Balance, moderation key to healthy diet

Can you really have your steak and eat it, too? Popular high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets such as the Atkins Diet say yes, luring millions of dieters with the promise that they can eat rib eyes, bacon and other fatty foods and still lose weight.

Is it too good to be true? Yes, says the American Heart Association, which recently issued a strong warning against high-protein diets, citing the lack of scientific evidence of long-term weight loss and the increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

An AHA nutrition committee surveyed the available research and concluded that the initial weight loss people experience is mostly fluid loss caused by eating fewer carbohydrates. Any short-term benefits are offset by lower mineral and vitamin intake and significant long-term health risks.

Two of the plans - Atkins and Protein Power - were especially criticized for having high levels of total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol, all of which put high-protein dieters at greater risk for heart disease. And the high-protein plans also carry higher risks for cancer, gout and osteoporosis.

No doubt, Atkins and similar diets have helped many people lose weight - at least in the short term - but probably not for the reasons cited by their adherents.

"High-protein diets do not build muscle and burn fat, as some people think," says Ann Coulson of the American Dietetic Association. "What the diet books fail to point out is that the real reason people are losing weight is that they are simply eating fewer calories."

Both extremely low-fat and extremely high-protein diets probably miss the mark. As common sense has always dictated, it's really a question of balance and moderation.

Almost all diet gurus agree on a central fact: The keys to weight loss are cutting calories and increasing exercise. And to keep it off and stay healthy, you need a balanced, nutritious diet that draws from the major food groups, including grains, pastas and other carbohydrates.

Eat less, exercise more.

Remember those four words, and you can probably choose the diet that fits your taste buds.