There was an article published in the July 17, 2008, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine that supposedly compared three diets: A low-fat diet, a Mediterranean diet, and a low-carbohydrate diet for long-term weight loss. The media touted the low-carbohydrate diet as an “Atkins-like” diet. As usual, no media person ever took the time to actually analyze the article. The “Atkins-like” diet was actually more like the Zone Diet with too little protein (21 percent vs. 30 percent in the Zone Diet) and too much fat (39 percent vs. 30 percent in the Zone Diet). The carbohydrate content of the “Atkins-like” diet was identical to the Zone Diet (40 percent carbohydrates). In fact, the low-fat diet had the same amount of fat as the Zone Diet (30 percent of calories).
The Mediterranean diet used can be considered a pale imitation of the Zone Diet because it was rich in olive oil), but too high in carbohydrate and too low in protein. After two years of following these diets, the authors found that the “Atkins-like” diet was better for increasing HDL cholesterol, reducing the total cholesterol to HDL ratio, increasing adiponectin, and reducing C-reactive protein, whereas Mediterranean diet was best for reducing LDL cholesterol and improving glycemic control in diabetics.
It would have been simpler just to state that people should follow the Zone Diet to get the benefits of optimal health as well as long-term weight loss.