Low Fat Diets

This diet, as the name defines constitutes of meals reducing foods high in fat, particularly cholesterol and saturated fats, which have been linked to an increased risk in heart attacks and raised cholesterol. This can extend to high fat meals, oils and sugars and there is clear debate into whether the removal of these fats is beneficial to overall health. While there are studies to show that the reduction in fat based foods does not result in the gain of weight, several recently published studies determined that there effects on weight loss were no more effective than any other diet.

With that in mind the risks soon outweigh the benefits with low-fat diets, as fatty-acids are essential for a healthy body, they are used to build energy supplies and also provide fat-soluble vitamins i.e. A, D, E and K.

• Vitamin A - which has multiple functions, is important for growth in young children and adults, it maintains the immune system and even improves ocular health.
• Vitamin D - a group responsible for absorption of calcium and phosphate and while not entirely key to nutrition, a lack in vitamin D can lead to bone disease.
• Vitamin E - another group which contains many biological functions, is an important antioxidant that aides in preventing free-radicals or mutated cells from forming in body tissue. It has purpose in neurological functionality and gene expression. A deficiency can cause an impaired immune system, red blood cell degradation, ataxia and many other harmful effects.
• Vitamin K - which is used in the synthesising of proteins in the body specifically for blood coagulation and the creation of metabolic pathways in bone tissue.

While the aforementioned vitamins can be found in certain plants and supplements, there is no clinical evidence to suggest that a low-fat diet is any more beneficial than a low-carb diet. With only slight weight loss and some studies linking towards a possible decrease in the risk of cancer, non have been conclusive and most recent tests show that weight loss is no more significant than any other diet.

Fat in diet can be reduced any time however someone wishing to control a long-term, low-fat diet should consult a medical professional or nutritionist.