A calorie by any name is still a calorie

[Guest guest]

Hi All,

A calorie by any name is still a calorie. What more requires

stating? The message is " The lack of choices and the poor

palatability of these extreme diets may be a large contributor to

decreases in total caloric intake " ?

Cheers, Al Pater.

Seshadri P.

A calorie by any name is still a calorie.

Arch Intern Med. 2004 Aug 9;164(15):1702-3. No abstract available.

PMID: 15302648 [PubMed - in process]

With the increased popularity of low-carbohydrate diets, Hays et

al1 give an interesting perspective on the role of carbohydrate in

weight loss. Although alluded to in the " Methods " section, it is

impossible to believe that during the study, mean caloric intake

increased by 1000 kcal/d in control subjects without these subjects

gaining weight.2 The control groups' poststudy caloric intake most

likely represents what both the control and high-carbohydrate diet

groups usually ate prior to the study. Using this assumption, there

is a mean nonsignificant deficit of more than 500 kcal/d between high-

carbohydrate and control group individuals. Weekly, this becomes a

3500-kcal deficit, which is approximately the deficit needed to

metabolize a pound of fat.2 Tied into this is the assumption that ad

libitum is limited to 150% of estimated intake when usual intake for

these subjects might be 200% of estimated intake.

Contrary to data from this study, new data from the National

Health and Nutrition Examination Survey show an increase in the

percentage of carbohydrates eaten, although the US population is

continuing to become obese.3 The emphasis should be on intake of

complex carbohydrates and not all carbohydrates. Studies have shown

that replacement of simple carbohydrates with complex carbohydrates

and artificial sweeteners can cause weight loss.4 However, no matter

what macronutrient the calories come from, limitation of calories

using low- or high-carbohydrate diets will induce weight loss.5 The

success of extreme carbohydrate intake diets demonstrates that fat

and carbohydrate calories are tightly tied to each other in our US

diet. For example, the average restaurant serving of 2 cups of

spaghetti and meat sauce has 650 kcal.6 Eighty-eight grams of

carbohydrate are estimated from the spaghetti, which equals 352 kcal,

and leaves the rest, almost half and mostly all fat kilocalories,

attributed to the meat sauce.6 In this instance, choosing a high-

carbohydrate (spaghetti only) or low-carbohydrate diet (meat sauce

only) would cut caloric intake in half. The lack of choices and the

poor palatability of these extreme diets may be a large contributor

to decreases in total caloric intake.

REFERENCES

1. Hays NP, Starling RD, Liu X, et al. Effects of an ad libitum low-

fat, high-carbohydrate diet on body weight, body composition, and fat

distribution in older men and women: a randomized controlled trial.

Arch Intern Med. 2004;164:210-217. ABSTRACT/FULL TEXT 2. Position of

the American Dietetic Association, Dietitians of Canada, and the

American College of Sports Medicine: nutrition and athletic

performance. J Am Diet Assoc. 2000;100:1543-1556. CrossRef | ISI |

MEDLINE

3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Trends in intake

of energy and macronutrients—United States, 1971-2000. MMWR Morb

Mortal Wkly Rep. 2004;53:80-82. MEDLINE

4. Vermunt SHF, Pasman WJ, Schaafsma G, Kardinaal FM. Effects of

sugar intake on body weight: a review. Obes Rev. 2003;4:91-99.

MEDLINE

5. Bray GA. Low-carbohydrate diets and realities of weight loss.

JAMA. 2003;289:1853-1855. FULL TEXT

6. Boroushek A. The Doctor's Pocket: Calorie Fat and Carbohydrate

Counter. Costa Mesa, Calif: Family Health Publications; 2000:156.