It's Fat City for low-carb alternatives on store shelves

Linda Giuca, (c) 2004, The Hartford Courant, Jan. 23, 2004 12:00 AM

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Not too long ago, dietary fat was the enemy. Fat was responsible for obesity, heart disease and high cholesterol counts, and Americans were busily counting fat grams. By the mid-1990s, the number of new foods and beverages whose labels proclaimed "no fat" or "low fat" hit an all-time high.

Fast-forward to the present. Fat is enjoying a reprieve, while another major nutrient -- the carbohydrate -- is the current bad guy. A new generation of dieters, following weight-loss plans such as the Atkins and South Beach diets, are gobbling up animal proteins and high-fat dairy products and sullying their plates with only the most minute portions of starches and sugars.

Just as food manufacturers responded to fat-bashing by banishing fat from dairy products, frozen dinners and snacks, companies are focused on the low-carbohydrate -- make that "net carbs" -- bandwagon.

Last year, 633 new foods and drinks introduced in the United States carried claims of low, lower or reduced carbohydrate content, compared with 339 in 2002, according to market research company Productscan Online of Naples, N.Y. In 1999, only 47 low-carbohydrate items were introduced.

Until recently, these foods were available primarily by mail order, online or in specialty stores.

But walk the aisles of the supermarket, and it's difficult to ignore the use of "carbs" on the front of a package. Pick up a supermarket circular, and there are ads for breads, frozen dinners, ice cream, cereal and power bars with reduced carbohydrate content. Foods designed for low-carbohydrate diets are making the transition from a specialty item in the health-food section to shelves throughout the store.

"It's been a natural move on our part," says Stop & Shop spokesman Rick Stockwood of the products' transition from specialty to mainstream items. "As demand has increased, we've been able to add products throughout the store." In last week's circular, the chain even listed the carbohydrate content of fresh tuna, eggplant, cucumbers and greens that it was promoting in the seafood and produce departments.

In the dairy case is Hood's Carb Countdown milk, in whole, 2 percent and fat-free white milk as well as chocolate. Breyer's and Klondike brands introduced Carb Smart ice cream and fudge bars, respectively, last October, and low-carbohydrate ice cream sandwiches are due out next month. To reduce carbohydrates in these products, milk sugars are removed, and Splenda, a sugar substitute, is added as a sweetener.

Some varieties of frozen-dinner staples still highlight fat and calorie content rather than carbs, but upstart brands such as Mike's LifeStyle Gourmet offer high-protein and vegetable dishes with total carbohydrate content displayed on the front of the box. The Atkins label, an entire line of low-carb foods, including breads, isn't the only option in the bakery aisle. Arnold's, Thomas and Country Kitchen brands also have weighed in with their own reduced-carbohydrate versions of sliced bread and bagels.

Carbohydrates are the starches, fiber and sugars found in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and beans and "feel-good" foods such as ice cream, desserts and snack chips. The body converts carbs into glucose to use as energy. But excess carbohydrates that aren't used for fuel are stored as fat.

Nutritionists who advocate a balanced approach to eating recommend a diet that includes proper amounts of protein, fats and carbohydrates, particularly complex carbs that are generally unprocessed foods such as vegetables and whole grains. These carbohydrates are rich in vitamins, minerals and other nutrients and are digested more slowly than simple carbohydrates, a group that includes fruit, milk and processed foods made from white sugar and flour.

Eating too much protein or fat will result in the same fat being stored, but diets such as Atkins and South Beach promote cutting out, or at least cutting down on, carbohydrates as a more efficient way to lose weight. So followers learn to count carbs.

For that reason, the buzz word on the new food products geared to these diets is the term "net carbs."

To calculate the net carbs, fiber and sugar alcohols, a category that includes different forms of sugar, are subtracted from the overall carbohydrate count. The reasoning is that the body does not digest fiber or sugar alcohol.

But that may not be entirely true, says Dr. Gil Wilshire, chief scientific officer for the trade group Carbohydrate Awareness Council.

"Fiber is the only thing that you can legitimately subtract, (based on) our current knowledge," Wilshire says. "The sugar alcohols are a gray area. There is no research to take them out of the net carbs."

Wilshire says that some sugar alcohols, like glycerol, are digested, so "for all intents and purposes, there is no reason to subtract (them)." But how the body responds to other forms of reduced-calorie sugars and sugar substitutes such as lactitol and maltitol is unclear, he says.

The best tip for navigating the world of carbohydrates is "to avoid anything that is white -- white bread, white rice, white potatoes," says Wilshire, an endocrinologist, who has lost 105 pounds on a low-carbohydrate diet.

"Non-starchy vegetables, berries and melon are a cornerstone of the diet. Atkins was clear about that in his diet for life: Have no fear of any natural fat (such as olive oil, flax oil and meat fat), but avoid trans fats." Trans fats, which are found in many processed and prepared foods such as crackers, cookies and some fried foods, are partially hydrogenated oils that increase the risk of heart diseases.

For Wilshire and the trade group, who are formulating and advocating better carbohydrate labeling on new products, low-carb foods are here to stay -- and others agree.

"We have every reason to believe that new low-carb product introductions will keep pace for a while longer," says Suzanna Prong Eygabroat, Productscan Online's director of information services. The pace may increase even more, she says, if the big manufacturers such as Kraft, General Mills and Kellogg release more low-carb products.

For the moment, at least, carbs are grabbing attention, headlines and shoppers' dollars.

"Right now, low-carb is the big thing," she says, "and companies from publishers to manufacturers, who are targeting these consumers, are reaping the rewards."

This actually appears to be a well-informed article. What a pleasant surprise! I thought for sure this would be another attack on the LC "fad" so many people don't seem to understand, but the author of this article did some decent research.

I did a little research of my own and found the original link as well as an email address for the author (giuca[shift+2]courant.com).

I, for one, will be emailing her my thanks.

Thanks gotbeer!!

"low-carbohydrate ice cream sandwiches are due out next month"

OH YEAH!!!

Also like the endocrinologist who has lost 105 pounds. You know that's a believer!

I knew I loved Breyers for a reason. My SO actually picked up a box of "Slim-a-Bear" ice cream sandwiches, not realizing they were low-fat and not low-carb. He now knows (I hope) to read labels!