AHA Responds to Israeli Diet Comparison
The American Heart Association (AHA) has released a commentary to the much-publicized comparison of three popular diets published by a team of Israeli researchers in a recent issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. In the Israeli study, one diet under scrutiny was the low-fat diet advocated at one time by the AHA.
In a statement released on July 17, the AHA says the Israeli study started in 2005 and used the low-fat diet recommended by the AHA in 2000. The AHA revised its dietary recommendations in 2006, while the Israeli study was under way. The new AHA recommendation calls for a diet that is very similar to the Mediterranean diet used in the Israeli study.
The association also urges consumers to beware the long-term effects of the Atkins diet, the third diet under comparison in the Israeli study, since it calls for the liberal consumption of red meat. Red meats are high in saturated fats, a type of fat that has been proven repeatedly to increase the risk of artery and heart disease.
In the Israeli comparison, study participants followed one of the three diets - the low-fat, Mediterranean, or the Atkins diet - for two years, with weight loss documented in all three diet groups. Although the group on the Atkins diet lost the most weight during the study, the amount of weight lost by each group was so similar that the differences are considered clinically insignificant.
The 2006 recommendations issued by the AHA call for a diet consisting of 25% to 35% total fat whereas the 2000 recommendation used in the Israeli study called for a diet consisting of less than 30% fat. The current recommendation is that saturated fats, including red meats, make up no more than 7% of total dietary intake and no more than 1% of trans-fats. The remainder of the fat allotment should be from plant-based fats, which are polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats.
Saturated fats are a natural part of meats and meat products. Except for a very few plant-based foods, such as palm and coconut oils, there is no saturated fat naturally occurring in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Trans-fats do not occur in nature and are a byproduct of the food processing industry only. Trans-fats are listed on ingredient labels as hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fat and are most often found in mass-produced baked goods, including breads, pastries, snack foods, and desserts.
The AHA currently recommends a diet high in vegetables and other sources of fiber, with a minimum of red meat, similar to that of the Mediterranean diet. Low-fat meats and dairy products, fish, and poultry, along with an abundance of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains is the diet currently recommended by the AHA.
The AHA has published No Fad Diet, a weight-loss book that offers three separate strategies for weight loss that allows readers to customize a diet that best meets individual need. One option is a diet low in carbohydrates, a characteristic of the Atkins diet.
In further response to the Israeli diet comparison, the AHA says:
- The Israeli study participants were 86% men, leaving little known about how the study applies to dieting women.
- The current AHA dietary recommendations are a close match to the Mediterranean diet used in the comparison study, including a limit on saturated fats such as red meat.
- The Israeli comparison proves there are several ways to lose weight effectively over a relatively short period of time, such as the two-year period of the comparative study, but the long-term health and weight-maintenance effects of a diet high in protein and low in carbohydrates have not been proven.
- There is a wealth of scientific evidence that associates strongly a diet high in trans- and saturated fats with an increased risk of heart disease, leading the AHA to suggest anyone with heart disease should avoid such a diet.
Source: American Heart Association
Loading ...
This blog talks in reference of American Heart Association (AHA) who has released a three popular diets which is very much appreciated published by a team of Israeli researchers. In a recent issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Obesity per se is not the problem. The real issue is the health and mortality consequences which follow from obesity. In November Harvard Medical School studied obese mice. The team of researchers gave one group biotivia transmax resveratrol extract, a commercial version of a compound found in red wine, and the other a placebo. The group receiving transmax resveratrol lived 31% longer and did not contract the normal diseases of aging such as diabetes, tumors, and cardiac diseases. Their endurance and energy levels also improved dramatically. Resveratrol is clearly no substitute for a good diet, exercise and a healthy lifestyle but it may augment all of these and extend the potential for ultimate life span. We need to first concentrate of the prevention of the disease of obesity and treat the excess weight as a separate issue. This approach will result in a reduction of suffering and huge health care cost savings.