What is the Zone Diet?

What exactly is the Zone Diet? Developed by Barry Sears, who has a Ph.D. in biochemistry, many describe it as a high protein, low carbohydrate weight loss plan. The nutrient breakdown recommendation of the diet is 40 percent carbohydrates, 30 percent protein, and 30 percent fat (40:30:30). Some consider it a low carb diet. Technically however, since the majority of the calories come from carbohydrates, there are those who would argue that it is not.

Foods in the Diet

The foods in the diet are suppose to come from lean proteins such as chicken and turkey breast. The carbohydrates are to come from fruits and non-starchy vegetables and the fats from canola and olive oil.

Their are also many foods such as carrots, corn, bananas and baked goods that are restricted from the diet. Whole milk and dairy products are also not allowed.

Benefits of the diet

There are several benefits to the diet that provide motivation behind the diet's design:

Slow the absorption of carbohydrates
Help stabilize insulin and lower blood glucose levels
Lower total cholesterol risk
Reduces hunger

Because of these factors, your risk to heart disease and diabetes are lowered. The fact that it helps to reduce hunger, which can be a major drawback of many other diets, is an added bonus.

Drawbacks

The major drawback of the diet is that it restricts many foods that are considered nutritious. To make up for the nutrients loss from not eating these foods, Sears recommends dietary supplements.

Like many diets that go over the recommended amount of protein of the USDA, many dietitians take issue with the 30 percent of protein. This has to do with the concern that it may damage kidneys. This may not be a concern for those with normal kidney functions, but it may be a concern for those with mild problems.

Another drawback of the diet is that it requires a good bit of measuring and calculating which in the beginning can be quite time consuming and confusing. To alleviate this, you can elect to buy the meals, which can run you around $35 dollars a day.

Lastly, even though some studies have shown that it can reduce hunger, the diet may be hard to follow long term since it is very calorie restricted. As for the seemingly contradiction, the studies followed the 40:30:30 principle, not the very low calorie restriction.

Overall Impression

The basic concept of the diet is fine. However, the restriction put on certain foods is troubling. When carrots, which is high in vitamin A, is off the list, you should be careful at how closely you follow the diet.

If you decide to follow the diet, you may want to increase the calories as well as include nutritious foods that the diet restricts. As for how much to eat, staying at your BMR is the best.

With a little tweaking to take into your personal concerns, the Zone diet will definitely help you lose weight in addition to improving your overall health.

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