Thursday July 11, 2002

Press Release

SOURCE: Pritikin Longevity Center & Spa

Pritikin Doctors and Dietitians Challenge Gary Taubes' Fat-Promoting Article, 'What If It's All Been a Big Fat Lie?' published July 7, 2002, In New York Times

Article Fails To Recognize Significance Of Difference Between Refined Vs. Unrefined Carbs

AVENTURA, Fla., July 11 /PRNewswire/ -- The physicians and dietitians with the nonprofit Nathan Pritikin Research Foundation and the pioneering Pritikin Longevity Center, one of the first American programs to promote a low-fat, fiber-rich carbohydrate diet, are in an excellent position to comment on major nutrition and medical topics, including the issues raised by Gary Taubes' article published July 7, 2002, in the New York Times Magazine entitled "What If It's All Been a Big Fat Lie?"

The article proposes that Atkins and other proponents of high-fat diets may be correct that carbohydrates are the cause of America's obesity, diabetes, and heart disease epidemics. The take-away from the article by the public and many news sources, though not expressly written, is that the "low- fat, high-carb diets" don't work and that the answer to our health and weight problems may be an Atkins-like high-fat, very low-carb, low-nutrient diet.

Mr. Taubes is correct that the typical American diet is a disaster and his article, much more than any other recent article, has brought to the forefront the controversy of high-fat vs. high-carb diets. Mr. Taubes points out that sugars and other refined carbs like white bread and white rice cause spikes in blood sugar and surges in insulin, which, in turn, stimulate appetite, worsen cholesterol profiles, and decrease fat-burning, contributing to the fattening of America. Though the author mentions that there are different types of carbs, he seemingly pronounces all high-carb diets the same, infers that they are all ineffectual, and then makes the leap to high-fat diets as the answer.

There is, however, another far healthier alternative: a low-fat diet that is rich, not in sugary, REFINED carbs, but in carbs of a different color -- fiber-filled, nutrient-packed, straight-from-the-earth carbs like fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains such as oats, brown rice, and corn. These high-fiber carbs, known as unrefined carbs, cause no insulin overreaction. Unlike the low-fat, high-carb diets generically referred to by Mr. Taubes as causing an increase in triglyceride levels and other ills, low-fat, high-carb diets full of UNREFINED carbs have the most proven healthy effects of all diets.

The dramatic health results of people who have followed this kind of diet at the Pritikin Longevity Center (over 70,000) demonstrate the remarkable effectiveness of a low-fat, high-unrefined carb diet. A sampling of the results from the more than 65 Pritikin studies include a 33% drop in Triglycerides and a 23% drop in average and LDL cholesterol (4,587 subjects), 30% reduction in fasting insulin by subjects studied with Syndrome X, and of 652 type 2 diabetics, 39% of those on insulin left the program insulin-free and 70% of those on oral medications left medication-free.

These results have been published in peer-reviewed medical journals such as the "New England Journal of Medicine" and the "Archives of Internal Medicine." Regular exercise and a low-fat diet full of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains have also been proven to reverse coronary artery disease and prevent heart attacks. And in the largest study ever published on weight loss, the National Weight Control Registry, most of the nearly 3,000 subjects credit two factors for their success: a low-fat, high-carb diet and regular physical activity. They lost, on average, 64 pounds, and, impressively, kept it off for five years and more. Only 1% followed a high-fat, high-protein diet.

No such data exist on the high-fat diets. Without data to show that a high-fat, low-nutrient diet is safe or effective in the long term, it seems irresponsible to promote such a diet. We agree with Mr. Taubes that research comparing an Atkins'-type diet with a low-fat diet is badly needed, but it is imperative that the low-fat diet used is one that is full of high-fiber, unrefined carbs. We are ready, willing, and able to be the comparator.

In conclusion, we wish to assure Mr. Taubes and readers of the New York Times that low-fat, high-carb diets have NOT been "a big fat lie." Certainly, if we trade fat for sugars in the form of refined carbs, we ARE living a lie. "Fat free" carbs can make us fat. But, just as there are "healthy" and "unhealthy" carbs, there are "healthy" and "unhealthy" fats -- a distinction the Atkins' diet does not appear to recognize. A huge body of research has confirmed that saturated fats, cholesterol, and trans fatty acids block arteries. They're the primary culprits of our country's #1 killer: heart disease. Foods sizzling with saturated fat do clog arteries. Mr. Taubes was right to wince over his breakfast of sausage and eggs.

SOURCE: Pritikin Longevity Center & Spa

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/020711/flth013_1.html