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Old January 28th, 2004, 08:16 AM
zsklar
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Default Study Links High-Carbs and Weight Loss

By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer

CHICAGO - In the midst of the low-carb craze, a new study suggests that by
eating lots of carbohydrates and little fat, it is possible to lose weight
without actually cutting calories - and without exercising, either.

Related Links
. Study Abstract (AIM)



In Yahoo! Health


The study was small, consisting of just 34 overweight adults who either ate
the recommended diet for three months; ate the recommended diet and
exercised regularly; or ate pretty much what they usually eat.


All meals were prepared for participants, who were instructed to eat as much
as they wanted. They also were told to return any uneaten food, which the
researchers said enabled them to calculate calorie intake.


Many doctors dispute whether people can lose weight without reducing their
food intake, and at least one questioned the study's accuracy.


But the diet is more compatible with conventional notions of healthful
eating than the fatty, low-carbohydrate Atkins and South Beach diets.


Participants on the recommended diet lost about 7 pounds without cutting
calories and without exercise, and almost 11 pounds with 45 minutes of
stationary bike-riding four times weekly. The control group lost no weight.


The findings appear in Monday's Archives of Internal Medicine (news - web
sites).


Gary Foster, clinical director of the University of Pennsylvania's Weight
and Eating Disorders Program, said he suspects participants who lost weight
ate less than what was reported. He said that while he recommends a low-fat,
high carb diet to patients, without calorie reduction it would be "a public
health disaster."


"The whole idea that you could lose weight without reducing energy intake
flies in the face of 100 years of data," Foster said.


Lead author William Evans of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
stood by his findings.


"Calories in minus calories out does not always determine the amount of
weight loss," Evans said. "This is because we metabolize fats and
carbohydrates very differently."


American Dietetic Association spokeswoman Cindy Moore agreed and said with
low-carb diets hogging the spotlight, "it may be a reminder that we can lose
weight in a variety of different ways."


Foods on the successful diets included high-fiber cereal, vegetarian chili,
whole-wheat spaghetti, many fruits and vegetables, and skim milk. Daily
calories totaled about 2,400, similar to participants' usual consumption.


The control group also received prepared meals with similar calories, but
the foods included sausage, scrambled eggs, macaroni and cheese, French
fries, whole milk and fewer fruits and vegetables.


The successful diet was not tested against Atkins and other low-carb
regimens, which contain more fat and fewer carbs than the control group
diet.