The Dangers of Low Carb Diets – from Barilla Pasta

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it – Aristotle

When all else fails – manipulate the data – T-Shirt I saw near a University

Hmm…a pasta company thinks that low carb diets are dangerous. Who’da thunk?

Here’s the link: http://www.barillaus.com/home/pages/dangers_of_lowcarb_diets.aspx

Obviously, no self-interest is involved here – they are just trying to help educate the public.

I’ve mentioned Barilla pasta before – they have a nutrition message on their packaging about the dangers of low carb.

Actually, I think that it’s a well-written attack on low carb, and I’m the sort of fellow that believes in looking at all sides of an issue – even the ones I don’t necessarily agree with. It is also necessary to keep in mind that just because they have a self-interest in low carb being dangerous doesn’t mean they’re wrong. I’ve already written about personal responsibility regarding low carb and I believe part of that is objectively reviewing the case for the other side.

Do I think there are distortions here – perhaps some cherry-picking of the facts?

Yep.

Nonetheless, this is the rationale of the low carb haters – and why us low carbers sometimes come off as crazy uncle Larry:

Here’s an excerpt:

A low-carb diet is simply a low-calorie diet in disguise. But more importantly, low-carb diets are, by design, high-fat diets. The creators of these diets have to figure out what to tell people to eat if they can’t eat carbohydrates. The only other options are fats and proteins, and the result is a dangerous, seriously unbalanced diet.
Low-carb/high-fat diets:
• may increase the risk of contracting serious chronic diseases;
• may increase the risk of birth defects and childhood cancers;
• are not more effective for weight loss;
• may cause fatigue and lethargy;
• may cause cognitive difficulties;
• can make people-especially women-short-tempered.
Low-carb/high-fat diets pose dangerous health risks and may increase the risk of contracting serious chronic diseases.
Studies have linked extreme low-carb/high-fat diets to an increased risk of developing certain disease states, including:
• Alzheimer disease
• blindness and macular degeneration
• some forms of cancer
• cardiovascular and heart disease
• c-reactive protein/inflammation
• metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance
• osteoporosis
• kidney stones

This is due to increased levels of saturated fat and dietary protein in the diet, with inadequate nutrition coming from plant-based phyto-chemicals.

So – like I said in my previous post:

You, dear reader, are alone in this. There will be only one person in your deathbed – you. Experts of all stripes and devotees of this and that will tell you the Only Way – but ultimately you have to make the choice – and live with the consequences.