It seems there is a new fad diet popping up every month with promises of great results, and many fall for them. Women are the biggest followers of fad diets at 45% who try using these diets to lose weight. For quite a while, it has been thought that eating a low carb diet was the best way to lose weight. Researchers have conducted studies comparing a low carb diet to a low fat diet, and not surprisingly, the results were the same. The newest concern, however, is the effect that a low carb diet has on the heart.
Research has shown that participants of low carb diets had reduced dilation and flow (called flow mediated dilation) in the artery of their arm. This is one of the first signs of cardiovascular disease. On the flip side, those who were on low fat diets saw the opposite happen as the dilation and flow improved, which indicates that those on a low fat diet have lower chances of developing cardiovascular disease due to diet.
It is thought that this is due to low carb diets contain much less folic acid in them as opposed to low fat diets, and folic acid is important in reducing the possibility of heart disease. The high fat content in low carb diets is a real concern to doctors for longtime users, as high fat diets are a major culprit that causes heart disease.
A healthy diet and exercise are still best for reducing the chance of heart disease. Eating a balanced diet and cutting 250 to 500 calories per day from your diet will result in a 1 to 2 pound loss in weight per week. Making small changes like low fat milk from whole milk and leaner cuts of meat instead of fatty hamburgers will make the transition easier. Also be sure that you get in 30 minutes of moderate exercise daily, such as swimming, walking, or biking.
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