Summer is approaching and you want to lose a few pounds?
Many are now turning to a tried and tested form of diet - which, however, according to a new study, can be immensely harmful.
Simply leave out the carbohydrates and you will lose weight - so the well-known diet tip.
But this one has it all: Researchers came to a terrifying result when they examined the effects of a low-carb diet on heart health.
Ketogenic Diet Low Carbohydrates: Why It's So Dangerous
Low-carb diets involve eating little to no carbohydrates.
The ketogenic diet is the most extreme: With this type of diet, carbohydrates are completely omitted.
Instead, vegetables, dairy products, fish and meat are on the table
- carbohydrates are replaced by fats and proteins, so to speak.
An international team of researchers led by Nicole Napoli from the American College of Cardiology, which deals with the development and treatment of heart diseases, has now investigated the effects.
Using the health data of 14,000 people, the scientists determined
that a low-carb diet is associated with a very high risk of cardiac arrhythmias
, as reported by the health portal Heilpraxisnet.
Those study participants who covered a large part of their daily calorie requirement with carbohydrates from grains, fruit and starchy vegetables such as potatoes were
noticeably less likely to be affected by atrial fibrillation
.
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:
Strengthen the heart with these ten blood pressure lowering foods
.
Cardiovascular survey
Ideal for the heart: Around 45 to 52 percent carbohydrates per day
For their study, the researchers analyzed extensive information provided by the study participants about their eating habits - over a period of 22 years.
The subjects were divided into three groups: low-carb, medium-carb and high-carb
.
"Low-carbohydrate diets were associated with an increased risk of developing atrial fibrillation, regardless of the type of protein or fat that was used to replace the carbohydrates," said Dr.
Xiaodong Zhuang, one of the study authors.
The low-carb group was 18 percent more likely to develop atrial fibrillation than people with a moderate carbohydrate intake.
The latter covered 44.8 to 52.4 percent of their daily calorie requirement with carbohydrates
.
All those who ate more ended up in the high-carb group: Compared to this group, the low-carb group had a 16 percent higher risk of atrial fibrillation.
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The researchers suspect one reason for this is
that low-carb promotes inflammation in the body
because fewer anti-inflammatory foods such as grains, fruits and vegetables are eaten.
Anti-inflammatory diets and their positive effects on heart health are coming more and more into the focus of scientists.
To the study
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