Home
>
Weight Loss
>
Low-carb Diets: Fad, Fallacy, or Fact?

Low-carb Diets: Fad, Fallacy, or Fact?

The most common and popular diet fad over the past two years has undoubtedly been the low-carb diet. It has many followers, both in the U.K. and the U.S.A., and its various celebrity endorsements, particularly of the most renowned version, The Atkins Diet, have undoubtedly played a large part in its popularity. Is it merely another fad diet designed to hook the diet junkies amongst us and deliver more opportunities for the food manufacturers to create another new product in response to the "demand"? Or could it be that it is actually a healthy and effective way of losing and controlling weight?

The whole concept of a "diet" is, of course a false one, perpetuated in order to keep the "diet industry" in profit and playing on our insecurities and gullibility. The word diet simply means the food that is customarily eaten on a daily basis. People living in less developed countries and living on a subsistence diet would be totally baffled by the notion that a "diet" is a means of eating less in order to lose weight! However, in the greedy and overfed western world, we either fail to grasp that we eat too much for our needs, or we lack the self control to eat less. Furthermore, we are inundated with opportunities to eat delicious tempting treats at comparatively low cost, and these items are often those with the highest calorie content.

Many studies have shown that reducing our carbohydrate intake is not only an effective way to control weight but also has a part to play in reducing the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, the incidence of which has shown a worrying increase in recent years. It would be a fairly simple step merely to reduce the amount of carbs (bread, rice, potatoes, for example) that we eat on a daily basis. Over time, we would undoubtedly lose weight.

From the point of view of our long-term health however, we need to take a more scientific approach and look at carbohydrates in terms of "good" and "bad" ones. The most commonly consumed carbohydrates in the western world, and particularly the U.K. and U.S.A. are the simple or refined carbohydrates. These include sugar, white flour, potatoes, white rice and products manufactured from these ingredients. They are generally low in fibre and nutrients.

On the other hand, the range of complex carbohydrates, which includes whole grains, many fruits and vegetables, beans and pulses are generally high in fibre and nutrients and can make a valuable contribution to our health and well being. It would be misguided to eliminate these "good" carbohydrates from our diet in the interests of short-term weight loss. Surely it is better to adapt our way of eating on a permanent basis, to one which includes a range of complex carbohydrates, among other elements, and if necessary to just eat less?

Jon Davis gives you the Low Down on Low Carb foods, diets & recipes, so you can make your own intelligent well formed decisions using http://www.lowcarb-lowdown.com

cleaning team near Winnetka ..

In The News:

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.

FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.

Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.

Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.

Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.

Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.

Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.

New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.

FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.

New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.

OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.

Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.

New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.

DoorDash confirms data breach exposing customer names, emails, addresses after social engineering attack. Learn how to protect yourself from scams.

Concerned about Google's AI scanning your Gmail? Learn how to disable Gemini features that access your emails, Drive files and Chat messages for privacy.

Google warns Android users about dangerous fake VPN apps hiding malware that steals passwords, banking details and personal data from phones and tablets.

Apple's digital passport feature lets iPhone users breeze through TSA checkpoints this holiday season using Digital ID technology at 250+ airports.

A new phishing scam targets family photos with fake "Cloud Storage Full" alerts. Criminals steal credit card information through fake sites. Learn protection tips.

South Korean scientists create ultra-thin fabric muscles that turn clothes into robotic assistants, lifting 33 pounds while weighing under half an ounce.

Archer Aviation has acquired Hawthorne Airport for $126M to launch an LA air taxi network ahead of the 2028 Olympics, featuring AI-powered eVTOL operations and next-gen aviation tech.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Low-carb Diets: Fad, Fallacy, or Fact?

Weight Loss