Haverland 1

Natalie Haverland

Prof Morean

Eng 1201

26 April 2020

What is the Best Diet?

The plague of the 21st century has been obesity. About 78 million American adults and

12.5 million American children are obese (HHS Office). There is so much information spewed

about diets and other ways to lose weight and maintain good health. Some diets recommend

plenty of meat, while others forbid it entirely. One diet will call for grains, while another claims

grains are bad. Many limit dairy consumption, while others value dairy as a main protein source.

Should people eat everything in moderation or restrict certain foods? There does not seem to be a

consensus on what diet plan is best. Moderate, manageable diets seem likely to be effective

dieting techniques in order to live a healthy lifestyle, which includes losing weight and long-term

compliance.

Different diets started millions of years ago and changed over the course of human

evolution. A book by Dr. Stephen Le, ​100 Million Years of Food: What Our Ancestors Ate and

Why It Matters Today​, explains the history of the human diet and the impact on people today. To

begin, our ancestors were tree dwellers 100 million years ago. Insects were a common source of

vitamins and iron (Le). Humans can no longer digest the chitin-containing, hard exoskeletons of

insects after losing a valuable enzyme during evolution. To combat that change, our ancestors

became full-time fruit eaters. Today, that diet would be impossible for humans to live off of. As
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demonstrated by Steve Jobs’s fruit-only diet, too much fructose can lead to insulin resistance and

pancreatic cancer.

Continuing through evolution, our ancestors became land-dwellers about two million

years ago and began a meat-based diet. While this increased brain size and extremely accelerated

evolution, humans eventually could not eat too much meat without risking excess nitrogen

compounds and high cholesterol levels. About eight thousand years ago, meat was substituted by

other foods, such as fish and milk. Fish is loaded with healthy omega-3 oils and vitamin D, but it

was not viewed as “food” by all cultures and religions and was only accessible near bodies of

water. On the other hand, milk is statistically linked to increased growth in children. As a result,

this led to differences in heights between cultures. Milk-drinking populations also absorbed

calcium more efficiently, while others experienced dangerously high calcium levels if they drank

too much milk. This is linked to prostate cancer. About twelve thousand years ago, humans

turned to plants after the extinction of large mammals. Because plants are surrounded by

predators, they develop toxins and chemicals, some of which are harmful to humans or upsetting

to the digestive system.

A paleo diet is structured around the food our ancestors ate, which includes nuts, fruits,

lean meat, plants, eggs, fish, insects, and lots of water. Analyzing what our ancestors ate can

reveal why humans have food intolerances, cancers, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and more health

problems. Dr. Stephen Le’s book is meant to shed light onto the issues everyday people have

because of bad dieting and eating processed foods made after the agricultural revolution. Eating

locally and seasonally may be the best way to go instead of processed grains, sugars, and
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modified fats (Loughry). Dr. Le argues variations of the paleo diet tailored towards individuals’

needs are the best techniques to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Dieting involves regulating one’s consumption of food in order to improve one’s physical

condition (“Dieting”). This could be promoting weight loss, muscle gain, lower cholesterol, and

more. In addition to regulating food, any diet must be paired with some variation of physical

activity, and the US government recommends 150 minutes of exercise per day (Tello). Dieting

results are going to vary person to person based on previous medical history, exercise habits,

body types, and so on. One diet does not fit all, but some may be overall more successful than

others.

Many diets regulate calories, and more specifically, the macronutrients that make up

calories. The three macronutrient categories are proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. Alcohol is

sometimes considered another category, but the majority of diets restrict alcohol or eliminate it

entirely. Sources of protein include chicken, turkey, fat-free cheese, extra-lean beef, egg whites,

and non-fat greek yogurt. There are three different types of carbohydrates (Mayo Clinic Staff,

“Choose Your Carbs Wisely”). Sugars are simple carbs, naturally found in foods such as

vegetables, fruits, and milk, but are also found in processed foods, such as commercial cookies.

Starches are complex carbs, which are in breads, potatoes, cereals, pasta, and oats. Fiber, another

complex carb, includes nuts, fruits, beans, oatmeal, and other grains. Sugars are digested quickly,

so they are not a sustainable source of energy, leading to hunger and excess eating. Starches and

fiber are better sources of carbs.

Fats are commonly misunderstood and tend to have a negative connotation. There are

four different types of fats, all differing in molecular structure and state at room temperature
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(Harvard Health Publishing, “The Truth about Fats”). The type of fat is important when

structuring a diet. Trans fats, often found in snack foods, frozen foods, and baked goods, are the

worst fats for the human body and are restricted in most diets. Monounsaturated and

polyunsaturated fats, which include avocado, olives, butter, olive oil, peanut oil, mayo, egg yolk,

and nuts, are healthy and endorsed in fat-containing diets. Saturated fats are somewhat

in-between and intake promotion depends on

the individual. These fats include whole milk,

coconut oil, red meat, and cheese. Many foods

do not fall in one macronutrient category, but

many. For example, eggs are full of protein

and fat.

Diets can be classified into two categories, an

extreme diet or a moderate diet. An extreme

diet promotes rapid weight loss (Joshi et al). A

few extreme diets are low-carb, low-fat, and

very-low-calorie. To start, a low-carb diet

involves consuming a low percentage of

carbohydrates, a moderate amount of protein,

and a high percentage of fat (Fig. 1). A keto

diet is an extreme version of a low-carb diet,

calling for less protein, more fat, and an

extremely low carb intake, only 20-50 grams per day

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(Fig. 2) (Bala et al). To contrast, The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends 225 to 325

grams of carbohydrates (Mayo Clinic Staff, “Choose Your Carbs Wisely”). This extremely low

amount of carbs pushes the body into ketosis, in which energy comes from burning fats instead

of carbs. Ketones are the by-product of burning fat, and ketosis is the metabolic state when an

unusual amount of ketones are circulating in the blood (“Ketosis”). The result is rapid weight

loss. A research article issued in ​Drug Invention Today​ analyzes the results of a keto diet on

active gym-goers (Bala et al). The observational study found that a keto diet has a higher success

rate in males and most people see significant weight loss. Despite weight loss success, a keto diet

has a major downside after prolonged use. The body’s constant state of ketosis can damage the

kidneys and cause renal system failure. The challenge of maintaining such a low amount of carbs

at all times to keep the body in ketosis and the health risks makes the keto diet very difficult to

implement into a lifestyle.

Another low-carb diet is the Atkins diet. In comparison to a keto diet, it is not as

restrictive (Joshi et al). It does not limit protein intake and eventually reintroduces carbohydrates

in a series of stages (Mahdi). By slowly adding carbohydrates, such as fruits, vegetables, and

grains, back into the diet, one would theoretically reach a state where they can keep losing

weight with the addition of nutrient-rich carbs (Mayo Clinic Staff, “Atkins Diet”). Unfortunately,

this reintroduction of carbs seems to cause weight gain again when the body is no longer in

ketosis (Mahdi). The keto diet might be a better choice of a low-carb diet in terms of success.

Overall, low-carb diets have a variety of possible health complications. These diets can

lead to an excess of uric acid in the blood, resulting in joint pain and arthritis (Mahdi). In

addition, they can cause hypercalciuria, which could lead to low calcium levels, osteoporosis,
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and kidney stones. A Harvard study showed that low-carb, high-protein diets can cause

decreased kidney function. Since one in four Americans experience kidney problems, this can be

a major drawback. Another complication stems from limiting fruits and vegetables in low-carb

diets, which can cause calciuria, bone loss, lead to cancers, promote inflammatory pathways, and

other negative side effects (Joshi et al). Losing weight should be done in a healthy manner that

does not cause organ complications and restrict essential minerals, vitamins, and fiber. Although

low-carb diets seem to promote rapid weight loss, they do not seem to promote a healthy lifestyle

due to the health risks.

Another extreme diet is a low-fat diet, which is essentially the opposite of a low-carb

diet. Low-fat diets emphasize consuming a high percentage of carbohydrates, fibers, and protein

and a low percentage of fats (Fig. 1). A few low-fat diets include the Pritikin diet and the Dean

Ostrich diet. The former diet is plant-based with small amounts of low-fat animal protein, and

the latter diet is essentially a vegetarian diet (Joshi et al). In a study analyzing the effects of a

low-fat diet vs other dieting techniques, low-carb diets were more successful for losing weight

(Tobias et al). In addition, diets with moderate fat intake had very similar weight loss results in

comparison to a low-fat diet. Therefore, it is not necessary to partake in a more challenging

low-fat diet instead of a modest fat diet. A low-fat diet only showed weight reduction differences

when compared to a “usual diet,” a control group with no diet change. Therefore, it is reasonable

to assume that a low-fat diet does not promote significant enough weight reduction differences to

consider it instead of a moderate fat diet, but it is better than no diet at all.

Based on the findings of the study, a low-carb diet would in theory be a better option

instead of a low-fat diet. However, the difference in weight reduction is too small to be
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significant. A low-carb diet caused about 2.5 pounds greater lasting weight reduction than

low-fat diets (Tobias et al). 2.5 pounds does not seem to be a significant difference to consider a

low-carb diet better than a low-fat diet. Despite these unpromising findings about low-fat diets,

there are a few health benefits. A low-fat diet can lower insulin and glucose levels, which could

be beneficial to someone with type 2 diabetes (Joshi et al). They also lower cholesterol, but this

is not seen to stay consistent over a long period of time. Compared to a low-carb diet or a modest

fat diet, a low-fat diet does not seem to hold much promising evidence to be an effective way to

lead a healthy lifestyle.

A third extreme diet is a very-low-calorie diet, which calls for an extremely low intake of

calories per day, less than 800. There are surprising, promising findings after analyzing

very-low-calorie diets. In a study observing type 2 diabetes patients on very-low-calorie diets,

normalization of liver fat content, weight loss, remission of diabetes, and a low dropout rate was

observed (Joshi et al). On the other hand, side effects include ketosis, gallstones, and an increase

in serum uric acid concentrations. There is also a concern with very-low-calorie diets that proper

nutrition will not be met. Essential vitamins and minerals, multivitamins, potassium, adequate

liquid intake, and dietary protein are recommended for this diet to be efficient.

In a study evaluating the potency and safety of very-low calorie diets in Taiwan, there

was no notable weight loss difference between a group that consumed 450 calories per day

compared to a group that consumed eight hundred calories per day (Rolland and Broom). It

seems likely that one could consume more calories, minimize limitations, and achieve the same

results. There is limited research on the long-term results of a very-low-calorie diet, so it can not

be concluded that it is the most effective way to lead a healthy lifestyle. It is difficult for research
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to be done on this because it is hard for people to have adequate compliance with such a

restrictive diet. It does seem likely that as long as one maintains the proper nutrient intake, a very

low-calorie diet might not be a bad option to quickly lose weight.

Extreme diets have a repeated common factor, compliance difficulty. It is difficult to

restrict so many foods for a long period of time. A Harvard Health article revealed the results of

a study that examined the factors that interact with diet success. The study monitored 609

decently healthy, but overweight participants. For the first month, everyone ate normally. They

were split into two groups for the next eight weeks. One group was allowed twenty grams of fat

per day, and the other group was allowed twenty grams of carbs per day. In conclusion, both

groups ended with almost identical results. A low-carb and a low-fat diet had similar results in

all areas analyzed, ranging from weight loss to lower cholesterol to lower blood sugar (Tello).

This supports the findings in the study analyzing the effects of a low-fat diet vs other dieting

techniques and that 2.5 pounds is not a significant difference to conclude a low-carb diet is better

than a low-fat diet. This information allows individuals to live a healthy lifestyle easier.

Individuals can pick which direction to go in, low-carb or low-fat, without repercussions of

choosing the wrong one.

To reiterate, extreme diets may show promising results for short periods of time, but

compliance issues are often a complication. It was proven in the next steps of the study that an

extreme diet is unnecessary. Each partaker was directed to go back to their normal diet, but now

limit fats or carbs until they believed they could maintain the diet forever. Their only instructions

were to eat as many vegetables as possible; reduce processed foods; cook foods from scratch;

and restrict trans fats, added sugar, and refined carbs such as flour. This was a lifestyle change,
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not a “fad” diet promising extreme, rapid weight loss, which is almost always associated with

compliance complications. Extreme diets are not an effective way to lead a healthy lifestyle.

A diet someone can maintain for life paired with healthy habits, such as exercising and

enough sleep, is the best diet to lead a healthy lifestyle. An article written by Harvard Health

concluded that balanced weight loss diets may be the best solution. Two moderate diets are the

Mediterranian and DASH diet. The Mediterranian diet is based on habits observed in Greece and

parts of Italy in the early 1960s. These areas had a high life expectancy and low rates of heart

disease, some cancers, and certain diseases (Willett). The Mediterranian diet is a plant-based diet

paired with minimal amounts of red

meat, modest amounts of fish and

poultry, and moderately consumed

dairy and alcohol (Harvard Health

Publishing, “Scientifically”). This diet

is also rich in many healthy

monounsaturated and polyunsaturated

fats, such as olive oil and olives. The

tastefulness and health benefits of this

diet contribute to its popularity and high

compliance rate.

The Dietary Approach to Stop

Hypertension, or DASH, uses the food pyramid to

structure a diet. It is similar to the Mediterranian diet;

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it focuses on generous amounts of fruits, vegetables, and grains, but it is stricter when it comes to

sodium and fats (Fig. 3). The U.S. News and World Report declared the DASH diet to be the

greatest diet in the country, while the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans deemed the

Mediterranean diet as an ideal model of how Americans should eat (Harvard Health Publishing,

“DASH”). Both diets are great options and promote good heart health, with the DASH diet more

effectively lowering blood pressure (Harvard Health Publishing, “Scientifically”). In addition,

both of these moderate diets are not restrictive enough to cause many compliance issues (Joshi et

al). Because the Mediterranean and DASH diet have high success rates in compliance, weight

loss, and health benefits, they may be the best diets to live a healthy lifestyle.

Mediterranean and DASH diets have promising success rates, but if they were the perfect

diets, why are there other diets at all? In reality, there is not a one-diet-fits-all. The

Mediterranean and DASH diet may not affect someone’s weight at all. “What is the best diet?” is

the wrong question to ask because it depends more on the person undergoing the diet than the

diet itself. Differences in genetics, nutrition, lifestyle, and microbes (gut bacteria) make each and

every person unique (Segal). What if our nutritional intake needs to be tailored to our direct

makeup? New findings show that focusing on blood glucose levels may be the answer. After

eating, the body digests carbs into simple sugars and releases them into the bloodstream. Sugars

are removed from the blood and converted into energy, with the help of insulin, but excess

sugars are also stored as body fat. This is how we gain weight. In addition, our body could also

release too much insulin, which could lead to hunger and excess eating. There are many factors

that influence a healthy diet, but glucose levels seem to be an important one.
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In a study called ​The Personalized Nutrition Project,​ various trends were revealed after

monitoring the after-meal glucose levels of a sample of one thousand people for several weeks.

Such trends included higher levels with a carb-heavy meal and lower levels with a fat-heavy

meal (Segal). More important than the overall trends were the results that showed variation from

person to person. While eating the same meal on different days caused similar glucose levels in

one person, completely different glucose levels were found for another person who ate the same

meal. For example, a cookie may have caused little responses in glucose levels for one person

every time they ate a cookie, but caused huge responses in another person (Fig. 4). There were

even more surprising findings. Foods considered “healthy” sometimes caused greater glucose

spikes than “unhealthy” foods, such as a

cookie and a banana (Fig. 4). After

averaging the glucose levels of the

participants, ice cream surprisingly

proved to have an overall trend of lower

glucose levels than rice. Therefore,

eating rice may be contributing to

someone’s type 2 diabetes more than

ice cream, concluding that traditional

dietary guidelines might be flawed. One

particular diet is not a universal

solution. Instead, diets should be personally

tailored to keep one’s glucose levels normal.

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The difficult task of finding what diet is individually best for each person is currently

being studied. The human body’s microbiome, or the bacteria that lives inside the stomach, is an

exciting new field. New DNA sequencing has allowed further exploration and shown that the

microbiome has a major impact on our health. Humans can change their microbiome by simply

eating differently, which is demonstrated in an experiment conducted with artificial sweeteners

and mice. Artificial sweeteners can change the chemical makeup of the gut bacteria in humans.

When this human bacteria was transferred into mice, the mice developed diabetes. The body’s

microbiome holds the key to diseases, such as type 2 diabetes. The scientists behind ​The

Personalized Nutrition Project​ created an algorithm that was used to find patterns connecting the

microbiome to glucose levels, which can further be used to determine glucose responses

particular to each person. A new study was done with a thousand new participants and the

algorithm created a “bad diet,” which would cause the glucose levels to rise, and a “good diet,”

which would cause the glucose levels to lower.

The results were striking. Most patients saw no spikes in glucose levels when following

the “good diet.” Furthermore, the microbiome began producing bacteria beneficial to human

health and produced less disease-causing bacteria. These effects last beyond a diet, which is

uncommon amongst fad diets where it is easy to gain weight back once stopping the diet. In

addition, the very-low-calorie diet seems pointless when this experiment shows that calories do

not have to impact an overall healthy lifestyle at all. The question, “What is the best diet?” might

not be the correct thing to ask considering the advancing field of nutrition.

By 2030, it is projected that half of all American adults will be obese (HHS Office). That

is 115 million people. Recommended amounts of refined grains, solid and saturated fats, added
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sugars, and sodium are all surpassed in the average American diet. Dr. Stephen Le concluded

that modern diseases, obesity, cancers, and negative health effects are a result of the way people

eat. The Mediterranean diet, DASH diet, paleo diet, or any other moderate dieting technique

seem to be the best ways to lead a healthy lifestyle. After the findings from ​The Personalized

Nutrition Project​, it is more accurate to say that these diets may have a higher percentage of

people who’s glucose levels remain normal. The advancing field of nutrition is revealing that a

different question should be asked, “What is the best diet for each individual person?” Glucose

monitors can be purchased at local drugstores until this technology is available to all. This new

technology has enormous possibilities, such as curing diseases previously thought to be

incurable. Furthermore, it is simply imperative that future generations start to put their health

first or else more detrimental diseases and cancers will arise. The world would be a much

healthier and positive community if these dieting techniques could be implemented into

everyone’s lifestyle.
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