Cutting carbs two days per week could lead to a better control of insulin levels in the body, leading to greater weight loss and helping to lower the risk of breast cancer, according to a new research study from England.
Researchers divided a group of women into three test groups and had them adhere to three separate diets to evaluate how well they lost weight and to monitor the insulin levels in the body during the different types of dieting.
The first group ate a calorie-restricted diet similar to the Mediterranean Diet every day. A second group also had a calorie-restricted diet, including cutting off or significantly lowering carbohydrate intake, but only for two days per week. A third group also cut off or limited carbs two days every week, but could eat all the proteins and healthy fats they wanted.
According to the Huffington Post, researchers found that each of the diets that required a two-day restriction of carbs resulted in greater weight loss than the Mediterranean Dieters. The women on the 2-day diets lost an average of about 9 pounds, compared to the average of 5 the other women lost.
The study also tracked insulin levels in the body. Researchers hoped to find out more about this information because insulin resistance can decrease the ability of cells to transport glucose from the bloodstream, leading to greater weight gain and triggering diseases such as diabetes.
