Low fat diets were promoted by healthcare professionals and became public policy in the 1980s and 1990s.
The WIll indicated that a
low fat diet (which many had hoped would be a safe and effective way to reduce the risk of breast cancer) failed to show a significant protective effect.
Serum triglyceride levels fell by a mean of 52% among patients on the low-carbohydrate diet compared with an average 11% drop among those on the
low fat diet.
The
low fat diet produced no adverse effects on the children's height, sexual maturation, or body mass index.
In addition, during the
low fat diet, the runners' levels of essential fatty acids and some nutrients (especially zinc) were too low.
Whitfield-Brown and her colleagues also highlighted some benefits of following a
low fat diet. They said that such diets could help people develop awareness and confidence about appropriate food choices, feel better, and improve blood fat measurements.
'Our data suggests that
low fat diets put populations at increased risk for cardiovascular disease,' lead researcher Dr.