What do experts think about the the Schwarzbein Principle diet system

asks aadenny:

A. The Schwarzbein Principle is based on the work of Dr Diana Schwarzbein, a Californian endocrinologist. She was seeing people who suffered from type II diabetes, or late onset diabetes, which tends to affect people over the age of 40. As with all diabetics, they had been told to follow a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet. However, since being diagnosed, most had put on weight and felt lethargic. Schwarzbein came to the conclusion that the body recognises all carbohydrates - whether they are grains, starches, dairy or fruit - as sugar, so she changed her patients' diets by cutting out starchy carbohydrates and giving them more protein and fats. This stabilised their blood sugar and most lost weight steadily and gained more energy.

Q. So this is a diet only for those with type II diabetes
A. No. By leveling blood sugar levels, Schwarzbein argues, you balance the hormones and the metabolism. This means no cravings for chocolate, sugar or coffee, and no mood swings due to dips in blood sugar levels. And, she claims, it means reducing body fat.

Q. So the idea is to eat more fats
A. Yes, but the right kind of fats.

Q. What are they
A. They can be found in:

• oily fish, such as salmon, sardines, tuna, mackerel
• eggs
• avocados
• cold-pressed oils, especially linseed, olive and rapeseed
• seed and nut oils
• seeds and nuts
• legumes, such as lentils, beans and peas
• fruit and vegetables - essential fatty acids are found in such as bananas and aubergines, for example.

Q. So what do the experts think
A. There has been a lot of criticism for similar 'high-fat low-carb' diets which have famously been followed by such celebrities as Jennifer Aniston. Experts aren't happy about diets which cut out a major food group, and argue that they're hard to maintain because they strictly limit what you can eat. Also, a careful balance has to be kept because eating too much protein puts extra pressure on the kidneys, and in some cases it can increase the loss of calcium from the body, which can lead to osteoporosis.

However, Diana Schwarzbein's ideas are supported by the Australian Institute of Sport, which warns athletes not to cut their fat intake drastically. Its training manual reads: 'There's an immediate improvement in exercise performance accompanying the loss of body fat. However, chronic problems gradually emerge.'

Have you followed the Scwarzbein Principle Post your experience here

By Sheena Miller