Two decades after the debate began on which diet is best for weight loss, a conclusion is starting to come into focus. And the winner is . . . not low-carb, not low-fat, not high protein but . . . any diet.
That is, any diet that is low in calories and saturated fats and high in whole grains, fruits and vegetables -- and that an individual can stick with for a lifetime -- is a reasonable choice for people who need to lose weight. That's the conclusion of a study published online Wednesday by the New England Journal of Medicine, research that represents the longest, largest and most rigorous test of several popular diet strategies.
In light of another highly regarded study published last year that reached a similar conclusion, medical experts are embracing the back-to-basics idea that the simple act of cutting calories is most important when it comes to losing weight. The conclusions could finally end the often-contentious debate over the comparative effectiveness of diets that are predominantly low in fat, high in protein, low in carbohydrates or marked by other specific configurations of nutrients.
"This study is saying it doesn't make any difference what diet you choose. Calories have always been the bottom line," said Dr. Robert Eckel, a physiology professor at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and past president of the American Heart Assn.
The findings should free people from the notion that it's necessary to eat a specific ratio of fat, protein and carbohydrates. They should choose, instead, what works for them.
"There isn't any one way. That is the nice thing about none of these diets in particular winning," said Christopher Gardner, a nutrition researcher at Stanford University's Prevention Research Center. "We don't have any right to push low-fat or low-carb or high-protein. If one of these approaches is more satiating, where you will not be hungry and have cravings, that is the one that will work for you."
The study did not prove, however, that every dieter succeeds. Instead, it reinforces numerous other studies showing most people lose a modest amount of weight in the first few months of dieting and regain some or all of it over time. In Wednesday's study, the average weight loss was 13 pounds at six months and 9 pounds at two years.
