National Bestselling Author Says Most People Are Doing Low-Carb Diets ``All Wrong''

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. --(Business Wire)-- Feb. 9, 2004 Low-carbohydrate diets are the rage these days, but a leading expert in the low-carb movement says that most people are doing low-carb diets "all wrong," which will lead to new health problems in the long run.
"Low-carb diets definitely have proven health benefits, especially in terms of promoting weight loss, improving blood sugar metabolism and protecting against cardiovascular disease and Type 2 Diabetes," says nutritionist Melissa Diane Smith, coauthor of the national bestselling Syndrome X: The Complete Nutritional Program to Prevent and Reverse Insulin Resistance (John Wiley & Sons, 2000). "But we've lost all track of our senses with the way low-carb dieting is going."

Smith is going against the grain of many in her field, saying it's not just the number of carbohydrates that affect our health, but the food sources from which we get our carbohydrates. In her follow-up book to Syndrome X, titled Going Against the Grain: How Reducing and Avoiding Grains Can Revitalize Your Health (McGraw Hill/Contemporary Books, 2002), Smith cites many published medical studies pointing out that the most popular high-carbohydrate foods, wheat products such as bread and pasta, have more nutritional problems than just being high carb. They contain "anti-nutrients" (substances that impair the absorption or utilization of many nutrients) - and they're concentrated sources of gluten, which is a collection of gluey proteins that is disruptive to the immune and digestive systems of many people. "Gluten sensitivity and celiac disease (the worst form of gluten intolerance) are far more common than anybody ever realized," Smith says. Therefore, cutting the carbs out of wheat products and concentrating the gluten and allergenic proteins - as is the norm in the popular, new, low-carb breads and pasta - is a "disastrous turn in the low-carb movement."

"People who load up on low-carb bread and pasta may reduce their blood sugar and insulin levels, but over time they're going to develop new health problems, such as digestive bloating and upset, nutrient deficiencies, bone health problems, autoimmune diseases and neurological disorders like frequent unexplained headaches," Smith predicts. "We should learn from the past mistakes we've made with our diet and get back to some common sense."

Smith refers to the low-fat diet phenomenon that spread throughout the country in the 1980s and 1990s. "The idea at the time was the lower the fat, the better. Food manufacturers were quick to act on this idea, developing hoards of low-fat, high-carbohydrate, nutrient-deficient, 'fake' food products. The more people ate of these foods, the more obesity and Type 2 Diabetes became national epidemics.

"Another nutritional and health disaster will affect this nation if people continue to do low-carb diets the wrong way. You can be sure of that," Smith warns. Instead of loading up on low-carb, high-protein, nutrient-deficient, processed wheat products, the "right way" to eat low-carb, she says, is to emphasize non-starchy vegetables (i.e., salad greens, spinach, broccoli, asparagus, peppers) and small amounts of fruits and nuts. "These sources of carbohydrates are naturally low-carb and far more health promoting and protective of disease than grains, whether those grain products are low carb or not," she explains.

To get the best health benefits and weight loss results on a low-carb diet, Smith recommends emphasizing fish, poultry, lean meats and vegetables, then further individualizing the diet based on determining and eliminating hidden food allergens. This is easier than ever with the development of a new, convenient, finger-stick IgG ELISA food allergy test known as the foodSCAN from York Nutritional Laboratories.

"Hidden, delayed-onset food allergies are an unsuspected factor in difficulty in losing weight," Smith says. "When people are 'stuck' with their weight loss on a low-carb diet, that's usually because they're eating something that's sabotaging their progress. This often can be cleared up by identifying and removing the foods that are specific problems for them."

For more information or to schedule an interview with Melissa Diane Smith, contact John Kernohan. Tel: 888-751-3388, Fax: 954-920-3729, johnk@yorkallergyusa.com, and http://www.yorkallergyusa.com.