Kilo jewel: any diet you stick
to
January 6, 2005
By Leigh Dayton
Science has finally proved what dieters have suspected
for years: sticking to a diet is more important than
the type of diet.
A comparison of the popular Atkins, Zone, Weight Watchers
and Ornish diets found that one was as good as another
- if they were followed for a year.
"Instead of saying there is one clear winner here,
we're saying they are all winners," said Michael
Dansinger of Tufts-New England Medical Centre in Boston.
Dr Dansinger's research team reports this week in the
Journal of the American Medical Association that 25
per cent of 160 overweight or obese adults, aged 22
to 72 years, lost more than 5 per cent of their initial
body weight during the trial, regardless of diet.
In each group, about 10 per cent of dieters lost more
than 10 per cent of their starting weight. All those
who shed kilos reduced their risk of heart disease.
But when it came to compliance, the researchers found
that "extreme" plans such as the Atkins and
Ornish diets were a flop. After a year, 50 per cent
had given up, against only 35 per cent in the other
groups.
The Atkins diet restricts carbohydrates but not fat,
while the Ornish diet restricts fats.
In contrast, the Zone and Weight Watchers plans are
more balanced, focusing on reduction of portion sizes
and kilojoule intake.
"It's pretty much what you'd expect," said
Peter Clifton, an endocrinologist with CSIRO Health
Sciences and Nutrition in Adelaide.
"There's no one magic solution to controlling
weight."
Dr Clifton's group is set to report similar findings
from a study of the Atkins, Ornish and Australian National
Heart Foundation plans.
About 100 middle-aged men and women participated in
the Australian study.
While weight loss was similar across the diets, the
Atkins plan increased the loss of lean body mass, potentially
impairing fitness and reducing the effectiveness of
insulin to control body sugars.
For Dr Clifton, the key message from both studies is
clear: "It's all about eating less and finding
the right individual strategy for eating less."
Source:www.theaustralian.news.com.au
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