Weight loss maintenance. Does diet composition matter?
Researchers from Australia compared high protein and high carbohydrate diets.
First, the details.
- The study included 2 phases.
- Phase 1: a very-low-energy diet for 3 months.
- Phase 2, the participants were randomly assigned to a high protein or high carbohydrate diet for 12 months.
- The weight maintenance diets were isocaloric, tightly controlled, and individually prescribed.
- Aside from being overweight or obese, the participants were otherwise healthy men and women.
And, the results.
- 180 participants lost an average of 17 kg during phase 1 and maintained an average weight loss of 15 kg during phase 2 — no significant differences between groups were observed.
- By the end of the study, reductions in systolic blood pressure were 14 mmHg for the high protein group and 8 mmHg for the high carbohydrate group — a significant difference. 47% of the participants who began the study completed both phases.
The bottom line?
The authors concluded, “The results indicate that the protein or carbohydrate content of the diet has no effect on successful weight-loss maintenance.â€
However, these data indicated that choice of diet is a significant factor on systolic blood pressure, which favors a high protein diet.
10/20/09 20:06 JR
