Atkins Vs. Low Fat

[Big Al]

CHICAGO (Nov. 19) - After years of dismissing the high-fat, low-carbohydrate Atkins diet, the medical establishment is at last putting it to a careful test and finding it might not be the nutritional folly they long assumed.

A small study released Monday found that contrary to expectations, dieters' cholesterol levels do not shoot through the roof, and they take off more weight - at least in the short term - than do people on a standard low-fat regimen.

"More study is necessary before such a diet can be recommended,'' said Dr. Eric Westman of Duke University. "However, a concern about serum lipid (cholesterol) elevations should not impede such research.''

Experts caution that the number of overweight people studied on the Atkins diet is small, and the research does not examine possible long-term ills or advantages, including how long people keep the pounds off.

At least three formal studies of the Atkins diet have been presented at medical conferences over the past year, and all have reached similar results. The latest, conducted by Westman, was presented at the annual scientific meeting of the American Heart Association, long a stronghold of support for the traditional low-fat approach.

Westman, an internist at Duke's diet and fitness center, said he decided to study the Atkins approach because of concern over so many patients and friends taking it up on their own. He approached the Robert C. Atkins foundation in New York City to finance the research.

Westman studied 120 overweight volunteers, who were randomly assigned to the Atkins diet or the heart association's Step 1 diet, a widely used low-fat approach. On the Atkins diet, people limited their carbs to less than 20 grams a day, and 60 percent of their calories came from fat.

"It was high fat, off the scale,'' he said.

After six months, the people on the Atkins diet had lost 31 pounds, compared with 20 pounds on the AHA diet, and more people stuck with the Atkins regimen.

Total cholesterol fell slightly in both groups. However, those on the Atkins diet had an 11 percent increase in HDL, the good cholesterol, and a 49 percent drop in triglycerides. On the AHA diet, HDL was unchanged, and triglycerides dropped 22 percent. High triglycerides may raise the risk of heart disease.

While the volunteers' total amounts of LDL, the bad cholesterol, did not change much on either diet, there was evidence that it had shifted to a form that may be less likely to clog the arteries.

No single study is likely to change minds on the issue, especially since an initial weight loss is hard to maintain on any diet. Some answers could come from a yearlong study being sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. That experiment, being directed by Dr. Gary Foster of the University of Pennsylvania, will test the Atkins diet on 360 patients.

In the meantime, the heart association's president, Dr. Robert Bonow of Northwestern University, said the organization will reconsider the Atkins diet as more research results become available.

"Having our top academic centers look at this is wonderful,'' he said. "We are still dealing with small numbers of patients. We just need more data.''

Dr. Sidney Smith, the heart association's research director, said it was a surprise that the Atkins diet did not raise LDL cholesterol. "One small study like this flies in the face of so much evidence. We can't change dietary recommendations on the spot,'' he said.

Dr. Alice Lichtenstein, a nutrition expert at Tufts University, said she thinks too much is made of the amounts of carbohydrates and fats in people's diets as they try to shed weight.

"There is no magic combination of fat versus carbs versus protein,'' she said. "It doesn't matter in the long run. The bottom line is calories, calories, calories.''

11/19/02 08:30 EST

Copyright 2002 The Associated Press.

[QuatroIIII]

good post!

[MP]

I saw this also on the news this week but what I don't understand is how the government places guidelines for being considered "overweight". I know they figure that a person should weigh in at a certain amount depending on age,height,and sex. This puts a lot of us weightlifters in the overweight category and even obese according to their chart even though someone may be at an extremely low level of bodyfat. I think the chart should be revised according to a persons BF percentage. It makes more sense to me as I just wouldn't feel right being 175# at my height. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="wink.gif" />

[Big Al]

MP I agree 100%. According to govt. guidelines I should weigh around 168-175. Im 6 ft tall. I would look sick with the frame I have. They should revise it to reflect b/f and not overall weight. Good point MP.

<small>[ November 20, 2002, 12:59 PM: Message edited by: Big Al ]</small>

[SHINE]

Good research Big Al!