Trafford Publishing: It's the Calories Not the Carbs: The Myths and Truths of Carbohydrates

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It's the Calories Not the Carbs: The Myths and Truths of Carbohydrates

by Glenn A. Gaesser, Ph.D. & Karin Kratina, PhD, R.D

238 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #04-0991; ISBN 1-4120-3164-8; US$23.50, C$27.00, EUR19.00, £13.50

While the number of fad diets increase, so do our waistlines. No matter what the latest claim, calories do count, as Americans have found out the hard way. It's the Calories, Not the Carbs was written to set the record straight and show you how to make healthful lifestyle changes... and say goodbye to fad diets for good.

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About the Book About the Authors Excerpt Catalogue Information

About the Book

For today's Americans, it is an obsession. What should I eat? What should I avoid? Which foods should I combine? How do I get "in the zone" or "eat for my type?" We must now choose between "healthy" fats and "unhealthy" fats; "good" carbs and "bad" carbs; and "high glycemic" and "low glycemic." While the formulas for healthful eating increase, so do our waistlines.
The perfect example is the low-carbohydrate diet. Since the mid-1990s low-carb diets have made a phenomenal resurgence, led by Dr. Robert Atkins' program, which has been on The New York Times bestseller list continuously for the past five years. But his plan is by no means the only one. Others also are jockeying to take the low-carb crown, including the South Beach Diet, the latest in the low-carb offerings that has pushed its way up the bestseller lists. With this resurgence, many Americans are now avoiding carbs. For the time being, carbs appear to be the "enemy" in many people's minds and stomachs.
We emphasize "for the time being" because when it comes to diets, nothing lasts forever. Americans went through a similar obsession with carbohydrate avoidance a few decades ago, when many low-carb diet books topped the bestseller lists in the 1960s and 1970s-including the original version of Atkins' low-carb diet. Despite their popularity, low-carb diets had virtually no measurable effect on our waistlines-the weight of the average U.S. adult at the end of '70s was essentially the same as it was at the start of the previous decade. It seems that a diet limited to primarily protein and fat was not the answer after all.
And when it comes to dieting, it seems Americans cannot resist a fad. But no matter what the latest fad diet claims, the bottom line is calories-regardless of type-do count. Unfortunately, Americans seem to have found out the hard way. It's the Calories, Not the Carbs was written in part to clarify this point and set the record straight.
It also was written to show you that eating well-and living well-is about giving yourself the best possible intake of nutrients to allow your body to be as healthy as possible and to work as well as it can. It is getting the nutrients your body needs for optimal mental performance and emotional balance. It is not a set of rules. Your body's needs and health goals are completely unique and depend on a whole host of factors-from the strengths and weaknesses you were born with, to the effects your current environment has on you. No single way of eating is perfect for everyone, although there are general guidelines that apply to us all.
Whether your personal health goal is to lose weight, maintain your current weight, become more active, have more energy, or just improve your overall health and fitness-this guide will show you how to use the Food Guide Pyramid, listen to your body, and become more active to make lasting, healthful lifestyle changes for health and wellness ...and to say goodbye to fad diets of all types for good.

About the Authors

Glenn A. Gaesser, Ph.D., is a professor of Exercise Physiology and director of the Kinesiology Program in the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville. Dr. Gaesser has conducted research and published many articles on exercise, body weight, health and fitness in scientific journals, trade publications, and newsletters. He is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, and co-authored this organization's 1998 position stand on "The recommended quantity and quality of exercise for developing and maintaining cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness, and flexibility in healthy adults." He is an editorial/advisory board member and contributing writer of Health at Every Size. His interest in the relationship between body weight and health led Dr. Gaesser to author the critically acclaimed book, Big Fat Lies: The Truth About Your Weight and Your Health, in 1996 (updated version 2002, Gurze Books). In 1997, he received a public service award from the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (ANAD). A popular speaker, Dr. Gaesser has presented on the subject of fitness, body weight, and health at numerous national and international meetings. He has been a guest on dozens of radio and TV shows in North America and has been interviewed for stories on body weight, fitness and health for numerous newspapers and magazines throughout the world. Dr. Gaesser has been featured on Good Morning America, ABC's 20/20, World News Tonight with Peter Jennings, NBC Nightly News, CNN, and Dateline NBC.

Karin Kratina, PhD, R.D. is a noted speaker, author and nutrition therapist who holds a B.S. degree in nutrition, M.A. in exercise physiology and PhD in cognitive anthropology (where she examined the unconscious thinking processes of women regarding food and body and how it impacts their behavior). For the past 20 years., Karin has devoted her work to the treatment of women and men with eating and weight issues, including those with eating disorders. Her passion is to help others break out of "diet prison" and guide them back to the freedom around food and body that is so rightfully theirs. Dr. Kratina is in private practice in Gainesville, FL. She is also an eating disorders specialist at the University of Florida, a Clinical Advisor for Green Mountain at Fox Run -a retreat center for women specializing in eating and weight issues--and a spokesperson for The Wheat Foods Council. Her first book, Moving Away from Diets: Healing Eating Problems and Exercise Resistance was recently released in its second edition. She has authored numerous book chapters and articles and is frequently quoted in the popular press in magazines such as Shape, Elle, Cosmopolitan, Runner's World, Lifetime, and others. You can contact Dr. Kratina through < A HREF="http://www.NourishingConnections.com" target="_blank">www.NourishingConnections.com.

Excerpt
Chapter 1: The Truth About Fad Diets
Is there a magic way to lose weight? This book will help you separate the facts from the hype.
An estimated 50 to 70 million Americans go on diets each year. Many of these same people will go on a diet the next year. And again, the year after that. For many, this represents a cyclical pattern of yo-yo dieting that does our physical and emotional health little good. To break out of this dieting lifestyle, it is helpful to understand what you are getting into when you try to lose weight, especially if you try one of the fad weight-loss plans. First, let's test your diet IQ.
Answer the following True/False questions:
Carbohydrates are actually more fattening than fat.
Carbohydrates are addictive and stimulate the appetite.
Low-carbohydrate, high-protein diets are a great way to shed pounds quickly and lower your cholesterol levels.
Weight loss is better maintained by following a low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet than it is by following a relatively high-carbohydrate, low-fat diet.
Most popular weight-loss diets are based on sound, scientific principles.
For optimum health and weight maintenance, foods should be eaten in certain combinations (i.e., eat foods high in protein and fat together, but eat fruits separately).
Science tells us that carbohydrates should be divided into two groups, "good" and "bad."
Eating fatty foods actually makes your body burn fat better and, therefore, high-fat diets are a great way to lose weight and keep it off.
Fat is more satiating than carbohydrates.
Assuming there are approximately 3,500 calories in one pound of body fat, eating 500 fewer calories per day (3,500 per week) will result in a loss of one pound of body weight per week, or 52 pounds of body fat in one year.

To see how you did, check your answers against the key on the next page.

DIET IQ ANSWER KEY: ALL ARE FALSE
Below, you will find brief explanations for the answers. A more detailed look at fad diets follows in the rest of this chapter.
Carbohydrates are not more fattening than fat. In fact, the human body requires almost eight times as much energy to turn dietary carbohydrates into body fat as it does to convert dietary fat into body fat. Short-term intervention studies, as well as many large-scale population studies, show that increasing carbohydrate consumption is associated with lower body weights.
Carbohydrates are not addictive, nor do they stimulate the appetite. Some people may have cravings for certain foods, many of which contain carbohydrates. This is not addiction! Cravings are emotionally based. Complex carbohydrates are a great source of energy. They boost metabolism more than fat and are necessary to fuel a healthy body.
Low-carbohydrate, high-protein diets do result in rapid weight loss, but this is largely because these diets greatly reduce the total amount of calories consumed. As carbohydrates comprise about half of the average American diet, eliminating carbs will result in weight loss. However, most of the initial weight loss is lean tissue, not body fat. The loss of lean tissue will decrease the number of calories your body can burn, resulting in weight gain.
Low-carbohydrate, high-protein diets do not generally lower cholesterol. Some studies reveal that these diets are more likely to raise your cholesterol levels than lower them-increasing long-term risk for cardiovascular disease.
People who lose weight on low-carb, high-protein diets are about two and one-half times more likely to regain the weight than people who lose weight by following the Food Guide Pyramid's recommendations. Also, data from the National Weight Control Registry reveal that people most successful at maintaining significant weight loss follow a diet that is relatively low in fat (20 to 25 percent) and high in carbohydrates (about 55 percent).
Most popular fad diets use select-scientific principles, but taken way out of context. A good example is the claim that carbohydrates cause insulin resistance, which leads to health problems, including obesity. In fact, a diet high in complex carbohydrates and rich in fiber reduces your chances of developing insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is most likely to develop in people who are sedentary and eat a diet high in fat and calories and low in fiber.
Contrary to the information presented in a number of popular diet books, there is no evidence that specific food combinations promote weight loss. Total calorie intake relative to total calorie expenditure is the key. The human body does a remarkable job of absorbing the nutrients in the foods we eat, regardless of how the foods are mixed together at meals.
The notion of good and bad carbohydrates is not based on sound science and stems from the recent popularization of the glycemic index. Although the glycemic index is based on sound science, to classify carbohydrates as good or bad based solely on their glycemic index is not. All carbohydrates have nutritional value and can be part of a healthful diet.
High-fat diets are not a good way to lose weight and keep it off. Over time, eating a high-fat diet can help your body burn fat at a greater rate. The downside, however, is that you would have to consume so much fat to do this that you would actually get fatter, not thinner. A majority of scientific evidence suggests the more fat you eat in your diet, the more body fat you are likely to have.
Fat is not more satiating than carbohydrates. "Becoming satiated" refers to the process of turning off the appetite during a meal so you do not overeat. In this regard, fat has a relatively weak satiating power. Because fat has a high caloric density (nine calories per gram vs. four calories per gram for carbohydrates and protein), eating foods high in fat increases the chances of over-consuming at meals.
The arithmetic is right in terms of cutting calories, but the actual loss of body fat will rarely, if ever, match this expected result. Cutting calories will slow your metabolism. Also, cutting calories may rob some people of energy and cause them to be less active.

FAD DIET APPEAL
Fad diets have tremendous appeal: quick, permanent weight loss; seemingly effortless; no hunger, no cravings, no calorie counting; just follow the "breakthrough" plan and the pounds just melt away; you can be thin for life. Sound familiar? For most of the last half of the 20th century, millions of Americans have tried one "breakthrough" plan after another. It is virtually impossible to go a year without some new diet plan making the bestseller lists. Since the late 1990s, diet books, at times, have regularly held half of the top-10 spots.
Despite conflicting reports about good foods and bad foods, carbohydrates vs. protein, being in the "zone" or "busting sugar," you do not need to calculate complex formulas or know what foods to combine in order to eat for well-being and enjoyment.
Our weight-obsessed culture offers the perfect environment for the gimmick-loaded diet industry. The offer of rapid and permanent weight loss sounds almost too good to be true-and, in almost all instances, it is. The trends in body weight and dieting during the past 40 years suggest that dieting may actually have an effect opposite than intended. In fact, several studies published in the past 10 years indicate that a history of dieting increases risk of future weight gain. One very recent study on school-age children revealed that dieters gained significantly more weight than non-dieters during a three-year follow-up (Source: Field et al., Pediatrics, 112:900-906, 2003.)
While the prevalence of dieting has increased markedly, there has been no positive effect on our waistlines. Yet, we keep trying diets that are recycled versions of diets proven unsuccessful years earlier. The best example of this is the re-emergence of the carbohydrate-restricting diet.

Catalogue Information