Advertisement
Research Research and Professional Brief| Volume 109, ISSUE 4, P713-717, April 2009

Download started.

Ok

Comparative Effects of Three Popular Diets on Lipids, Endothelial Function, and C-Reactive Protein during Weight Maintenance

      Abstract

      Although popular diets focus on weight loss and their favorable biochemical and physiological effects, fewer investigations have evaluated the biological impact of these diets during weight maintenance. To study this issue, three popular diets—Atkins, South Beach, and Ornish—were tested in a randomized and counterbalanced crossover study between January and December 2006. Participants completed each of the three 4-week isocaloric dietary intervention phases followed by a 4-week washout period. They were weighed weekly and caloric adjustments made if weight change exceeded 1 kg. At the completion of each dietary phase, 3-day food records were analyzed, fasting blood sampled, and brachial artery reactivity testing performed. Eighteen adults completed all three isocaloric dietary phases. During the South Beach and Ornish maintenance phase, there were significant reductions in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (11.8%; P=0.01, 16.6%; P=0.0006, respectively) compared to prediet baseline. In addition, in contrast to the Atkins maintenance phase, significant reductions in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoprotein B levels were observed after the South Beach (P=0.003, P=0.05; repeated measures analyses of variance) and Ornish maintenance phases (P=0.0004, P=0.006, repeated measures analyses of variance). Brachial artery testing revealed an inverse correlation between flow-mediated vasodilatation and intake of saturated fat (r=−0.33; P=0.016). These data suggest that during weight maintenance, less favorable biological effects are observed during a simulated, high-fat Atkins diet when compared to the South Beach and Ornish diet. The findings support additional study in subjects with visceral obesity and the metabolic syndrome, in whom an increased risk of coronary disease at baseline may be accentuated with chronic consumption of a diet that exhibits unfavorable effects on lipids and endothelial function.
      To read this article in full you will need to make a payment

      Purchase one-time access:

      Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online access
      One-time access price info
      • For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
      • For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'

      Subscribe:

      Subscribe to Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
      Already a print subscriber? Claim online access
      Already an online subscriber? Sign in
      Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect

      References

        • Malik V.S.
        • Hu F.B.
        Popular weight-loss diets: From evidence to practice.
        Nat Clin Pract Cardiovasc Med. 2007; 4: 34-41
        • Brousseau M.E.
        • Schaefer E.J.
        Diet and coronary heart disease: Clinical trials.
        Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2000; 2: 487-493
        • Dietschy J.M.
        Dietary fatty acids and the regulation of plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations.
        J Nutr. 1998; 128: 444S-448S
        • Keogh J.B.
        • Grieger J.A.
        • Noakes M.
        • Clifton P.M.
        Flow-mediated dilatation is impaired by a high-saturated fat diet but not by a high-carbohydrate diet.
        Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2005; 25: 1274-1279
        • Robinson S.D.
        • Harding S.A.
        • Cummins P.
        • Din J.N.
        • Sarma J.
        • Davidson I.
        • Fox K.A.
        • Boon N.A.
        • Dnewby D.E.
        Functional interplay between platelet activation and endothelial dysfunction in patients with coronary heart disease.
        Platelets. 2006; 17: 158-162
        • Atkins R.C.
        Dr. Atkin's New Diet Revolution.
        Avon Books, New York, NY1998
        • Agatston A.
        The South Beach Diet.
        Rodale Press, Emmaus, PA2003
        • Ornish D.
        Eat More, Weigh Less: Dr. Dean Ornish's Life Choice Program for Losing Weight Safely While Eating Abundantly.
        HarperCollins Publishers, New York, NY1993
        • Miller M.
        • Bachorik P.S.
        • McCrindle B.
        • Kwiterovich P.O.
        Effect of gemfibrozil in men with primary isolated hypoalphalipoproteinemia: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study.
        Am J Med. 1993; 94: 7-12
        • Vogel R.A.
        • Corretti M.C.
        • Plotnick G.D.
        Changes in flow-mediated brachial artery vasoactivity with lowering of desirable cholesterol levels in healthy middle-aged men.
        Am J Cardiol. 1996; 77: 37-40
        • Lichtenstein A.H.
        • Ausman L.M.
        • Carrasco W.
        • Jenner J.L.
        • Ordovas J.M.
        • Schaefer E.J.
        Hypercholesterolemic effect of dietary cholesterol in diets enriched in polyunsaturated and saturated fat.
        Arterioscler Thromb. 1994; 14: 168-175
        • Grundy S.M.
        Comparison of monounsaturated fatty acids and carbohydrates for lowering plasma cholesterol.
        N Engl J Med. 1986; 314: 745-748
        • Williams M.R.
        • Westerman R.A.
        • Kingwell B.A.
        • Paige J.
        • Blombery P.A.
        • Sudhir K.
        • Komesaroff P.A.
        Variations in endothelial function and arterial compliance during the menstrual cycle.
        J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2001; 86: 5389-5395
        • Vogel R.A.
        • Corretti M.C.
        • Plotnick G.D.
        Effect of a single high-fat meal on endothelial function in healthy subjects.
        Am J Cardiol. 1997; 79: 350-354
        • Mori T.A.
        • Beilin L.J.
        Omega-3 fatty acids and inflammation.
        Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2004; 6: 461-467
        • Sarti C.
        • Gallagher J.
        The metabolic syndrome: Prevalence, CHD risk, and treatment.
        J Diabetes Complications. 2006; 20: 121-132

      Biography

      M. Miller is an associate professor of Medicine, Epidemiology, and Preventive Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore

      Biography

      V. Beach is a study coordinator and C. Mangano is a research echocardiographer, University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore

      Biography

      C. Dobmeier is a registered dietitian and D. Novacic is a medical resident, University of Maryland Hospital, Baltimore

      Biography

      J. Rhyne is a research assistant, University of Maryland and Baltimore VA Medical Center, Baltimore

      Biography

      R. A Vogel is professor of medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore

      Biography

      J. D. Sorkin is chief, Biostatistics and Informatics, University of Maryland School of Medicine Division of Gerontology and Baltimore VA Medical Center, Baltimore

      Linked Article

      • Authors' Response
        Journal of the American Dietetic AssociationVol. 109Issue 9
        • Preview
          Feinman raises the suggestion that saturated fat intake had little effect on flow-mediated dilation because individuals who consumed lower amounts of saturated fat were “most as likely” to show a reduction in flow mediated vasodilation (FMD) compared to when higher saturated fat was consumed. These conclusions are based upon subdividing the groups by FMD (positive or negative response) and stratifying saturated fat intake by using an artificial cut-point. However, this interpretation is misguided for the following reasons.
        • Full-Text
        • PDF
      • Saturated Fat and Vascular Compliance
        Journal of the American Dietetic AssociationVol. 109Issue 9
        • Preview
          The recent paper by Miller and colleagues (1) reported “an inverse correlation between flow-mediated vasodilatation and intake of saturated fat (r=0.33; P<0.016). These data suggest that during weight maintenance, less favorable biological effects are observed during a simulated, high-fat Atkins diet when compared to the South Beach and Ornish diet.” An analysis of their data, however, shows the opposite: consistent with the poor correlation coefficient, saturated fat intake had little effect on flow-mediated dilatation.
        • Full-Text
        • PDF