If you eat low carbohydrate and high protein, you do not want to consume a lot of sugars because sugars are carbohydrates. If you eat high protein, you want to get a lot of meat and dairy. In practice, these two diets are very similar, because carbohydrates are often replaced by proteins. But what can you and can not eat? And what are the advantages and disadvantages of such a diet?
Low carbohydrate
With a low-carbohydrate diet, you eat as few carbohydrate-rich products as possible. Carbohydrates is the collective name for starches and sugars that supply your body with energy.
Variations
The low-carbohydrate diet has several variations:
- As little as possible carbohydrates: This diet does not contain foods that contain a lot of carbohydrates, such as cereals, bread, potatoes, fruit and sweetened products. One of the most famous founders is Atkins: he already made this diet popular in 1972. Due to the omission of grain products and fruit, the diet also contains too little fiber.
- Sugar-free: This usually means that you are not allowed to eat (table) sugar and sweetened products, but fruit, wholemeal pasta and wholemeal bread.
- Low glycemic index (GI): Products with a low GI increase blood sugar levels less quickly than products with a high GI. You would lose weight by eating products with a low GI. Products with a low GI are (most) fruits, whole grain products, vegetables and legumes. Products such as bananas and potatoes have a high GI. That eating low GI products would help with weight loss is not scientifically substantiated.
Protein rich
Like carbohydrates, proteins are a source of energy and above all a building material for muscles, bones and skin. In addition, eating protein gives you a full feeling and maintains relatively more muscle mass during weight loss.
A protein-rich diet is not necessarily the same as a low-carbohydrate diet, but in practice it often comes down to the same thing. After all, if you do not get energy out of carbohydrates, you will have to replace them with proteins and / or fats. In a high-protein diet, the emphasis is on eating meat, fish and legumes.
Proteins and carbohydrates in food
Protein-rich products:
- Fish
- Meat and poultry
- Dairy
- Eggs
- Pips, nuts and seeds
Low-carbohydrate products:
- Vegetables
- Unprocessed meat and unprocessed fish
- Cream, butter, oils
- Pips, nuts and seeds
- Avocados
- Unsweetened dairy products
Carbohydrate rich products:
- Bread
- Pasta
- Rice
- Other grain products such as oats and rye
- Potatoes
- Fruit
- Products with a lot of added sugar (pastries and banquets, sweets, milk chocolate)
- Potato chips
- Notes with coating (borrel nuts, Japanese mixes, etc.)
- Sweetened drinks (fruit juices, sugary soft drinks)
- Breaded products
Benefits of low-carbohydrate and protein-rich food
- Many people fall off with the combination of protein rich and low carbohydrate.
- Sometimes type 2 diabetes patients can get their diabetes under control. Provided well supervised by a specialized dietitian.
- Leaving products with many added sugars is in line with the recommendations of the World Health Organization to limit the intake of free sugars.
- Proteins saturate more than carbohydrates and fats.
- Protein eating helps to maintain muscle mass during weight loss.
- With both high protein and low carbohydrate you do not have to count points or calories.
Disadvantages low-carbohydrate and protein-rich food
- The low-carbohydrate diet sometimes requires completely different eating habits. Think of avoiding bread at breakfast and lunch and avoiding potatoes, rice and pasta at dinner.
- By not eating grain products such as bread you get little fiber, you can compensate by eating lots of high-fiber vegetables.
- Because you can eat little grain products and fruit, this diet can lead to shortages of vitamins and minerals and other substances in the long term.
- The long-term effects are no different than with other diets.
- Carbohydrate-rich products are cheaper than protein-rich products. A high protein diet can therefore be more expensive than your normal diet.
- A low carbohydrate diet contains a lot of fat quickly. Watch out that you do not ingest too many saturated fats.
- Eating a lot of animal protein is stressful for the environment, eating legumes affects the environment a lot less.
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