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Low-Carb Diets: Do They Represent Healthy Eating?
Two popular diets, the Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution and the South Beach Diet, are based on the theory that we gain weight because we are eating too many carbohydrates. These plans claim that taking in fewer carbs forces the body to burn stored fat for energy. The results can be significant — and rapid — but weight loss experts are not convinced these ultralow carbohydrate diets represent healthy eating.
Atkins or South Beach
Both diets begin with a two-week introduction where nearly all carbohydrates are off limits. Gradually, small amounts of complex carbs, like whole grains and vegetables — so-called “good carbs” — are added back to your diet. Simple carbs, found in cookies and candy, which break down more quickly into sugars, are off-limits. The South Beach Diet allows you to reintroduce carbs sooner.
Both plans permit you to eat lots of protein and fats. The South Beach Diet emphasizes unsaturated fat choices such as nuts, lean meats and low-fat cheeses. Atkins does not distinguish between types of fats. Both are low-calorie diets of about 1,300 to 1,500 calories daily: 55 to 65 percent of calories from fats, less than 20 percent from carbohydrates. By comparison, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), National Cholesterol Education Program and American Heart Association recommend a moderate-fat diet where fats are no more than 30 percent of total calories; carbs contribute 55 percent; and protein 15 percent.
The Bottom Line — So Far
All low-calorie diets will help you lose weight, regardless of the specific nutrients included. Until more long-term studies are available, doctors remain uncertain about recommending low-carb diets because of:
- lack of evidence in people age 50 and older.
- concern about the long-term effects of eating potentially large amounts of saturated fats.
- unknown results of limiting fiber and healthy complex carbohydrates — important sources of vitamins and minerals.
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