| Public release date: 9-march 2004
Doctor's statement in Mayo Clinic Proceedings reveals dark side of
low-carb diets
Dieters' fatigue similar to chemotherapy side effects
WASHINGTON-- In its current issue, the Mayo Clinic Proceedings has
published a letter explaining that the reason low-carb dieters often
lose weight and sometimes show improvements in their cholesterol, blood
sugars, and blood pressures is because they are, in essence, sickened by
the diet. John McDougall, M.D., an advisory board member of Physicians
Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), explains in his letter that
low-carb diets can throw people into a metabolic state called ketosis
that also occurs during severe illness. This diet-induced condition
resembles the common side effects of cancer chemotherapy with fatigue,
nausea, and loss of appetite for many people.
People on low-carb diets who become ill enough to experience loss of
appetite are taking in less fat and cholesterol, since they are
consuming less food overall. It is this same mechanism that results in
cholesterol levels falling in cancer patients; however, no doctor brags
about weight loss and lower cholesterol caused by the toxic drugs used
in chemotherapy.
Numerous studies show that many high-fat, low-carbohydrate dieters risk
clogged arteries, heart attack, colon cancer, and kidney failure.
Studies also show that even one fatty meal can increase the risk of a
cardiac event immediately following the meal.
"A better approach," states Dr. McDougall, "is to encourage people to
eat foods that promote both ideal body weight and health--those from a
high–complex carbohydrate, low-fat diet. You can see this for yourself
when you look at various populations worldwide. For example, people
living mostly on high-carbohydrate rice and vegetable dishes in Asia are
trim throughout their lives with almost no risk of heart disease,
diabetes or our common cancers.
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