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Low Carb Dieting

On a low carb diet- besides losing weight consistently- you can lower your insulin levels, lower cholesterol, lower blood pressure, and stabilize your blood sugar. The only diet that strikes at the real cause of obesity, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, hypoglycemia, and type 2 diabetes is a low-carbohydrate diet.

Clearly, weight loss is a goal for many people, and low carb plans have been shown to provide a method for gradual and safe weight management. Plus, the low carbohydrate diet is exploding in popularity, as it has helped people lose weight quickly and effectively.

There are many different versions of the low-carbohydrate diet and even though they may have minor variations- all of them have one thing in common- a strict reduction in the consumption of carbohydrates. Although diets vary in their recommendations, as a general rule, a low-carb diet involves a high-fat and moderate protein diet. Low carb diets are not necessarily protein diets, which are also popular now, but can be, since people are free to consume protein if they choose to do so.

Those on a low-carb diet should get at least 60 to 70 percent of their daily calorie intake from fat. Some low carb diets restrict you to less than 10 percent of your calories in the form of carbs, others permit up to 40 percent. Low carb dieting isn't necessary to count calories. On a low-carb diet, a person can eat until they are full, as long as they eat only allowed foods, not over-stuffing themselves, just eating until they're no longer hungry.

Low Carb dieting isn't just about cutting out sugar and starchy food. It also means replacing all those carbs with quality protein foods, and quality fats as well. Although consuming fats is necessary for a healthy diet, try to limit consumption of trans-fats (margarine and shortening). Good fats include olive oil, flax seed oil, canola oil, oils found in nuts, and also real butter.

By following a low carb diet and consuming fats and oils, your appetite stays under control, because fatty foods are very satisfying. Eating a high level of fat actually causes you to lose weight faster than if you were fasting! That is because, during a fast, your body thinks it is starving, so it kicks into a very high efficiency state of metabolism. This slows down weight loss. But with a high fat diet, combined with very low amounts of carbohydrates, your body knows it is not starving, and metabolism is maintained at a normal level.

Allowed foods include meats, fish, shrimp, poultry, tofu, most nuts, green salads, eggs, and cheese, plus a limited amount of green vegetables (asparagus, spinach and broccoli). Foods to avoid include- but are not limited to bread- potatoes, flour, rice, pasta, whole grains and sugars.

Some well-known low carb diet plans are The Atkins Diet, The Zone Diet, Sugar Busters Diet, The South Beach Diet, The Scarsdale Diet, The Carbohydrate Addict's Diet, Protein Power Diet, and The Dr. Phil Diet.

Before beginning any diet, you should check with your physician to get the go ahead as your physician knows your medical background. Women should never diet when pregnant or nursing. If you are thinking about using prescription drugs, be sure to check with your doctor about side effects. Although Fen Phen (a popular prescription wieght loss drug) is off the market, it might be a good thing to discuss the side effects of other prescription drugs offered. Fen Phen has been linked to PPH or Primary Pulmonary Hypertension.