On Fri, 11 Sep 1998, Aaron D. Wieland wrote:

> Even though the conclusion of the study seems plausible to me, I would still
> like to know more.  I'm especially skeptical of the finding that "obese
> women put on high-sugar and sugar-free diets that were identical in other
> ways both lost the same amount of weight, and their blood sugar and fat
> levels were the same."  And advocating Olestra?  Ugh.

When careful studies have been done comparing *isocaloric* high
and low carb diets, there is not a significant difference in
weight loss.  Unfortunately, most of these studies do not measure
whether the lost weight is fat or muscle.  They also do not look
at the sustainability of these diets under free-living
conditions.  At least Surwit concedes that compliance with the
extreme low-fat diet is very difficult, but I hardly think
Olestra will solve the problem.

I would also like to know whether the type of fat is controlled
for.  There is a fair amount of literature showing that MUFA
improves insulin sensitivity, while SFA worsens it.

I hope I receive the Surwit article soon, to get answers to some
of these questions.

On the other hand, I think MacDougall claims success in treating
diabetes with his high-starch very-low-fat diet.  Of course, he
also regards his diet as "paleo" somehow...

Todd Moody
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