M. Howard
Thu, Mar-25-04, 11:35
http://www.pcrm.org/news/health031120_report.html
High-Protein Diets Risky for Bones and Kidneys
Ten healthy participants were asked to follow an Atkins-style, carbohydrate-restricted diet for two weeks and then follow a moderately carbohydrate-restricted diet for four more weeks under close monitoring. It turned out that the meaty diets increased their calcium loss by 55 percent (from 160 to 248 mg/d, P < 0.01). The researchers conclude that a high-protein diet presents a marked acid load to the kidneys, increases the risk for kidney stones, and may increase the risk for bone loss.
Reddy ST, Wang CY, SakhaeeK, Brinkley L, Pak CY. Effect of low-carbohyrdate high-protein diets on acid-base balance, stone-forming propensity, and calcium metabolism. Am J Kidney Dis 2002;2:265-74.
Meat-Heavy Fad Diets Linked to Osteoporosis, Kidney Disease, and Colon Cancer
Washington, D.C.—To counter the current flood of misinformation surrounding high-protein fad weight-loss diets, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) is launching a TV ad in Houston, Chicago, and Washington, D.C., this week. The ad, entitled “Safe Diets,” warns that meat-heavy diets put people at risk for osteoporosis, kidney disease, and maybe even colon cancer. In addition, a print ad will appear in USA Today during the week of 24 February.
“For weight loss, studies show that high-protein diets do not work any better than other diets, but they do lead to a quick loss of calcium and, very likely, an increased risk for colon cancer,” says Neal D. Barnard, M.D., president and founder of PCRM. “PCRM is countering the flood of misinformation about fad diets.”
A study recently published in American Journal of Kidney Diseases shows that high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets, such as the Atkins Diet, cause a rapid and pronounced loss of calcium in the urine, while studies of vegetarian diets have shown safe, effective weight loss. Groundbreaking studies published in Lancet (1990) and Journal of the American Medical Association (1998) show that a low-fat vegetarian diet can reverse heart disease. Each year, there is additional scientific evidence that a diet rich in fruit and vegetables is best in terms of long-term health. Visit PCRM’s new Web site at www.safediets.org for further information.
New Studies Show High-Protein Diets Fail to Live Up to Their Hype, Say Nutrition Experts Findings Show Minimal Weight Loss and High Drop-Out Rate Group Will Launch Summer Ad Campaign to Warn of Diet's Risk
Washington, D.C.-Two new studies in the May 22 New England Journal of Medicine on the controversial high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets show that the diets fail to live up to their hype, says the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
Both studies, which compared a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet to a more conventional low-fat diet, demonstrated minimal weight loss and a high drop-out rate. Despite these findings and cautions by the researchers that more studies are needed to assess possible long-term health risks, PCRM nutrition experts are concerned that these messages will be lost in the low-carb publicity machine. To counteract the Atkins hype and inform the public about the diets' risks, PCRM is launching a summer ad campaign; a print ad is scheduled to run in U.S. News & World Report's "Best Hospitals" issue and a TV ad will run on CNN's AccentHealth network. The ads are viewable at www.safediets.org/ads.html.
"The new studies support what many of us have been saying all along," says Amy Joy Lanou, Ph.D., PCRM's nutrition director. "High-protein, low-carbohydrate diets are extremely hard to stick with and don't work any better over the long run than a conventional 'reduce-the-fat' diet-which doesn't work very well itself." A review of 107 studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in April 2003 showed that reduced carbohydrate intake did not impact weight loss-only longer diet duration and fewer calories did.
"If researchers really want to test the effectiveness of the Atkins Diet, they should compare it with the kind of largely vegetarian, lifestyle-changing approach Dr. Dean Ornish recommends: no animal fat, plenty of complex carbohydrates such as beans and legumes, and lots of fruits and vegetables. That's a diet that not only helps people lose weight, but it can help prevent and reverse heart disease, diabetes, and other illnesses," says Lanou.
"It's scandalous how much money is being spent to promote these risky, high-protein, meaty diets," continues Lanou. "For example, a Harvard study published earlier this year in the Annals of Internal Medicine showed that high-protein diets may cause permanent loss of kidney function in anyone with reduced kidney function. The most frightening thing about that study? As many as one in four Americans may already have renal problems. Other studies have shown that meat-heavy diets significantly increase one's risk of colon cancer and osteoporosis." PCRM's summer ad campaign, "Safe Diets," focuses on the long-term health risks of the Atkins-like diets. PCRM also maintains a registry at www.AtkinsDietAlert.org for dieters who believe they may have sustained health problems due to a high-protein, low-carb diet.
Second Fatality in Atkins-Type Dieter Suspected; Other Dieters Report New Cases of Serious Illness to Family Members, Patients, and Nutrition Experts Present Details at Nov. 20 News Conference Doctors Urge CDC Inquiry; Video of Conference Available
WASHINGTON-New information questioning the safety of the Atkins Diet and other high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets, including data on a previously unreported fatality and numerous serious illnesses, was the focus of a news conference on November 20 at the National Press Club. A panel of nutrition experts, including Paul Robinson, M.D., the author of the first scientifically documented case history of a death linked to a high-protein diet, presented their concerns about the health risks of these diets. Joining the doctors were several people who report being harmed by these diets, as well as family members of the deceased. The physicians called on the Centers for Disease Control to begin an immediate investigation into these incidents and the prevalence of adverse effects and deaths associated with the diets. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) organized the conference. Video of the conference is available.
For example, 42 percent of registrants describe a loss of energy; 22 percent report reduced kidney function, stones, or severe infection; and 20 percent report heart problems or elevated cholesterol. Related Material: Preliminary Report by Neal Barnard, M.D.
High-Protein Diets Risky for Bones and Kidneys
Ten healthy participants were asked to follow an Atkins-style, carbohydrate-restricted diet for two weeks and then follow a moderately carbohydrate-restricted diet for four more weeks under close monitoring. It turned out that the meaty diets increased their calcium loss by 55 percent (from 160 to 248 mg/d, P < 0.01). The researchers conclude that a high-protein diet presents a marked acid load to the kidneys, increases the risk for kidney stones, and may increase the risk for bone loss.
Reddy ST, Wang CY, SakhaeeK, Brinkley L, Pak CY. Effect of low-carbohyrdate high-protein diets on acid-base balance, stone-forming propensity, and calcium metabolism. Am J Kidney Dis 2002;2:265-74.
Meat-Heavy Fad Diets Linked to Osteoporosis, Kidney Disease, and Colon Cancer
Washington, D.C.—To counter the current flood of misinformation surrounding high-protein fad weight-loss diets, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) is launching a TV ad in Houston, Chicago, and Washington, D.C., this week. The ad, entitled “Safe Diets,” warns that meat-heavy diets put people at risk for osteoporosis, kidney disease, and maybe even colon cancer. In addition, a print ad will appear in USA Today during the week of 24 February.
“For weight loss, studies show that high-protein diets do not work any better than other diets, but they do lead to a quick loss of calcium and, very likely, an increased risk for colon cancer,” says Neal D. Barnard, M.D., president and founder of PCRM. “PCRM is countering the flood of misinformation about fad diets.”
A study recently published in American Journal of Kidney Diseases shows that high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets, such as the Atkins Diet, cause a rapid and pronounced loss of calcium in the urine, while studies of vegetarian diets have shown safe, effective weight loss. Groundbreaking studies published in Lancet (1990) and Journal of the American Medical Association (1998) show that a low-fat vegetarian diet can reverse heart disease. Each year, there is additional scientific evidence that a diet rich in fruit and vegetables is best in terms of long-term health. Visit PCRM’s new Web site at www.safediets.org for further information.
New Studies Show High-Protein Diets Fail to Live Up to Their Hype, Say Nutrition Experts Findings Show Minimal Weight Loss and High Drop-Out Rate Group Will Launch Summer Ad Campaign to Warn of Diet's Risk
Washington, D.C.-Two new studies in the May 22 New England Journal of Medicine on the controversial high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets show that the diets fail to live up to their hype, says the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.
Both studies, which compared a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet to a more conventional low-fat diet, demonstrated minimal weight loss and a high drop-out rate. Despite these findings and cautions by the researchers that more studies are needed to assess possible long-term health risks, PCRM nutrition experts are concerned that these messages will be lost in the low-carb publicity machine. To counteract the Atkins hype and inform the public about the diets' risks, PCRM is launching a summer ad campaign; a print ad is scheduled to run in U.S. News & World Report's "Best Hospitals" issue and a TV ad will run on CNN's AccentHealth network. The ads are viewable at www.safediets.org/ads.html.
"The new studies support what many of us have been saying all along," says Amy Joy Lanou, Ph.D., PCRM's nutrition director. "High-protein, low-carbohydrate diets are extremely hard to stick with and don't work any better over the long run than a conventional 'reduce-the-fat' diet-which doesn't work very well itself." A review of 107 studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in April 2003 showed that reduced carbohydrate intake did not impact weight loss-only longer diet duration and fewer calories did.
"If researchers really want to test the effectiveness of the Atkins Diet, they should compare it with the kind of largely vegetarian, lifestyle-changing approach Dr. Dean Ornish recommends: no animal fat, plenty of complex carbohydrates such as beans and legumes, and lots of fruits and vegetables. That's a diet that not only helps people lose weight, but it can help prevent and reverse heart disease, diabetes, and other illnesses," says Lanou.
"It's scandalous how much money is being spent to promote these risky, high-protein, meaty diets," continues Lanou. "For example, a Harvard study published earlier this year in the Annals of Internal Medicine showed that high-protein diets may cause permanent loss of kidney function in anyone with reduced kidney function. The most frightening thing about that study? As many as one in four Americans may already have renal problems. Other studies have shown that meat-heavy diets significantly increase one's risk of colon cancer and osteoporosis." PCRM's summer ad campaign, "Safe Diets," focuses on the long-term health risks of the Atkins-like diets. PCRM also maintains a registry at www.AtkinsDietAlert.org for dieters who believe they may have sustained health problems due to a high-protein, low-carb diet.
Second Fatality in Atkins-Type Dieter Suspected; Other Dieters Report New Cases of Serious Illness to Family Members, Patients, and Nutrition Experts Present Details at Nov. 20 News Conference Doctors Urge CDC Inquiry; Video of Conference Available
WASHINGTON-New information questioning the safety of the Atkins Diet and other high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets, including data on a previously unreported fatality and numerous serious illnesses, was the focus of a news conference on November 20 at the National Press Club. A panel of nutrition experts, including Paul Robinson, M.D., the author of the first scientifically documented case history of a death linked to a high-protein diet, presented their concerns about the health risks of these diets. Joining the doctors were several people who report being harmed by these diets, as well as family members of the deceased. The physicians called on the Centers for Disease Control to begin an immediate investigation into these incidents and the prevalence of adverse effects and deaths associated with the diets. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) organized the conference. Video of the conference is available.
For example, 42 percent of registrants describe a loss of energy; 22 percent report reduced kidney function, stones, or severe infection; and 20 percent report heart problems or elevated cholesterol. Related Material: Preliminary Report by Neal Barnard, M.D.