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Article - Low Carbohydrate Diets

Will They Make You Fat?

Low carbohydrate diets are all the rage. But in the end, will they make you fat? Low-carb diets have been around for over 30 years but recently they are all the rage. The problem is manufacturers and restaurants are getting in on the fad. “The old conventional wisdom: Low-carb dieters can’t eat bread, pasta, cakes, cookies, candy or other sweets. The new conventional wisdom: Low-carb dieters can eat almost any food, as long as they buy high-priced, low-carbohydrate versions.” (Liebman 2004)

Recently, we have seen an explosion of low-carb products out in the market. There are a couple of problems with these products. First, low-carb claims are illegal. The Food & Drug Administration prohibits any nutrient claim that it has not defined. Since there is no definition for Low-Carb, in many cases “lower-carb” foods do not have fewer carbohydrates, they just have fewer “net carbs”. “Net carbs” are not defined and were termed by the manufacturers. They figure “net carbs” by subtracting sugar alcohols, fiber, and other carbohydrates that supposedly have “minimal impact on blood sugar.” Is a carb that does not raise blood sugar no longer a carb?You are still getting the calories from those carbohydrates.

This leads to the second problem: “Minimal impact on your blood sugar” does not mean minimal impact you’re your hips. The low-carb industry assumes that if your “net carbs” are low, your weight will follow. But the science just isn’t there. A low-carb steak fajita dinner with 1,000 calories will most likely end up as fat on your body. (Liebman 2004)

We never learn, not so long ago dieters assumed “fat free” on a label, meant you could eat as much as you want. We quickly learned that you could get fat on “fat free” products. Now many dieters are making the same mistake, assuming that the carbs, and the calories, in low-carb foods don’t count.

The moral to the story is beware of what you are eating. Just because a product is low-carb does not mean it is low calorie or that you will not gain weight with that product. It will eventually come down to calories. If you are consuming more calories than you are expending then you will gain weight.

Liebman, 2004. Cashing in on the Low-Carb Craze. Nutrition Action Health Letter, Vol 31.