Low carb diet reduces inflammation and blood saturated fat

EurekAlert! news: a new study indicates that a diet low in carbohydrates is more effective than a diet low in fat in reducing saturated fatty acids in the blood and reducing markers of inflammation.

Lead researcher Jeff S. Volek, PhD, RD, associate professor of kinesiology at the University of Connecticut (and author of TNT Diet), describes the study as "adding to the evolving picture of improvement in general health beyond simple weight loss in keeping blood glucose and insulin under control."

The current work concludes that "lowering total and saturated fat only had a small effect on circulating inflammatory markers whereas reducing carbohydrate led to considerably greater reductions in a number of pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and adhesion molecules. These data implicate dietary carbohydrate rather than fat as a more significant nutritional factor contributing to inflammatory processes."

Richard Feynman, PhD, professor of biochemistry at SUNY Downstate Medical Center adds, "Carbohydrates stimulate insulin secretion which biases fat metabolism towards storage rather than oxidation. The inflammation results open a new aspect of the problem. From a practical standpoint, continued demonstrations that carbohydrate restriction is more beneficial than low fat could be good news to those wishing to forestall or manage the diseases associated with metabolic syndrome."

One of the remarkable effects in the data presented that may have contributed to the results is that despite the three-fold greater saturated fat in the diet for the low carb group, saturated fat in the blood turned out to be higher in the low fat group due to the process known as carbohydrate-induced lipogenesis. Dr. Volek points out that "this clearly shows the limitations of the idea that 'you are what you eat'. Metabolism plays a big role. You are what your body does with what you eat."