THE BOSTON GLOBE

BETHESDA, Md. - Americans should ignore trendy low-carbohydrate diets and focus instead on cutting calories by avoiding supersize fast food in favor of lean meats, low-fat dairy products, and fruits and vegetables, according to draft government dietary guidelines.

The report, written by 13 independent scientists, is the template for sweeping changes under way in the nation's nutritional policy, which could bring about major shifts in how Americans buy and eat food. The guidelines are rewritten every five years, but the nation's obesity epidemic has given the task greater urgency this year.

The scientists, who are advising the federal agriculture and health departments, discussed their report in public for the first time during a meeting Wednesday. In a swipe at in-vogue diets that seek to eliminate single categories of food, the federal panel stated in the report: "The strategy for weight loss is not to focus on the proportions of fat and carbohydrate in the diet."

The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee asserted instead that less food and more exercise are the essential components of a healthy, slimming diet. Recent studies have indicated that low-carb diets reduce weight over the short term, but their long-term staying power has not been proved.

The panel also defined a new set of basic food groups that people should eat from: fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk products, and lean meats or meat alternatives.

Gone from the list were foods containing refined starches, such as white bread, long a pillar of the government's recommended diet, as well as fatty red meats and whole milk products. The report also condoned moderate alcohol consumption, which studies suggest can reduce the risk of heart disease and other ailments - but added that abstinence is fine, too.

The report contained no surprises, falling within current thinking in academic nutrition circles. The panel will make changes before releasing its recommendations next month. The Bush administration will review them and issue final guidelines at the end of the year.



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