Low Carb Study

Scarsdale, Atkins, the Zone, South Beach. Each of these diets claims their plan is your key to successful, long-term weight loss, but the available research is insufficient at this point for us to really, truly know what's most effective. Conventional dietitians will tell you that losingweight is all about taking in less overall calories-that with a combination of eating less and exercising more, you will lose weight healthfully by calories deficit. But with more and more emerging research on the effect of hormones and insulin on our ability to lose weight, plus the importance of limiting sugars for preventing chronic disease, I'm feeling that permanent weight loss is about something much more...

And once again, there's new research that supports the benefits of low carb diets. Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have recently found that folks on a low carb diet utilize oxidized fat in the liver for energy much more than those on a low calorie diet. Meaning: the low carb-ers burned more fat in their livers than folks on a low calorie diet. The result? The low calorie dieters in their study lost 5 pounds after 2 weeks while the low carb dieters lost an average of 9.5 pounds-almost double the weight loss! The researchers say their results not only have implications for weight loss, but also treating people with fatty liver disease, insulin resistance and diabetes.

Again, my feeling is, why wait until the verdict is out to try increasing protein in our diets to lose weight? Recently, I started eating scrambled eggs for breakfast (adding more egg whites than yolk) again and I am going strong through the morning with much more energy than when I was eating oatmeal with fruit. For lunch, I'm adding more chicken and salad and I'm still working on perfecting my dinners. I definitely feel less inclined to much on unhealthy snacks between meals. I'd love to hear your high protein tips if you have any you'd like to share!

Judy Feder is a health and nutrition specialist. To read more of her articles, visit her online at judyfeder.com judyfeder.com/