'Good carb' diet rivals Atkins

We've had the low carb diet and the no carb diet - now it's time for the 'good' carb diet.

A new regime is being hailed by doctors as a healthier alternative to the controversial but highly-popular Atkins Diet.

Called the GI (low glycaemic index) diet, it is designed to distinguish between 'good' and 'bad' carbohydrates.

It concentrates on the so-called 'good' carbohydrates which keep a person feeling full for longer, reducing the urge to snack.

Dieters can stick to a fairly conventional balance of protein and carbohydrates, rather than skewing the diet towards high-protein foods such as meat, eggs and cheese.

The Atkins Plan has up to three million adherents in Britain, along with celebrities such as Jennifer Aniston and Renee Zellweger.

But although many have lost weight on the diet, scientists have voiced fears over potential links to diabetes, bowel cancer and breast cancer.

In a study published in The Lancet today, two sets of rats were fed on nearly identical diets, composed of 69 per cent carbohydrates.

For one group, this was made up of 'good' carbohydrates with a low glycaemic index, the other 'bad', high-GI carbohydrates.

After 18 weeks, the high-GI group had 71 per cent more body fat than the low-GI group, with much of the fat concentrated around the middle of the rats' bodies.

Fat around the middle of the body in humans produces the 'apple' shape which is a known risk factor for heart disease. Levels of blood fats were nearly three times higher in the high GI group - another heart disease trigger in humans. Tests also showed changes in the high GI group associated with an increased risk of diabetes.

In a second study, using mice rather than rats, the results were even more marked, with the high-GI group carrying 93 per cent more body fat than the low GI group.

Dr David Ludwig, of the Children's Hospital, Boston, who led the research, said: 'The Atkins diet tries to get rid of all carbohydrates, which we think is excessively restrictive. You don't have to go to this extreme if you pay attention to the glycaemic index and choose low-GI carbs.'

High GI carbohydrates - such as white bread, refined breakfast cereals and concentrated sugars - are rapidly digested, causing a surge of blood glucose and insulin.

Low GI carbohydrates - such as wholegrains, fruit, vegetables, noodles and lentils - and many nuts can release their sugar more slowly.

Previous studies have suggested a low-GI diet is beneficial but it has not been clear exactly why this is the case and whether other factors, such as fibre in the diet, contribute.

Dr Ludwig said: 'This is the first study that can definitively identify glycaemic index as the active dietary factor. It can have dramatic effects on the major chronic diseases plaguing developed nations - obesity, diabetes and heart disease.'

Dr Sarah Brewer, medical adviser to Atkins, said: 'People will lose weight more easily and more quickly following a low-carb diet.

'The conventional mix of carbs and protein is not correct for many people, which is why we have such an obesity problem now.'

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Manufacturers Sharp say it removes up to eight times more fat from meat than conventional cooking and also claim it helps prevent the loss of vitamin C in vegetables.

t.utton@dailymail.co.uk