You’ll probably lose weight if you follow a popular type of diet that’s low in carbs and high in protein; but are high protein diets a healthy way to lose the weight? The controversy surrounding this type of eating plan is loud and seemingly endless. And a new study is further stirring that pot with a startling new finding  about cardiovascular health.

The study started out as a straightforward effort to determine whether a low-carb/high-protein diet is healthy, says its senior author Anthony Rosenzweig, MD, director of cardiovascular research at the Cardiovascular Institute at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. Mice bred to have atherosclerosis were fed one of three diets for 12 weeks:  One group ate a standard mouse chow with 65% carbohydrates, 15% fat and 20% protein; another group ate an approximation of the typical Western human diet with 43% carbs, 42% fat and 15% protein; and a third group ate an approximation of a typical human low-carb/high-protein weight loss diet with 12% carbs, 43% fat and 45% protein.

What’s the Surprise?

Not all the findings were surprising. As expected, the mice in the low-carb/high-protein group put on less weight as they matured than those on the Western diet. In addition,  their markers for vascular disease (including cholesterol and triglyceride levels), oxidative stress, insulin and glucose levels, as well as some inflammatory cytokine levels were either no different or slightly better.   But the researchers got a big surprise when they examined the blood vessels themselves: The low-carb/high-protein eating mice had far more atherosclerosis as measured by plaque accumulation than the mice in the Western diet group.  Huh.  Turns out maybe you can’t eat a strict diet of bacon and eggs and cheese and butter without some negative health consequences…

Seriously though-this could be big news for human dieters.  The researchers had to try to find an explanation for this unexpected and worrisome finding. Since none of the standard vascular health markers (the things your doctor checks at your annual physical) indicated anything was amiss, the researchers theorized that something might have interfered with the mice’s natural ability to repair injuries to vessels and return them to normal function. The team focused on a special bone marrow cell thought to play a role in blood vessel regrowth and injury repair called EPC (endothelial progenitor cells.)  They found that in the low-carb/high-protein group, levels had indeed dropped 40% after only two weeks on the diet.

What does this mean for us non-mice? The study shows a correlation between reduction of the cells and an increase in arterial plaque which Dr. Rosenzweig believes  may be of great importance. Other studies have demonstrated that people with heart and cardiovascular disease tend to have fewer of these cells and that people who exercise regularly have more of them.  So now we must wonder, can a low-carb diet reduce EPC levels and possibly lead to or contribute to serious heart disease? More research is required, as we still don’t know whether this would happen in people… but it certainly convinced Dr. Rosenzweig to go off the low-carb diet he was on.

Related Diet News

You may also be interested in Dr. Rosenzweig’s research from Mount Sinai Medical School in New York City (“The Brain-Shrinking Diet”). This earlier, and unrelated, study found brain shrinkage in mice fed a low-carb/high-protein diet — another finding that raises concerns about the potential for harm in such a diet. While it’s too early to draw conclusions, the two studies do ring some cautionary bells about diets loaded with protein and light on carbs. As Dr. Rosenzweig says, the best message for now is to stick with “all the things we know are good for us, including a balanced, nutritious diet with lots of fruits and vegetables.” Those are the kinds of carbs we all need to eat anyway.

Source(s):

Anthony Rosenzweig, MD, director of cardiovascular research, CardioVascular Institute at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, Boston.

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Reprinted with the permission of:
Bottom Line Publications/Daily Health News
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There are many diets and health options out there for people to lose weight, but do we truly know that they are working. It is hard to tell with every individual, but there are some options out there that improve peoples health and weight drastically.

Get all the high protein you need easily!

Though not without its detractors, the Atkins diet has been found effective for weight loss and reducing insulin resistance, lowering triglycerides and raising HDL (good) cholesterol — but the key criticism from doctors and nutritionists has been that eating such large amounts of animal protein can cause harm to your health. In part, this is what prompted University of Toronto researchers, headed by David J. A. Jenkins, MD, PhD, DSc, the scientist who developed the glycemic index, to study the effects of a similar diet based on plant protein and oils rather than on animal protein and fats. The diet is called “Eco-Atkins” because it’s not only better for the people on it, but many believe also for the planet.

A BETTER WAY THAN ATKINS

The four-week study involved 44 men and women, all overweight and with elevated LDL cholesterol levels, randomized into two groups. The control group ate a low-cal, high-carb, lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet (which means they were able to eat dairy and eggs). The difference for the Eco-Atkins group was a lower proportion of carbohydrates — they ate a low-carb, lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet high in protein from nonanimal sources, including gluten, soy, nuts, fruits, vegetables, cereals and vegetable oils, plus a small amount of psyllium. Both groups consumed 60% of their normal caloric requirements and lost eight to nine pounds, but the Eco-Atkins group showed greater improvement in LDL and total cholesterol… reductions in other blood lipid markers… and also small but significant reductions in blood pressure.

PROTEIN FROM PLANTS

Using protein (primarily from animal muscle meats) as an alternative source of glucose is the foundation of the Atkins diet. However, protein is also abundant in plants — for instance, one cup of brussels sprouts has 5.64 grams of protein and one cup of oatmeal has 5.9 grams. Animal protein contains greater amounts of some essential amino acids, and the levels of various types of protein differ among plants — but Dr. Jenkins adds that the old idea of balancing amino acids and proteins through combinations of cereals and legumes (rice and beans, pasta and fagioli, etc.) provides complete protein that rivals animal protein. (To learn more about how to combine foods to meet protein requirements, visithttp://mayoclinic.com/health/medical/IM02769.) To find plant-based protein foods, go to www.highproteinfoods.net.

Source(s):

David J.A. Jenkins, MD, PhD, DSc, professor, department of nutritional sciences, University of Toronto.

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Reprinted with the permission of:
Bottom Line Publications/Daily Health News
Boardroom Inc.
281 Tresser Blvd., 8th Floor
Stamford, CT 06901
www.BottomLineSecrets.com