A very interesting study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition this month, analyzing the amount of vitamins and minerals people were getting on each of four diets - Atkins, Zone, LEARN (essentially the Food Pyramid) and Ornish (low-fat). Women were randomly assigned to one of these groups, with about 75 in each group. After 8 weeks, they figured out the vitamins, minerals, and macronutrients that each group was eating. Noting that each group was eating less food, you might expect that people were getting less of each vitamin - or you might think that if they were being encouraged to eat a healthy diet, they would be getting more. But it really depended upon which group they were in. Here are some of the results I found most interesting:
- Although the Atkins group was the only one who was NOT told to eat fewer calories, they ended up eating the least calories, on average. (Sound familiar?)
- There were quite a few diet deficiencies even before the participants started dieting - the vast majority weren't getting enough vitamin E, and many weren't getting enough vitamin A, C, magnesium, and zinc.
- Vitamin E continued to be an issue on the diets, in particular the LEARN and Ornish diets, where 90% or more were not getting enough. In contrast, the Atkins, and especially the Zone dieters, were doing better (but most were still not getting enough vitamin E).
- In the Atkins group, intake of thiamin and folate plummeted on the diet. Iron, magnesium, and vitamin C were also very problematic.
- In the Ornish group, intake of vitamin B-12, vitamin E and, especially, zinc went down on the diet. Magnesium remained a problem.
- In the LEARN (Food Pyramid) group, people were eating less Vitamins E and K, thiamin, calcium, and magnesium than they had before.
- The Zone group did the best - they did not eat less of any nutrient and significantly increased their Vitamins A, C, E, and K.
- The only other group that improved in terms of any nutrient was the Atkins group, for Vitamin K.
- The only diet where taking a multivitamin/mineral was advised in the book or literature that went with the diet was Atkins.
- Three of the nutrients which were problematic for the Atkins group (thiamin, folic acid, and iron) are commonly used to fortify cereals, pastas, and grain products.
So, what should low-carbers do? Here are some low-carb foods which are good sources of the nutrients which may be problematic:
Thiamin - The best source is pork - a 3.5 ounce serving provides a day's supply of thiamin. Other excellent low-carb sources are nutritional yeast, tuna, lamb, and sunflower seeds. Other good sources include asparagus, soy beans and other legumes, and some nuts. Also, a wide variety of foods contain smaller amounts - this is true for most nutrients.
Folate - Basically, "green stuff" - spinach, collards, lettuce, other greens, broccoli, asparagus, avocado, cabbage, and artichokes.
Vitamin C - Many non-starchy vegetables and low-sugar fruits have high amounts of Vitamin C, including broccoli, red Bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, strawberries, cauliflower, kale and other greens, cantaloupe, and raspberries.
Vitamin E - Sunflower and other seeds, nuts (especially peanuts and almonds), peppers, broccoli, olives, pumpkin, and, yes, greens.
Iron - Organ meats (e.g. liver), wild fish, clams, beef, spinach, soy beans, pumpkin seeds, and chard.
Magnesium - Fish, spinach (and other greens - I'm not kidding when I say greens are nutritional powerhouses), flax seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, other nuts and seeds, soybeans and other legumes, squashes and their seeds (including pumpkin) and (yippee!) chocolate.
Moral of the story: Eat a variety of foods; load up on greens, fish, and broccoli; include nuts and seeds; and don't forget the chocolate.
Photo © Vladimir Bikhovskiy
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