American Heart Association Study: Weight-Loss Diets May Be Effective for Reversing Carotid Atherosclerosis
The term atherosclerosis (also known as arteriosclerotic vascular disease or ASVD) refers to a process in which fatty deposits (usually cholesterol) and scar tissue gradually accumulate inside the walls of arteries, forming a substance called “plaque” that hardens and narrows the arteries. People with this condition are at increased risk of heart attacks and strokes.
A study recently published in Circulation, the American Heart Association Journal, and based on research conducted at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, the Nuclear Research Center and Soroka Hospital in Israel, indicates that weight-loss diets could have an effect on preventing this condition. The research findings show that healthy, long-term weight-loss diets may significantly reverse carotid (the two large blood vessels the neck that supply blood to the brain) atherosclerosis.
In the course of the research, a group of 140 overweight participants, considered to be at high risk for atherosclerosis, followed three weight-loss diets (a low-carbohydrate diet, a low-fat diet and the Mediterranean diet) over two years. At the end of this period, researchers measured atherosclerosis in participants using a highly precise 3-dimensional carotid artery ultrasound imaging technique.
Measurements showed a 5% regression in average carotid vessel-wall volume and 1.1% decrease in carotid artery thickness among the heavier participants who lost more than 12lbs of their body weight. Participants with carotid atherosclerosis decreases also had reduced blood pressure levels, lower homocysteine levels (elevated levels of this amino acid in the blood are associated with a higher risk of coronary heart disease, stroke and peripheral vascular disease), and an increase of Apo A1 (commonly know as ‘good’ cholesterol). Research participants who lost less weight (about 7 lbs), on the other hand, experienced an increased carotid wall volume.
The two noteworthy results of this study are that it shows that;
- Long-term adherence to weight-loss diets can successfully reverse carotid atherosclerosis (The effect seems to be the result, above all, of reduced blood pressure levels brought about by weight loss), and
- All three weight-loss diets (low-carbohydrate, low-fat and Mediterranean) were equally effective in reversing atherosclerosis, meaning that the differences in the nutrient contents of the three diets (amount of carbohydrates, fiber, dietary cholesterol and monounsaturated and saturated fats) had no effect on the results obtained with regards to reversing atherosclerosis. Apparently, what matters most is the calorie content of the weight-loss diet.