Swedish Study -LC hazardous for women See

[rogjack6112]

Physician's First Watch for June 27, 2012
David G. Fairchild, MD, MPH, Editor-in-Chief

Low-Carb, High-Protein Diet Linked to Increased CV Risk in Women

Low-Carb, High-Protein Diet Linked to Increased CV Risk in Women


Women who regularly follow a low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet face increased risk for cardiovascular disease, according to a prospective, observational study in BMJ.


Some 43,000 Swedish women, aged 30 to 49 and without previous cardiovascular disease, completed questionnaires that assessed their habitual dietary patterns. During roughly 16 years' follow-up, 1270 CV events occurred.


After adjustment for confounders such as BMI, smoking status, physical activity, and saturated fat intake, the risk for CV events increased significantly as carbohydrate intake decreased and protein intake increased. In particular, for each 2-unit increase in a low-carb, high-protein score (on a scale of 2 to 20), women had a 5% increase in CV risk.


Editorialists conclude: "The short term benefits of low carbohydrate-high protein diets for weight loss that have made these diets appealing seem irrelevant in the face of increasing evidence of higher morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular diseases in the long term."


BMJ article (Free)

BMJ editorial (Subscription required)

Background: Journal Watch General Medicine summary of 2006 study showing no increase in heart risk with low-carb diets (Your Journal Watch registration required)

Care to comment---Note this was a diet recall study

[Leo41]

The self-reporting studies are known to be the least reliable.

Do we know how they are measuring 'low carb' or 'high protein'? That is, amounts?

Many scientists consider 150g of carbs to be 'low,' and anyone who is eating a lot of saturated fat along with grains is not doing what we would consider 'low carb.'

Moreover, low carb doesn't have to be high protein at all. Most of us barely get our normal protein needs met.

Again, unreliable information that is best ignored.

[clackley]

No disrespect intended here and I will say, I always get a chuckle out of these kind of observational/self reporting 'studies'. I would give this one a great big 'FAIL'. All the points that Leo raises and what about the fat content and how do they explain this? It is at very best, the basis of a hypothesis. End of story.

As an aside, I believe in Sweden their version of low carb is called LC/high fat. I like that!!!

[princessmommy]

These kind of articals crack me up. How can my Not eatting bread, pasta, candy and Junk be Bad for me?!

[theredhead]

Dana Carpender did a good job of taking this "study" apart in an article for CarbSmart magazine (google it).

[HappyHappyJoyJoy]

Originally Posted by princessmommy

These kind of articals crack me up. How can my Not eatting bread, pasta, candy and Junk be Bad for me?!

EXACTLY!! That's what I always come back to when people say I'm not eating a "well balanced diet".

[zombiegoat2000]

Couldn't even bring myself to finish that load of carbs!

[svenskamae]

Originally Posted by theredhead

Dana Carpender did a good job of taking this "study" apart in an article for CarbSmart magazine (google it).

Thanks for referring me to that. The Title of Dana Carpenter's article is "The Swedish 'Low Carb' Study Where No One Ate a Low Carb Diet." It's worth reading, before getting too alarmed. I'm also somewhat sceptical of controlling for "confounders" like BMI. Many insulin-resistent people like me who eat a low carb diet maintain a much higher BMI if they don't eat low carb; for at least a subset of the population, you can't disentangle the two factors of carbohydrate intake and BMI, because they are not truly independent variables.

[wastednuffime]

Originally Posted by princessmommy

These kind of articals crack me up. How can my Not eatting bread, pasta, candy and Junk be Bad for me?!

***IF*** this is the same study I saw them talking about on the morning news, ( the 10 year study) then what I understood it to say was that those who ate LC along with high fatty proteins ( red meats and cheese in particular) were shown to have an increase in CVD, as opposed to those studied who also ate LC, but ate mainly chicken and fish as their protein source..

So the focus was on not "bread, pasta and candy, etc, but on the fat content regarding proteins......

As a Nurse, as well as a former "strict, really strict LC person, I can attest to my cholesterol shooting way up when I was eating lots of red meats and LOTS of cheeses,...and lost weight while doing it!!....My Dr. threatened to put me on meds, if I did not change things, which I certainly did. My levels are now Good!!

Every one is different though....Again,..*IF* this was the same study we are talking about....

[ravenrose]

there is also evidence that it's the iron in red meat that is causing health troubles for people, not the fat. interesting.