Are Low Carb Diets Safe? Only if you're a lion!

2/16/10 |

by Brooke

Are low carb diets safe?

If you want to lose weight, you may be wondering are low carb diets safe? When you are trying to find a diet that really works, you certainly have your work cut out for you. There are so many plans, pills, and programs that one can become easily confused. I am going to help you clear up the popular question, about whether or not low carb diets are safe.

Let’s look at what a low carb diet entails. You eat a large amount of protein and fat and restrict or avoid carbohydrates. When someone asks me are low carb diets safe, the first thing I remind them of is the fact that a low carb diet requires you to deprive yourself of even the healthy carbohydrates, such as fruits and vegetables. This diet focuses so much on quick weight loss, yet it restricts you from eating the vitamins and minerals you need to stay healthy and sustain your weight loss. So even if you lose a few quick pounds, you gain it right back with interest. Let’s face it, or bodies need carbs to function properly. Another reason I answer no to the question are low carb diets safe, is that consuming too much protein is bad for you. Among other things, it cause stress on your kidneys as they are trying to rid your body of waste and toxins. When these bad things accumulate, it leads to kidney stones and gallbladder problems. And since low carb diets also restrict your fiber intake, you are also increasing your risk for colon cancer and other bowel disorders.

If someone asks you are low carb diets safe, you can also remind them that these diets reduce healthy glycogen stores in muscles and liver, which can lead to dehydration and muscle loss. The depletion of glycogen can cause you to get tired easily because it reduces your metabolism, burning fewer calories. While I agree that some carbohydrate rich foods such as pasta, refined white bread and rice do not help you lose weight, good carbs like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes and brown rice are essential for health and can actually assist with weight loss.

So quit asking yourself if low carb diets are safe. They’re not. Instead, find a diet which incorporates a combination of healthy carbs, proteins, and essential fats. After all, it is a lot easier to stick with a weight loss plan that doesn’t deprive you of your favorite foods!



About the Author:

Most people can’t lose weight even after diets and exercise, and the reason for this is that it is more effective to lose weight naturally by increasing your metabolism through a healthy diet and specific exercise which burn calories even after you stop to rest.

Before beginning a low carb diet, ask yourself, “Are [ function showrecentposts(json) { for (var i = 0; i < numposts; i++) { var entry = json.feed.entry[i]; var posttitle = entry.title.$t; var posturl; if (i == json.feed.entry.length) break; for (var k = 0; k < entry.link.length; k++) { if (entry.link[k].rel == 'alternate') { posturl = entry.link[k].href; break; } } posttitle = posttitle.link(posturl); var readmorelink = "(more)"; readmorelink = readmorelink.link(posturl); var postdate = entry.published.$t; var cdyear = postdate.substring(0,4); var cdmonth = postdate.substring(5,7); var cdday = postdate.substring(8,10); var monthnames = new Array(); monthnames[1] = "Jan"; monthnames[2] = "Feb"; monthnames[3] = "Mar"; monthnames[4] = "Apr"; monthnames[5] = "May"; monthnames[6] = "Jun"; monthnames[7] = "Jul"; monthnames[8] = "Aug"; monthnames[9] = "Sep"; monthnames[10] = "Oct"; monthnames[11] = "Nov"; monthnames[12] = "Dec"; if ("content" in entry) { var postcontent = entry.content.$t;} else if ("summary" in entry) { var postcontent = entry.summary.$t;} else var postcontent = ""; var re = /<\S[^>]*>/g; postcontent = postcontent.replace(re, ""); if (!standardstyling) document.write('

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