many low carb dieters suffer from constipation. Many low carb diets fail to distinguish between lean sources of protein and those high in saturated fat, so low carb dieters risk an overconsumption of saturated fat, which is a known risk factor for heart disease, high blood pressure and other chronic conditions.
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