Category: Low Carb Diet

6 Bizarre Fad Diets

Here at Linda’s Diet Delight we encourage healthy eating as a way of weight loss.  Following both low carb and low calorie diets are both effective and healthy ways of losing weight and changing the way you eat food forever.   However, every now and again some very strange and weird diets do the circuit, usually with supposed celebrity endorsement.   We look at some of the most bizarre diets that have been around in recent years.

Cabbage Soup Diet

Obviously a diet that consists of only eating just one thing is going to get very boring, very quickly.  However, this diet will probably have you losing friends quickly as well, not only will your house smell disgusting, but imagine the windy effect that consuming that much cabbage will have.

Cayenne Pepper Diet

Also known as the Master Cleanse Diet it’s reportedly backed by many an A-list celebrity, this concoction of maple syrup, lemon juice and cayenne pepper must leave you absolutely ravenous.  Sure, you’ll lose some weight, I mean, there isn’t any actual solid food in this diet, but you’ll probably lose the will to live by day 2.

Twinkie Diet

A diet that consists of eating cake certainly has its appeal, but we rather suspect that it wanes rather rapidly.  Severely lacking in anything remotely healthy, we can only imagine this diet regime would have you feeling very ill.

Baby Food Diet

Regress and embrace your inner infant by going out and buying some jars of baby food.  Instead of eating your regular meals, have a jar of pureed mush instead.   Quite besides how hideous they probably taste to an adult, the lack of being able to chew, the loss of any texture (except for mush), and the minute portions will have you falling off this wagon quicker than you can say goo-goo gaa-gaa.

Tapeworm Diet

This diet consists of digesting beef tapeworm eggs and then allowing the tapeworms to grow in your intestines.  The tapeworms will then eat all the excess food in your system so that you are free to eat as you like, which is about as medieval as it gets.   You don’t get to keep the tapeworms forever though; as soon as you’ve reached your goal weight you can take some medicine to kill the parasites.  Side effects from this bizarre diet include vomiting, diarrhea, malnutrition, squashed internal organs and possible death. Nice!

The Air Diet

The principal behind this diet is that we don’t change the foods we eat or embark on a vigorous exercise regime, no this diet apparently works by simply breathing.   Allegedly the more air you breathe, the more weight you lose.  A big selling point to this diet is that you can do it anywhere, breathe that is, just in case you weren’t doing it before!

When you think about how the mischaracterization of the low carb diet as a “bizarre fad diet” has endured ever since Vogue Magazine published Dr. Atkins’ Diet Revolution in the late 1960s, you can see how unfair it is for diet and nutrition world to equate the restriction of carbs in one’s diet to one of these completely unfounded diets. While there is no doubt that the restriction of calories is the most obvious approach to weight loss, the restriction of carbs has clearly been proven to be just as viable and effective, and certainly deserving of a better moniker from the mainstream health organizations just a “fad diet.”

6 Reasons to Start a Low Carb Diet Now

Have you been thinking of beginning a low carb diet? If so, you are not alone. Many people begin living the low carb lifestyle for a variety of reasons. Below are six of the main reasons to start a low carb diet today:

To Lose Weight

This is one of the most common reasons to begin a low carb diet, and there’s a reason. Low Carb/High Protein diets have been found time and time again to be a very efficient diet to help you lose weight and keep weight off, and many tests have proven low carb diets to have better results in weight loss than low calorie diets.

There are many different low carb diets that differ vastly in their strictness in carbs, from Atkins to Dukin, Low GI to South Beach. Before beginning a low carb diet, be sure to learn about the different types so you can pick a diet that will best suit your lifestyle and be easier to stick with long-term.

It’s Summer Time

Summer is the best time of year to start any diet plan and a low carb diet is no exception. This is a common reason to start a low carb diet, simply because the heat often lessens our appetite. High carbohydrate foods tend to make you feel really full, but for a short period of time. In addition, our bodies tend to naturally crave more water during the hottest months of the year. With such an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables that are high in water content during the summer, it makes it much easier to increase intake of healthy low carb foods.

Family History of Heart Disease

Low carb diets increase good cholesterol (HDL) and decrease triglyceride levels, essentials for heart health. A recently-disclosed ten year study has shown that glycemic load is the biggest factor in the effects of carbs on heart health- those with higher glycemic load diets had nearly twice the incidence of heart disease compared to those with the lowest glycemic load diets. Not only that, but low carb diets have also been found to lower the saturated fatty acids in blood.

Continue reading 6 Reasons to Start a Low Carb Diet Now

The Vegetarian Low Carb Diet

Because of the health benefits of a high protein/low carb diet a lot of vegetarians are now choosing this diet as a way of life. In a traditional high protein/low carb diet a person would tend to eat a lot amount of meat or fish to obtain their protein, obviously vegetarians need to find alternative sources of protein that are not animal derived.

We’ve compiled a list of high protein food sources that will enable vegetarians to reap all the benefits of a healthy low carb diet.

Tofu

Tofu is commonly used as a meat substitute for vegetarians, and it can also be used as a high protein food source that can replaces other traditional vegetarian mainstays that are high in carbohydrates such as legumes or beans.

Tofu Shirataki Noodles

Tofu has a unique texture that soaks up flavors making it an extremely useful food to use in marinades, casseroles and with sauces. It is extremely versatile and can be cooked in many ways, fried, scrambled, mashed, sliced, diced… you name it. Whatever you can do with meat, you can do with tofu.

A 3oz serving of tofu contains 2 net grams of carbohydrates.

Tempeh

Tempeh is made from fermented whole soya beans, it’s great used in stir fries, casseroles and other dishes where you would traditionally use meat. Whilst tempeh isn’t as low carb as tofu – cooked tempeh has 9 grams of carbs per 3oz serving, it does have a low glycemic index score.

Quorn

Quorn is a mycoprotein extracted from a fungus called fusarium venenatum, related to the mushroom family. It is usually sold in a ground or diced form and it’s also available as various convenience foods such as sausages and burgers. Its carb count varies depending on the product so you need to check the labels of any Quorn product you buy. Quorn does contain egg whites so is not suitable for vegans.

Dairy

Cheese, yogurt, cream and milk are all excellent sources of protein, as well as other vital nutrients such as calcium, magnesium and zinc. Vegans can use soy variations of traditional dairy products which are high in protein.

Different low carb diets advocate different types of fats, the Dukin diet for instance would promote the eating of low fat dairy products and no more than 4 eggs a weeks, whereas the Atkins diet would allow full fat versions of dairy products and an unlimited amount of eggs.

Eggs

Eggs are an incredibly versatile protein source and an excellent meat alternative. A whole egg contains 0.5 grams of carbohydrates. A light meal can be made very quickly with eggs, and eggs are a great breakfast food for those steering clear of high carb cereals.

Most of the fat and cholesterol are found in the egg yolk, so if you are on a diet that restricts your fat intake you may need to limit the number of egg yolks you eat in a week. You can however, eat as many egg whites as you like.

Vegetables

Some low carb diets are stricter than others when it comes to the types of vegetables you consume. However, the less starchy a vegetable the lower the carb count. Eat a variety of vegetables that takes in different colors and textures to ensure that you are getting a wide range of vitamins and minerals

Berries

Again some diets are strict about which fruits you can eat as a lot of fruits are quite high in carbohydrates. Berries, however, are an excellent choice, most fall into the superfoods category and are full of antioxidants, vitamins and other essential nutrients, and most importantly low in carbs. A ¾ cup of strawberries has just 9 grams of carbs compared to 21 grams in a medium sized orange.

Nuts & Seeds

Woodstock Farm Organic Almonds

Nuts are a fantastic source of protein as well as magnesium, potassium, iron, calcium, zinc, copper and B and E vitamins. Whilst they are regarded as very high in fat they are full of the unsaturated kind that helps lower cholesterol and keeps your heart healthy.

Nuts and seeds can be used instead of breadcrumbs for crunchy coatings, sprinkled on your berries and yogurt in the morning or simply eaten on their own as a snack. Nuts and seeds are a must for a healthy low carb diet.

Low Carb Alternatives

Obviously low carb diets are big news and thankfully there are many products on the market that allow vegetarians and meat eaters alike to eat some of the foods that they love without spiking their blood sugar levels.

Linda’s Diet Delights has a great range of low carb foods, which covers low carb breads, low carb pastas, low carb muffins, low carb cereals and low carb candy to ensure that you stay in ketosis and keep yourself healthy and trim.

Summer is a Great Time to Start a Low Carb Diet

Dieters often believe that the Summer is “too late to begin dieting. But because of how fast you can lose both pounds and inches on a low carb diet, it makes for a perfect late-minute approach to a Summer diet blitz!

If you’ve been considering a low carb diet for a while now, whether it be for weight loss or general health reasons, you couldn’t pick a better time to start than summer.
Of all the seasons, summer offers us the most of amount of natural choices that won’t have you feeling that you’re missing out. Our diets tend to be much lighter over the warmer months generally, and the abundance of fresh fruit and vegetables on offer make meal planning much easier than with the more starchy offerings that are available over the fall and winter.
We naturally tend to eat lighter foods when it’s warm outside and are less likely to be tempted by the often carb loaded comfort foods that we crave more in the winter.
Low GI diets such as the South Beach diet actively encourage the consumption of good carbs found in abundance in the pickings of summer fruits and vegetables. Even stricter diets such as Atkins, now allow nutrient rich carbs back into the diet after the initial induction phase.
Starting a low carb diet in summer means that your body will have adjusted to its lower carb intake by the time winter comes around, and picking low carb meal choices will hopefully be second nature.
Breakfasts
How can we resist all the yummy summer fruits and berries that are readily available?  Added with some Greek yogurt and a sprinkling of mixed nuts or seeds makes a nutritious and more importantly, delicious, alternative to carb loaded cereals or toast in the morning.


Some home-made muesli or granola using oats, bran, dried fruits, nuts, shredded coconut and topped with a sliced banana is a great start to the day.You can make this as low carb as you like by experimenting with ingredients.Make up a big batch that will keep you going for days.  Alternatively buy some ready made low carb cereal.
Lunches
Obviously sandwiches are a no-no unless of course you’re using low carb breads, but there are plenty of other low carb options.
Salads with cold cuts of meat or grilled chicken or turkey make excellent lunch choices.
Omelettes make a great quick and easy lunch, high in protein and virtually carb free.
Cold salads made with quinoa, brown rice or pearled barley are a great way of mixing up your diet and increasing your fiber intake.
Dinners
Low Carb pastas and noodles make great light suppers that can be loaded with fresh summer vegetables.
New potatoes make an excellent low GI substitution for regular potatoes with a glycemic index of just 54 compared to 75 for French Fries.
Foregoing your carbs altogether with your evening meal is much easier to do in summer, as we don’t crave the comfort foods as much as we do in the colder months.A piece of salmon and a variety of vegetables makes a tasty and filling meal and you will barely notice the lack of potato or other high carb side.
Snacks
As long as we stay away from the ice creams and high sugar frozen popsicles, summer snacking can be easy to stick to a low carb plan.A tub of hummus with some vegetable batons makes a delicious snack, and some chicken drumsticks make great protein loaded hand-held food.
There are also plenty of low carb bars and low carb snacks to choose from to curb your appetite.

Low Carb Diets Shown to Reduce Cancer Risk

As more and more research and clinical trials take place into low-carb, high-protein diets we are discovering that there are many health advantages other than losing weight.

A new study using mice has found that low-carb diets could reduce the risk of getting cancer as well as slow the growth of tumors in cancer sufferers.

The British Columbia Cancer Research Center has been running clinical trials using mice that were fed a diet similar to the South Beach or other Low-GI diets. The mice that ate a diet that consisted of 15% carbs, 58% protein and 26% fat, were found to have slower tumor cell growth than laboratory mice that were fed a more typical American diet of 55% carbs, 23% protein and 22% fat.

The research team put mice that were predisposed to developing breast cancer into two teams, one team were fed the high-carb traditional Western diet, the other the low-carb, high-protein diet. During the first year, almost half of the mice on the high-carb diet actually developed the cancer, but none of the mice fed on the low-carb diet developed breast cancer.

During the 2 year trial only one of the mice on the high-carb diet lived his full life expectancy, and of all the mice on the western diet—70% died of cancer.  In the team fed on the low-carb diet, only 30% developed cancer, and more than 50% of the mice reached their life expectancy or exceeded it.

Gerald Krystal, a scientist at the research center, said: “This shows that something as simple as a change in diet can have an impact on cancer risk” The researcher also added “On the Western diet, half of the mice had tumors by middle age. On the low-carb diet, none of the mice had the tumors”.

The study had proved that tumor cells are fed by glucose.  By simply decreasing the amount of carbohydrates eaten the glucose in the body is greater reduced, so tumors cannot use it as fuel to grow. Whilst the study was based on mice, the principals should also be strong enough to be applied to our own eating habits.

In addition to this, reducing the amount of carbohydrates consumed also limits the amount of insulin the body produces.  Insulin has been found in past studies to actively speed the growth of tumors in both humans and mice.

The emphasis on choosing both good carbs and good fats however, is paramount to overall health.

 

Low Carb, High Fat Diets Are Not Bad for Your Heart

Recent research has found that low carbohydrate/high fat diets will not lead to hardening of the arteries in patients.

Dr. Kerry Stewart of Johns Hopkins reported that those who lost 10 pounds after undertaking a low carb/high fat diet had no more hardening of the arteries than a dieter on a traditional low fat diet.

Presenting to the American College of Sports Medicine in Denver he said “Losing weight may be more important to health than the diet you’re on, counter to what the public has been told for the last 20 or so years,”

There has been much opposition to low carb/high fat diets over the years, with researchers often raising concerns about adverse effects on heart health and blood vessels in dieters who go on low carb diets such as the Atkins diet.

These latest studies show that low carb diets can actually have a positive effect on heart health including, lowering cholesterol and blood pressure.  They also show that the diets may reduce the risk of artery diseases such as atherosclerosis, so therefore reduce the risk of heart disease.

Stewart enrolled 55 obese or overweight, but relatively healthy, patients aged between 30 and 65 to take part in a lifestyle modification program.  None of the patients had heart disease, or any markers of risk to cardiovascular health.

The patients were split into two groups with one set being given a low carb diet to follow for six months and the other a low fat diet.   They also had to undertake an hour of supervised exercise three days a week.   Researchers then monitored the patients for arterial stiffness and various other blood vessel health measures.

The findings showed that the same number of people in each group lost 10 pounds, but those on the low carb diet lost the weight quicker; in 45 days as opposed to the 70 days it took the low fat dieters to lose 10 pounds.

Tests on the patients revealed that there were no changes in arterial stiffness in either of the diet groups, nor was there any change in endothelial functions.  Even with adjustments made to take into account the different lengths of time it took to lose the weight, the results of each group were the same.

In an interview with MedPage Dr. Stewart said: “My theory is that if people can achieve weight loss, it will benefit vasculature in every other system of body. Weight loss, in the long run, will count more than the specific content of the diet.”

The research also showed that there weren’t any acute effects on vascular function after a single high fat meal.  A companion study with 66 patients revealed that there were no changes in endothelial function after consuming a meal at MacDonalds that contained 900 calories and 50 grams of fat.  Conversely, it was discovered that arterial stiffness improved by 16% after consuming the meal.  Of this finding Steward remarked: “It really seemed to make the arteries relax more, but we’re not entirely sure how. We’ll have to look more deeply into that.”

Other researchers have asked for longer-term follow up research, and for analysis to be included of the effects of different types of fat.

Steward promised that he would look at future analysis breaking down the types of fat consumed and assured people that the dieticians involved in the initial study had advised patients to stick to healthier fats such as monounsaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids

He also added that this research should help put aside doctors and dieters concerns about low carb diets.

Michael Nace is a low carb blogger for Linda’s Diet Delites, a leading online retailer of the finest low carb foods!

 

Swapping Candy Bars for Low Carb Bars

One of the things that people miss most on a low carb diet are candy bars and sweet snacks.  However, there is no need to completely exclude these from your diet, Linda’s Diet Delites has a great selection of low carb bars and low carb snacks to keep your sweet tooth happy without de-railing your low carb diet.

Sometimes we get a bit peckish and need something quick and handy to tide us over until the next meal. It’s all too easy to get tempted by a candy bar or packet of potato chips, but with a bit of forward planning you can stock your cupboards (and your purse) with healthy, nutricious, and more importantly, low carb bars that will fill that hunger hole but still leave you feeling saintly afterwards.

Atkins Advantage Bars are low carb (just 10g net carbs per bar), low in sugar and yet high in protein.  The bars are 1.6 ounces so enough to satisfy your appetite and they come in 14 different flavors for you to choose from, so you will be spoilt for choice.  These low carb bars are also on special offer at the moment with a 17% discount, retailing at $7.49 for a box of 5.

Atkins Advantage Low Carb Bars

We also sell Atkins Endulge bars, these are a luxurious low carb alternative to regular candy bars. There are 6 flavors to choose from and each low carb bar has no more than 3g net carbs. Again, we currently have these on special offer with a 28% discount and they retail at $6.49 for a box of 5.

Atkins Endulge Low Carb Bars

Eat Rite Crisps Bars are made from rice and marshmallows, and flavored with vanilla.  A delicious snack that with only 2 diet counts and 5g net carbs can easily be incorporated into your low carb diet. A pack of 7 bars costs $9.99.  They are also gluten free.

Just the Cheese Low Carb Bars

Doctor’s Carbrite Diet Bars not only contain just 2.5g of net carbs they are also free from artificial sweetners such as aspartame and sucralose. They contain no hydrogenated fats or trans-fats making them a truely exceptionally healthy choice of low carb bar.   They come in ten great flavors and are just $1.95 a bar.

Doctor’s CarbRite Diet Bars
Dixie Diner Sticky Bars are vegetarian, gluten free and completely natural with no added sugars.  These low carb bars have just 2-3g of net carbs depending on flavor and there are 3 flavors to choose from.  Each bar cost $2.25. 

Dixie Diner Sticky Bars

Hidden Carbs in Foods

We all know that low carb diets are excellent ways of losing weight.  By restricting the amount of carbohydrates we eat, the body produces less glucose which in turn means our body burn more fat.  However, whilst we know that we need to avoid breads, pastas, baked goods etc, are we really aware of just how many carbs are found in other foods?  Foods that we consider to be carb free can actually be harboring a lot of hidden carbs.

Processed Carbs

Lots of processed condiments and salad dressing have either sugar added, or if it’s a low fat equivalent, then artificial sweeteners such as maltodextrin, dextrose and corn syrup solids.  These additives are all carbohydrates and have exactly the same glycemix index as glucose.   As well as being sweetened with these chemicals, processed foods are quite often thickened with wheat or corn starches as well.

Blended spices such as Chinese 5 spice, garam masala and chilli powder can surprisingly contain up to a gram per teaspoon.  Spices made from roots, bark or seeds such as coriander, cinnamon and black pepper also contain a gram per teaspoon.  Stock cubes usually contain sugar and corn syrup and have about a gram per ½ cube.

Processed meats in particular tend to have hidden carbs; ham, corned beef, meatloaf, bacon and sausages all contain either sugar or starch fillers added, and in some cases both.  Products labelled low or non-fat are more likely to have starches added.  Canned fish products also have sugars and starches added to their sauces or brine.  Imitation crab meat is particularly high in added carbs with 12-15 grams of carbs for every 4 ounces.

Natural Carbs

It’s not just processed foods that have hidden carbohydrates, natural foods such as cream, cheese, eggs, fish and meats in their natural states.  Liver scores high in naturally found carbohydrates with beef having almost 9 grams per 4 oz serving and veal or calf liver having 3.1 grams.  Even seafood has hidden carbs – clams, mussels and oysters being the worst offenders with 5.8 grams, 8.4 grams and 8 grams respectively for a 4 oz cooked serving.

Food labelling can be misleading, in the US for example food manufacturers are allowed to round up (or down) the numbers, so a carton of heavy cream could have the label showing as zero carbohydrates when in actual fact it contains 0.6 grams per ounce.  Cheddar cheese has 0.5 grams per ounce and Swiss cheese 0.9 grams.  Half a cup of ricotta has 6 grams of carbs and fat-free plain yogurt has 8 grams per ½ cup.

Beverages

We know that alcoholic beverages contain carbs, with beer and wine being the worse culprits. We are also aware that the way that they are absorb by the liver rather than being used directly for fuel means that they stall weight loss but did you know that other beverages are also hiding carbs?

Coffee, both regular and decaffeinated, contains 0.8 grams per 6 fluid ounces.  Herbal teas can contain up to 0.5 grams with fruit-teas having even more.