'High-Protein Diet' may not be the key to weight loss

'High-Protein Diet' may not be the key to weight loss

Experts have questioned the effectiveness of a high-protein diet as a means to reduce weight. The Australian best-seller 'The Total Wellbeing Diet' recommends the intake of a protein-rich diet as a remedy for weight-loss.

The book written by Manny Noakes and Peter Clifton, the scientists at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) prescribes a diet with 30-35% of protein coming basically from meat and fish. The normal western diet consists of 10-15% protein.

The 'Total Wellbeing Diet' is similar to the Atkins Diet which advocates a higher percentage of proteins too, but in the form of fruits and vegetables. Like the Atkins Diet, 'The Total Wellbeing Diet' has its critics, even though 50,000 copies of the book have already been sold in Australia since its launch in May.

The editorial of the Journal 'Nature' carries an article questioning the efficacy of the diet. The editorial reads, “The diet is being promoted as beneficial for everyone, whereas the published research indicates that it is superior to a high-carbohydrate diet only for a sub-population of overweight women with symptoms of metabolic disorder.”

The authors Manny Noakes and Peter Clifton had conducted a number of studies before arriving at the recommended diet. In one of the studies, involving hundred obese women, half were put on a high-protein diet while the other half on a high-carbohydrate diet. Because the total calorie intake in women of both the groups was same, the weight-loss also followed a similar pattern. However, women in the high-protein diet group who suffered from a condition called insulin resistance lost a great deal of weight.

Experts maintain that the only method to shed weight is to consume less number of calories than required or to burn extra calories through exercise. “Resorting to unbalanced, quick fix approaches may be harmful to your health, and is unlikely to lead to permanent weight loss, because as soon as you come 'off the diet' you are likely to go back to your original eating habits”, said Helen Stracey of the British Dietetic Association.