Energy balance
Low-carbohydrate weight-reducing diets produce greater short-term weight loss (3-12 months) than balanced-carbohydrate diets in overweight/obese adults without type 2 diabetes, but this advantage disappears after 12 months.
If you want to lose weight quickly, a low-carb diet might give you a slight edge over a balanced diet in the first year. However, after a year, it offers no advantage over a balanced diet. Choose the diet you can stick to, as long-term weight loss is similar regardless of carb intake.
Low-carbohydrate diets result in greater weight loss than balanced-carbohydrate diets at 3 to < 12 months, but there is no difference at ≥ 12 months.
Why this rating
Cochrane systematic review of RCTs, though quality of evidence was rated moderate to low for some outcomes due to risk of bias.
Source
Low-carbohydrate versus balanced-carbohydrate diets for reducing weight and cardiovascular risk
Celeste Naude et al. · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · 2022
DOI 10.1002/14651858.cd013334.pub2
More from this paper
- Low-carbohydrate diets improve triglyceride levels more than balanced-carbohydrate diets in overweight/obese adults without type 2 diabetes, regardless of weight loss duration.Good
- Low-carbohydrate diets improve glycemic control (HbA1c) more than balanced-carbohydrate diets in overweight/obese adults with type 2 diabetes.Good
Related findings · Energy balance
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- Achieving type 2 diabetes remission requires significant weight loss (≥15 kg) via major caloric restriction, independent of macronutrient composition.Strong
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