Low-Carbohydrate Diet: Strengths and Weaknesses

While each has its own restrictions when it comes to carbohydrates, popular diets like the Atkins diet, South Beach diet, and Zone Diet all emphasize weight loss through reducing carbs. When following a low-carbohydrate diet, foods that contain carbohydrates such as bread, sweets, pastas, and starchy fruits and vegetables are limited, and foods that are high in protein and fat, such as meats, cheese, eggs, and nuts, are encouraged. But just like any diet there are strengths and weaknesses, and you should carefully consider them before changing how you eat.

Strengths

Weight Control: People who follow low-carbohydrate diets can better control their weight because their blood glucose and blood sugar levels are more stabilized. Hunger is reduced as sugar 'spikes' are eliminated, therefore leading to less appetite swings and supporting satiety. 

Fat Burning: Since insulin utilizes sugar for energy it prevents the breaking down of body fat. Decreased carbohydrate intake can lower insulin levels which causes the body to burn stored fat rather than sugar for energy. When more fat is being burned it is easier to lose weight.

Insulin Levels: When total carb or high-glycemic carbs consumption is reduced and physical activity is conducted on a regular basis, glucose intolerance can be reduced as well. This leads to not only improved weight control but better health, as blood sugar levels can be decreased and controlled. Also, as muscle tissue requires more calories to support it than body fat, metabolic rate is raised which results in extra fat burning.

Heart Risk: A low-carbohydrate diet that is calorie controlled and keeps the consumption of saturated fats to a minimum helps to improve both cholesterol and triglyceride levels. This leads to a decreased risk of developing heart disease, as high cholesterol and triglyceride levels can lead to coronary heart disease, heart attack, stroke, and metabolic syndrome.

Weaknesses

Temporary Weight Loss: The significant drop in weight that one can experience during the first or second week of a low-carbohydrate diet might not be attributed to actual fat loss, but depleted glycogen stores. A decrease in glycogen can cause a loss in water and muscle, resulting in a lower number on the scale. This kind of weight loss is not only unhealthy but unlikely to last very long.

Healthy glycogen: When the proper amounts of carbohydrates are consumed, the formation of glycogen can occur in the liver and muscles and in turn lead to the breakdown of glycogen in order to make glucose fuel the body. Following a very-low-carbohydrate diet can deplete healthy glycogen, stored in the liver and muscles, causing dehydration and muscle loss in the body, as well as causing fatigue and uncomfortable movement.

Regaining Weight: It is fairly common that people who follow very-low-carbohydrate diets eventually end up regaining the weight that they lose from them. This can be attributed to the amount of muscle that has been lost which contributes to slower metabolism that burns fewer calories throughout the day. Also, people end up regaining the healthy fluid that they originally lost during glycogen depletion. Many also find it difficult to stay on this type of diet for long as it does not lead to changes that promote long-term healthy lifestyles.

Lack of Nutrition: Anytime you eliminate entire food categories out of your eating habits, you are also eliminating the nutrition that they contain. Very-low-carbohydrate diets are insufficient as they lack the vitamins, antioxidants, fiber, and phytonutrients that are found in whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables. These nutrients are important when it comes to the preventions of different types of cancers and cardiovascular diseases.

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