The group, made up of consumer, nutrition and public health organizations wanting to promote public understanding of a nutritionally balanced diet, has concluded that losing weight by an extremely low-carb diet can lead to serious health problems such as kidney stress, liver disorders and gout, and suggested these diets also increase the risk of coronary heart disease, diabetes, stroke and several types of cancer.
The coalition also identified a number of short-term side effects from low-carbohydrate diets including severe constipation, gastrointestinal problems, nausea, repeated headaches, difficulty in concentrating and the loss of energy.
"Low carbohydrate diets conflict with decades of solid scientific research that clearly encourages us to reduce saturated fat and boost fruit, vegetable and fiber intake," said Barbara Moore, the president and CEO of Shape Up America, the group which founded the coalition.
"Restricting carbohydrates stresses vital organs and alters brain metabolism while offering no advantages in terms of either fat loss or long-term weight control," she added.
The coalition's review also questions the effectiveness of extremely low-carbohydrate diets for sustained weight loss. The group specifically questioned the safety of diets that force the body into "ketosis," a process that starves the brain of carbohydrates, forcing the metabolism of protein in the muscles followed by the metabolic breakdown of fat.
Another of their concerns is that extremely low-carb diets produce dehydration, which can stress the kidneys and increase the potential for bone loss contributing to osteoporosis.
Citing new findings that consumers now spend an average of $85 a month on low-carb products, the coalition called on the FDA to issue an interim policy about the use of carbohydrate claims and then enforce it.
The coalition's actions come in response to new survey by Opinion Research Corporation revealing that one in five adults who are trying to lose weight are doing so primarily by reducing their intake of carbohydrates. The survey suggested that certain of these adults are making poor dietary choices when following a low-carb diet. Hence, 50 percent of those asked were increasing their consumption of steak, 30 percent were eating more bacon and 43 percent consuming less fruit.
The survey also suggets that these tendancies are having a knock-on effect with the rest of the population generally consuming less fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low-fat dairy products. Compared to the five servings a day of fiber-rich fruits and vegetables recommended by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the survey found that 68 percent of people now eat two or less servings of fruit a day and 63 percent consume two or less servings of vegetables.
Moreover, 71 percent of the public consumes less than the three recommended daily servings of low-fat dairy products while 15 percent said they have cut out dairy products all together.
At the same time, the survey found a limited understanding of the amount of carbohydrates needed each day for good health. The Institute of Medicine (part of the National Academy of Sciences) issued a recommendation that children and adults get a minimum of 130 grams of carbohydrate daily, but only 19 percent of those surveyed knew this fact.
Instead 51 percent believe that adults need significantly less, while 21 percent have no idea.
Yesterday NutraIngredientsUSA.com reported that Investorideas had launched a research portal for investors aimed specifically at the low-carb market on the presumption that this trend is here to stay.