Cheating on low carb diets

Cheaters!

All of those nay-sayers who attack the Atkins plan and fret over the supposed dangers of following a low-carbohydrate diet can relax.

According to a 3-year study of about 11,000 people, only one out of four people on low-carb diets are actually keeping their carbs down.

Even more revealing: The five percent who had the lowest carb intake consumed an average of nearly 130 grams of net carbs per day. That’s well over twice the carbohydrate intake recommended by Atkins for ongoing weight loss.

According to the study – conducted by NPD Group, a market research firm – about 10 million people in the U.S. are following a low-carb diet. But the findings imply that those who are actually succeeding in following this diet may be closer to 2.5 million.

Is anyone surprised? Cheating on diets is practically a national pastime. Which could partly account for why obesity is still on the rise.

But many in that 75 percent who aren’t keeping carbs down might not even know they’re cheating. One theory has it that they’re loading up on too many low-carb products. Of course, those products still deliver carbs, and those grams add up quickly.

This situation doesn’t exactly come as a shock. To paraphrase the old theater saying: “Eating is easy. Dieting is hard.”

Sources:
“Most Low-Carb Dieters Eat Too Many Carbs – Study” Reuters Health, 4/5/04, reutershealth.com