The Very High Carb Diet

Any diet that is predominantly one item will probably slim the dieter through food boredom eventually. But, providing the bread has a low GI index, a few daily slices are beneficial. At 75-80 calories, a slice of wholemeal loaf is hunger satisfying, and a great vehicle for salad. It is also relatively cheap, so a bread-including diet will appeal to the many poor but overweight people who are trying to learn new, good habits. High quality bread makes the dieter feel their food is "normal" and provides fibre for satiety, plus Vit B group and other essentials. When the fads have died out, bread will always be present, as it should be, but in proportion, as a complex carb with grain proteins, incorporated according to the food pyramid, I hope. Wheat allergic people have many other grains to choose from too.

Up to 12 slices of bread a day for women and 16 slices a day for men. That's about a pound a day, along with up to 1400 calories from just one food source.

Most everyone would agree that green vegetables are some of the healthiest foods you can eat. So why don't you see the "Broccoli diet" or the "Spinach diet". The answer is simple.

Basing a diet on any one food or food group is a recipe for disaster. For a healthy and balanced diet, you need to consume a variety of foods and in moderation.

Before considering this type of diet, I would wait for a credible peer reviewed study be done and published in a major medical journal. I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for this to happen any time soon though.

This is this is just another fad diet trying to take advantage of the recent bad publicity surrounding the Atkin's program. Unfortunately, it will get its share of initial takers simply because it is the new kid on the block and the world loves to eat bread.

May the yeast be with you!

I just got the book a few days ago and I love it. This is the only diet I can stay on, and I've been on them all. You eat "lite" bread so 12 pieces is only 540 calories.

I've heard of the "potato diet" and the "peanut butter diet" and the "cabbage soup diet" and the "vegetable soup diet" and the "apple diet"...etc, etc. Wouldn't you get really tired of bread really fast??? And it's not like bread is the most nutritious thing ever, anyways. Hardly any protein, lots of carbohydrates, and some vitamins if you buy the whole grain/fortified kinds. I'm not saying bread is bad, but I think it's ridiculous to eat mostly bread for your daily calorie needs.

I dont know, I tried the low carb thing and tried eating low fat as well but the diet didnt work as well. It cant be healthy to eat fat. I have also recently discovered that I have irritable bowel syndrome and the simplicity of the soluble fiber in the high carb diet is great. Most breads have protein fiber and very low in fat, so why are carbs a bad thing.

I agree 100% about the carbs helping the ibs. I Do very high carb diets. I live on pasta and rice , potatoes and veggie sauces. I have lost all my weight this way.

It's not that carbs in general are a bad thing, it's just that too much of one food isn't a good thing. I also have IBS and I eat carbs as well. Mostly, I eat brown rice, oatmeal, bulgur, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, etc. There are better carbohydrate choices out there than bread.

Since everyone is a diet expert these days, I'll give my own diet advice - for free! It might not be groundbreaking, but it won't cost you a thing.

I'm not a doctor or trainer, but I was morbidly obese (230lb at 5'2") and I have not one, but 2 diseases that make it difficult to lose weight and easy to gain weight: PCOS and hypothyroidism. I came up with my own common sense plan and lost 115lb.

I tried all these traditional diets: very low carb, very low fat, very high carb, and the only thing that worked for me was moderate amounts of carb, fat, and protein. Although this is not really high protein, people usually call it high protein cause all the other diets are 20-30% protein. It makes so much sense: a bit of low-glycemic carb, a bit of protein, smaller bit of fat for every meal, lots of vegetables and fruit, don't eat processed foods or sugar, avoid white stuff. I don't know why people complicate things so much. Most people can lose weight eating like this, which is what several plans recommend with minor variations: Body for Life, South Beach after the induction, Body Rx (I really like this one, even if you are not gonna do the cyclical diet he recommends, there is lots of great info everyone can learn from), Dr. Weil, The Zone, Oprah. If you want to tweak it and get even stricter, with calorie cycling, macronutrient cycling, etc. you can, but you really don't have to until you are already in the HWR, that's been my experience at least, and you can't find someone with a slower metabolism than mine.

For exercise, focus on weight training. Do it seriously 3x a week, training one body part per week. If you don't have a trainer for free at your gym and can't afford a personal trainer, then get a book that has a good exercise program in it, like Body Rx, and follow that. Do cardio on the other 3-2 days, not after doing weights. I had times when I really did a lot of cardio, because I like rollerblading and went often, and times when I couldn't bring myself to do more than a brisk walk for 30m once a week, and found out that as long as you take the weight training and the diet seriously, cardio is not that important for weight loss.

Monica: what is "lite" bread.

Frances, I think she means the low-calorie breads in general. A slice whole-wheat bread will be something like 120 calories and a slice of lite or light whole-wheat bread will be something like 40 calories. They achieve this by reducing or cutting fat and sugar, and by making slices smaller and fluffier. They are often so fluffy, you'll find holes in it. The downside is they are hardly ever high in fiber, because the concern for reducing calories by making the bread fluffy doesn't allow for a denser, whole-grain bread.

Hi,i,m interested in the high on bread diet,does anybody know what other foods you can eat with the bread.thanks.

Jesus said in the Lord's Prayer, give us this day our Daily Bread.

My wife grinds her own flour, and makes the very best Whole Wheat bread. Our family can easily eat two or three loaves when it's hot out of the oven. Butter and honey on hot bread is an absolute heavenly treat.

I'm greatful for the oportunity to try to lose those last 30 pounds by eating that which I have been denying myself these past several months.

Jan,

Great info, thanks ! I really was almost taken in ...again ...but I will try the exercise and sensible esting like you propose.

I did buy a good e book called Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle, by Tom Venuto. I will dust it off the file shelf and get my derrière to the gym...I do ahve the membership and all, I just need the mojo lol

Mike, Thank you for your greatful information. In fact, This fad diet is dangerous. Dr. Mercola would not be thrilled about it, for this diet is for no one.

If you want your carbs, eat fruits and vegtables. You need meat protein in your body, and I mean, like eating a varity of fruits a vegtables, a broad variety of meats, and make at least half of it seafood, especially oily fish, and buy the grass-feed type on the beef, and try bison.

And that person is right. Everybody has a different metabolic type. Protein type people need to eat more meats, while carbohydrate type people can go away on a few pastas and a few grains, but solely focus on fruits and vegtables.

Has anyone here actually read the book? I just finished it and bread is only part of the plan and only for the first two weeks. Phase one is up to 12 slices of bread (35 - 45 calories) for women with a little mustard, mayo, one slice of non-fat turkey, etc and unlimited amounts of veggies such as tomatoes, peppers, onions, lettuce, etc. You eat every 3 - 4 hours. You also eat one piece of fruit each day. Phase two you start substituting other foods for the bread - one cup of lentils, 2/3 cup - 1 cup of rice of whole wheat pasta equal two slices of bread. Again, unlimited amounts of veggies are allowed. Phase one allows lean protein 3 times a week with unlimited veggies, phase two 5 times a week with unlimited veggies. Both allow 3 - 4 eggs a week. It seems to me that if you are looking for an affordable diet that is easy and encourages you to eat a lot of healthy veggies, this might be one to try.

My diet two cents
from hearing so many diets this is what i think is the basic truth. Eat 5 times a day. For the bread, make sure its high in fiber, complex carbs, and "bread" protein(gluten). Stay active. If your sitting for your job 9hrs a day, no diet will help you. You must get the blood flowing and you internal temp higher in order to burn that fat. do an exercise that uses all your muscles and consumes lots of oxygen.
not all grain protein is created equally. It isn't a a complete protien source. Grains do not have to correct ammno acids that your body needs. Beans is a good source for that.
I believe this to be the basic truth to maintaining a healthy weight.

Just on the topic of type of flour to use for the bread.
I haven't read the book but I want to know if there is mention of whole quinoa flour. Its a the most nutritious flour and its may be used for bread. I believe that if mixed with whole wheat flour, it would be a very good diet and staple food. Here's a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa information link for quinoa. Would this bread be like the "no-hunger" bread that you would eat through out the day?

You know, we are such fools when it comes to nutrition. Eat real, whole, and unprocessed food and work your body. I don't even think it matters if you're a carb-muchning vegan as I am or a carnivorous person. We have blindly allowed the food industry to hoodwink us with phoney, fragmented, processed crap that passes for nutrition. At work I see so many people trying to lose weight eating low-fat or low-sugar garbage. While I crunch a magnum salad, beans and rice, and sprouted bread, friends will toss down an itty portion of gunk that's making some diet guru rich, fat and sugar free chocolate flavored plastic, and diet soda. Yuk. People simply need to learn about nutrition and go from there. Happy eats!

Recently i switched to lot of carbohydrates and vegetables and fruits and i lost 5 pounds immediately .now i do not lost anymore weight but tht 5 pounds were amazing for me.actually i tried carbohydrates after reading this blog and it really worked for me.i eat carbohydrates now and switched from high protien diet but i gain no weight.i guess if we change our diet after certain time period it helps to lose weight.it worked for me.

Not just a slice or two - but more life a loaf or two. lol how could u spell something wrong in your artical.

great book!! i lost 30lb and was never hungry!! Atkins made me feel like crap hungry and ratty..this diet works!!

excellent comment, WJ; you're clearly a vastly superior speller ...

Putting sarcasm aside...I believe that if we stricly adhere to our ancestors' diets and only the foods that were available to them, one would see that bread and all grains are not fit for human consumption. Since the advent of agriculture, human brain size has decreased by about 11%, dental problems have sky-rocketed, and general physical growth has been stunted. Insulin has been shown to be a common denominator in many diseases and aging.

However, despite my barrage of criticisms, it is also a known fact that mankind as a whole cannot survive without grains. With the exponential population growth in many third (and some first) world countries, it would be ludicrous to instruct everyone to consume a no-grain/no-bread diet. Natural selection will select for humans who do best on high carbohydrate/high grain diets.

Then again, if you are a Christian and believe that humans did not evolve over the course of 2.5 million years, and rather, that humans were directly created from God, then bread, being the staff of life, should bring health and vitality.

Another small nugget of information: human breast milk is relatively low in protein yet abundant in sugar and fats. Perhaps our diets today should be of a similar macronutrient ratio.

To respond to the writer's non-understanding of how one can lose weight on this diet....Serotonin is not only used by the brain, as a matter of fact, something like 80% of the serotonin in the body is used by the digestive system. Serotonin helps the nerves that control the gi tract function normally and keeps things moving therefor speeding up metabolism. Complex carbohydrates require much more work by the body to process than simple carbs and provide longer sustained energy, so with increased activity by the gi tract is increased energy use, hence burnt calories + energy used to break down the carbs.
Whole grains, fruits, and vegetables also are high in fiber which, as you know, helps with bowel motiliy by pulling more water into the bowel and attaching to unwanted's such as cholesterol, fats, and waste products, thus reducing water weight and fat absorbtion . Good bowel health affects total body health, metabolism, and feelings of wellbeing.

i am trying the the bread for life diet stage one now.
But i am going on a lower calories and more fruits will be include (so i will have 2 slices of bread per day, maximum 3).

Yes, i do say there are much quantity carbs options.
But bread is the safest and convienent. Can you be sure to eat the same portion of rice or cereal without weighing? You have to cook the oatmeal before eating.Bread is consistent and hassel free.

so Atkins and 20mg 5-HTp is the way to go then : )

for those of u who want to know ....... diet is only what u make it .. u can lose weight in a variety of ways . the best way to lose weight is to eat less and exercise. who is really an expert on what u should eat ? the Lord told the apostles to go and eat what is put before u .... ask the Father to bless it and dont be a glutton so i think that kinda explains how to eat ...lol. all the modern countries life spans are within a few years of each other. so many factors are involved there is no way to know which diet is best . so eat what u want, ask the Lord to bless it and dont eat so much. now go out and walk or do something.

I'm 16 years old and have lost over 10kg in about 3 months. My secret diet plan is to just eat very lightly! Eat a small amount a day, but don't force your self. If you feel hungry, grab a glass of water or just resist and later you'll notice it was just a mental craving. After practising this, my body has adjusted to my new eating scheme and now I hardly crave for food, and when I do I'll eat something light like a tuna sandwich with salads. Never induldge on sweets such as chocolates or candy and also don't drink sodas! Try to cut out milk if possible.

Also, exersize lots. If you don't then you won't loose weight.

This is how I lost weight, it may be dangerous for some as I'm not a nutrition export and you may become sick or suffer from malnutrition. I don't take responsibility for any damage you may do to your health from taking my advice. Follow my advice at your own risk.

I agree with some of the people here that everyone makes their diet complicated. The key to a healthy lifestyle starts with what you put in your mouth. It is simple, eat what the earth provides. This would include fruits and vegetables, meat, fish and do not be afraid of fats. Fat does not make you fat. Evolution has shown us that man ate animal meat, fish, fruits and vegetables. What makes Americans fat is the amount of processed food that we eat which includes high levels of sugar, HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) and an overabundance of carbohydrates. If you eat carbs eat the brown ones (they are digested slower, have more nutrients and fiber and do not spike your insulin levels).

How about the get of your Fat butt and take a walk and stop eating Diet.

Wanna live longer be healthier and thinner?

Walk don't drive ever where. The only diet I have used over the last year which I have lost 125 pounds on.

The walking diet! Hang up the car keys and walk. Walk to work - Walk at work, Walk to the store - walk to the mail box, walk walk walk walk walk.

You will loose all your weight and be able to eat more carbs..

so the conclusion,can i just eat the bread for a day?
ahh im tired of being xxl!!yikes

Thanks Jan, I like what you wrote and agree with you on many points, cheers Hali

Jan said:
Jan October 17, 2005 3:03 PM Since everyone is a diet expert these days, I'll give my own diet advice - for free! It might not be groundbreaking, but it won't cost you a thing. I'm not a doctor or trainer, but I was morbidly obese (230lb at 5'2") and I have not one, but 2 diseases that make it difficult to lose weight and easy to gain weight: PCOS and hypothyroidism. I came up with my own common sense plan and lost 115lb. I tried all these traditional diets: very low carb, very low fat, very high carb, and the only thing that worked for me was moderate amounts of carb, fat, and protein. Although this is not really high protein, people usually call it high protein cause all the other diets are 20-30% protein. It makes so much sense: a bit of low-glycemic carb, a bit of protein, smaller bit of fat for every meal, lots of vegetables and fruit, don't eat processed foods or sugar, avoid white stuff. I don't know why people complicate things so much. Most people can lose weight eating like this, which is what several plans recommend with minor variations: Body for Life, South Beach after the induction, Body Rx (I really like this one, even if you are not gonna do the cyclical diet he recommends, there is lots of great info everyone can learn from), Dr. Weil, The Zone, Oprah. If you want to tweak it and get even stricter, with calorie cycling, macronutrient cycling, etc. you can, but you really don't have to until you are already in the HWR, that's been my experience at least, and you can't find someone with a slower metabolism than mine. For exercise, focus on weight training. Do it seriously 3x a week, training one body part per week. If you don't have a trainer for free at your gym and can't afford a personal trainer, then get a book that has a good exercise program in it, like Body Rx, and follow that. Do cardio on the other 3-2 days, not after doing weights. I had times when I really did a lot of cardio, because I like rollerblading and went often, and times when I couldn't bring myself to do more than a brisk walk for 30m once a week, and found out that as long as you take the weight training and the diet seriously, cardio is not that important for weight loss.[...]

I could not get the book, but I did the bred for life diet the best I could reading articles. I lost weight and it was very easy to do it. I really think this diet works!!!

I've always been a low-carber, but I've just had the worst time of my life physically and just found out it's because of an acute porphyria.

The dietary recommendations are for between 50 and 70% carbs during an attack and at about 50% normally, so I'm out of my league - I have no clue how to proceed here. I'm hoping this book will begin to point the way to a healthy way of life for me.

Different strokes for different folks. I'm just glad there are choices out there for everyone. If anyone knows of any other high carb literature, etc., please let me know :)

but carbs are evil!

for a high carb diet u can opt for cheese,rice,butter, red meat,mayoniese,choco lates,sweets,ice-creams, pizza,burgers,pasta,chips,etc

The high-carbohydrate diet can causes an increase in the blood insulin level, which triggers an increase in the catabolic hormones, causing the body to literally eat itself. Unfortunately, the spine is the first to suffer when the catabolic hormones scavenge protein from the spine for redirection to the legs and arms as needed, for the "fight or flight" emergency response. A catabolic metabolic state is brought on by hyperinsulinemia (high blood insulin level) after the excess consumption of carbohydrates in people with insulin resistance. Prescription drugs cannot prevent bone loss in the presence of the powerful catabolic hormones produced by the body during hyperinsulinemia. Taking drugs that promise to prevent osteoporosis will not work. The diet suggested here is vital for the body's rebuilding of bones and the prevention of bone loss.

Hyperinsulinemia also causes the excretion of magnesium and calcium in the urine. The high-carbohydrate diet recommended by the USDA Food Guide Pyramid actually leads to hyperinsulinemia and degenerative disc disease. The bones are literally flushed out of the body in the urine, resulting in the current epidemic of osteoporosis in all English-speaking countries. Women are more at risk because they avoid meat and fat. Women tend to follow official diet recommendations more closely than men. This causes women to eat more carbohydrates than men and therefore, suffer more from osteoporosis, diabetes and cancers that are not related to smoking. Women are the primary dietary leaders in the home. They generally do the supermarket shopping and cooking. This trend is destroying the health of the entire family, as seen in the recent obesity epidemic in both children and adults.

In summary, a high-carbohydrate diet as recommended by the USDA Food Guide Pyramid and vegetarians causes insulin resistance that leads to hyperinsulinemia. A scientific study of these adrenal hormones proves that carbohydrates cause bone loss, osteoporosis and degenerative spine disease because the high-insulin response causes an increase in cortisol and adrenalin. An excessively high cortisol level causes the demineralization of bones. Eating whole grains, sugar, honey, fruit, fruit juice, fructose, lactose and starches causes osteoporosis and degenerative spine disease. Milk and yogurt do not prevent osteoporosis. These high lactose (sugar) foods are actually a part of the problem. Hard cheeses are very good for the bones because they contain lots of good protein and fat without any lactose.

I have traveled extensively throughout Africa and India where meat is too expensive for 80% of the population and therefore their diets are mainly rice, bread, matoki (plantains), fresh fruit and veggies. As a result they have straight and white teeth, reduced heart problems, reduced cancer problems, and reduced arthritic conditions. Their mode of transportation is walking or cycling. Baring modern medicine these people would live well into their 90's. Their life is simple and they eat simple foods. As I said previously, without the absence of modern medicine, they would live well into their 90's. Bread and rice are their staples - not meat. The people in these countries look much younger than their age and they enjoy an active sex life beyond most of our abilities as we age. Therefore, by experience and observation, it is our western diet of processed food, fast food, and little water consumption that kills us and requires us to be on all kinds of meds to survive to reach an age of 70. BTW, they all drink tea and coffee everyday (2-3 times per day) that is filled with sugar and milk! Our diets do not work because, by their nature, they are a "diet" - a fix for that which is broken, instead of a lifestyle that nourishes our life with real food - with sweets! However, because most are poor, their calorie consumption is between 1000 - 1600 calories per day, and they do not lift weights or buy high dollar sports shoes. We in the West are in trouble because our entire lives are lived on and off of "diets". Also, meals are often shared with family and friends so that the meal is a highlight of their day. They are satisfied mentally, spiritually, and physically. If they only had access to a few antibiotics, they would outlive us by 20-25 years with ease. Buy a book on Africa or India. It is exercise for your brain, food for your imagination, and creates a desire to reach out to our fellow man.

for thought.
http://www.westonaprice.org/traditional_diets/native_americans.html

Also, an account written about 1550 says that the nomads of north africa would not touch bread even though they had flour with which to make bread to serve to non nomadic guests. the nomads, meaning berbers, ate soley different kinds of meat, milk and cheeses. they were supposedly very healthy.

i'm from berber/indeginous american descent and when i eat as the article describe, i feel great. i don't do well on grains, vegetables or much fruit. i eat alot of food 3,000 plus calories and i have lost 30 pounds this last year and added a pretty good amount of muscle from weight training. i do zero cardio.

the only conclusion i would draw is that different diets work well for different people but that no one does well without exercise.