A new study has revealed that Low Carbohydrate diets are dangerous for health and they should be avoided. It was found that people which opt for a low carbohydrate diet have a greater chance of a premature death. They also increase the risk for several diseases such as coronary heart disease, stroke and cancer.

In the recent years obesity has become a major risk worldwide, as it is not only unhealthy, it also fuels other diseases such as type 2 diabetes.  Hundreds of diets have been featured in books, magazines and on the internet. Among the diets that are listed, we can find several variants of the low carbohydrate and high protein type. Previous studies that focused on the long-term effect of these diets offered contradictory results.

The main focus of the study was the link between Low Carbohydrate Diets and deaths from heart disease, cerebral disease and cancer. The results are based on information from almost 25,000 people that participated to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for 11 years. Participants with the lowest carbohydrate intake presented a 32% higher risk of death in comparison to participants with the highest carbohydrate intake.  The rate of the diseases mentioned above was also increased with 51% for heart disease, 50% for the cerebrovascular issue and 35% for cancer. A meta-analysis of seven mega-groups of almost 447,000 confirmed the results. The total risk was 15%, heart disease 13% and cancer *% higher in comparison to high carbohydrate patients.

The low carbohydrate diets might help you lose some weight, and regulate blood pressure and the level of blood glucose but they are harmful in the long run.

The NHANES study had an age ratio of 47,6 and 51% of the participants were women. The risks of death and disease had an average follow-up of 6.4 years and they rise constantly for those with a low carbohydrate intake.

A link between all-cause death and low carbohydrate intake in the case of obese patients (with a body mass index of over 30) and non-obese observed found that non-obese older participants were more vulnerable.

One of the reasons for the higher risk is the increased consumption of processed red meat which indirectly increases the risk of cancer. The lack of fibers, minerals and vitamins may also play a significant role.

The study concludes that low carbohydrate diets should be avoided.

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