Carb Free Cafe - Low Carb

What You Need To Know About Low Carb Options

The Many Pros of a Low Carb Diet

First of all, we need to distinguish between a low carb diet and an almost no carb diet. Part of the difference depends on your perception, and part of it is fact. The fact is, most low carb diets (think Atkins or South Beach) reduce your carb intake to only 20 grams of carbs a day during the first two weeks. That is basically a no carb diet. Eventually, more carbs are added back in to your diet though. Diets like The Zone allow up to 40% of your caloric intake to be carbs. Some people perceive this as a lot, but some perceive it as not being much at all. Of course, others think it's about right.

In any case, cutting carbs does tend to help people lose weight. In fact, the major draw for most is that people seem to drop pounds so quickly. This is because your body burns fat and protein for fuel instead of carbs. In addition, the menu does sound somewhat appealing at first--what other diet allows you to eat steak, bacon and cheese and still lose weight? In fact, since these diets don't limit the amount of high protein foods you can eat, more people say they feel less hungry.

There are even low carb diets that doctors "prescribe" for diabetics to help them control their insulin production better. But these diets aren't like the traditional low carb diets we hear so much about. Instead, the focus is on limited amounts of the good carbs, (a.k.a. complex carbohydrates). So it's not all about going low carb.

Finally, studies have been done to show that low carb diets can have a positive effect on HDLs (your good cholesterol) and a drop in triglycerides. That is the bottom line here. There are a lot of pros and cons to a low carb diet. And the issue of exercising on a low carb can be viewed as a good or bad thing, depending on how much you like to work out.

The Significant Cons of a Low Carb Diet

It seems that the cons of a low carb diet are increasing more and more every day. And fewer and fewer people are sticking with it. For one thing, the menu that was so appealing in the beginning starts to lose its appeal. After all, what good is a cheeseburger without the bun? And what good is a brat without beer? And speaking of beer, most low carb diets make you give up alcohol. Restrictions in bread, potatoes, rice, pasta, desserts and alcohol make low carb diets too restrictive for some people in the long run, so they stop following it.

Other reasons people might not stick with it is the side effects. People on low carb diets report having headaches, and the more restrictive ones that send your body into ketosis will give you bad breath. In addition, people report being in a bad mood more often on a low carb diet and having less energy.

More serious side effects include kidney problems and gout. These problems are a result of your body using fat for energy instead of carbohydrates. In this state, your body produces uric acid and ketones which lead to the side effects. In addition, since a low carb diet and high fiber food don't usually go together, the lack of fiber can lead to constipation and chronic bowel disease.

Neutralities

A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine compared the results of dieters on the Atkins diet for a year to the results of dieters on a low calorie diet. After only six months, people on the Atkins diet had lose more weight, but after a year, the results were the same. And in general, the slower weight comes off, the more likely it is to stay off.

In addition, the lack of energy you have on a low carb diet makes you less inclined to exercise. If you hate exercise anyway, this is good news. If you're a very energetic person who likes to exercise, a drop in energy might not come as good news. Either way, if you can muster up enough energy to do it anyway, you'll burn even more fat than you would doing nothing at all.

Now that you know a little more about low carb diets, you can make the decision for yourself. But if you decide to do it, read the books and do it right.

Top Results for "What You Need To Know About Low Carb Options":

Low Carb Cooking!
Over 1000 free low carb recipes, a resource for all low carb diets including Atkins, Protein Power, South Beach and Carbohydrate Addicts.
- www.lowcarbcooking.org
Low-Carb Recipes - Healthy Living - All Recipes
Looking for low-carb diet recipes? Allrecipes has more than 2350 trusted low-carb diet recipes complete with ratings, reviews and cooking tips.
- allrecipes.com
Low Carb Diets at About.com - Atkins South Beach and More Low Carb ...
Information about low carb diets, including menus, food lists, recipes, advice, research, news, and a discussion forum/message board.
- lowcarbdiets.about.com
Jimmy Moore's Livin' La Vida Low-Carb™ Blog
A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to meet and greet all the biggest names in low-carb research and science while attending the American Society of ...
- livinlavidalocarb.blogspot.com
Atkins Diet & Low Carbohydrate Support
Atkins diet and low carbohydrate diet resources for all low carb diet plans: Research, recipes, information, support forums, tools and tips for all low carb ...
- www.lowcarb.ca
The Low Carb Cafe - Recipe
Reviews low carbohydrate diets, including recipes. Also carbohydrate calculators, and chat rooms.
- www.lowcarbcafe.com
Low Carb Luxury: A Complete Resource for the Low Carb Dieter.
Online guide to resources for the low-carbohydrate dieter. Offer low carb news, product reviews, and shopping guide.
- www.lowcarbluxury.com
Low Carb Cooking!
Over 1000 free low carb recipes, a resource for all low carb diets including Atkins, Protein Power, South Beach and Carbohydrate Addicts.
- lowcarbcooking.org
Low Carb Recipes, Gourmet Style -
Low Carb Recipes, Gourmet Style - by cookbook author and executive chef, Karen Barnaby. From Atkins Diet & Low Carbohydrate Support: Atkins diet and low ...
- www.lowcarb.ca