Is Banting Better?

Low-carb high-fat diets are more popular than ever. But naysayers have challenged this radical lifestyle. Can you be tempted to try it?

Fat is in and carbs are out – at least according to Professor Tim Noakes, whose release of the bestseller The Real Meal Revolution in 2013 stirred things up on a global scale. Noakes, an expert on running and the former advocate of carbo-loading for athletes, shocked the health community when he said he’d been wrong for years. He realised, through trying a low-carb high-fat (LCHF) diet, and reaping immense health benefits from it, that carbs are the enemy. Today, the Banting lifestyle is a common choice for many, with Banting products readily available, and many restaurants offering Banting-friendly options.

BANTING BASICS

The premise of Banting is that a ketogenic diet – a diet high in fats and low in carbohydrates – and only eating healthy, real, fresh foods without additives, is the solution for good health. Advocates of the programme believe a diet high in refined carbs, sugars, highly processed foods and vegetable oils causes high blood sugar, high insulin levels, hormone disruption and general metabolic disorder. The main focus of Banting is to eliminate food that contributes to lifestyle disease, including refined carbohydrates, processed foods, grains, harmful additives and sugar.

MAKING A CASE

An online survey conducted by Resolution Health’s awards partner, Zurreal, showed that 66% of more than 700 respondents said a low-carb diet had helped their weight-loss goals in the long term. As much as 91% of people cited carbs as the number one enemy of those fighting the battle of the bulge, while 82% felt that sugar was a definite no-no for the weight conscious.

IS IT SAFE?

Carbohydrates can cause excessive weight gain. They can also increase blood pressure, diabetes and other chronic diseases, says Sandi van Zyl, wellness programme manager at Virgin Active. But one of the main concerns with Banting is that saturated fat can include a list of negative health consequences, such as high cholesterol and heart disease. “There is evidence

that neither cholesterol nor saturated fat is responsible for the diseases they’ve been blamed for,” says co-author of The Banting Solution, Bridgitte Allan. People concerned about eating too much saturated fat can replace their fats with healthy monounsaturated fats in the form of olive oils, olives, nuts, seeds and avocados. Banting followers believe that carbs, particularly refined carbs and sugar, are the real culprits for obesity, diabetes and other chronic illnesses. Vegetable oils and their derivatives are also a contributing factor to heart disease. Noakes has said that with the consumption of carbs and sugar, arteries remain inflamed. Sugar is inflammatory, and because grains are turned into sugar by the body, carbohydrates foster inflammation in the body.

Many advocates of a LCHF lifestyle report relief from these diseases in a relatively short time after adopting the Banting lifestyle. In his book Banting Sucks, Dr Howard Rybko challenges the LCHF diet. “Banting takes into consideration carbs and how they work but doesn’t fully understand insulin and the role it plays,” he says. Rybko stresses that food intake is just as important as the mental approach and physical activities that accompany weight loss, and they all need to work together to be effective. Rybko says too much lean animal protein increases levels of growth-promoting hormones that lead to increased cancer risks as well as faster ageing.

IS BALANCE KEY?

Despite the success stories and growing popularity of low-carb diets, experts are quick to warn that balance is key. Dr Jacques Snyman, owner of Zurreal, says we still don’t know enough about the long-term sustainability of lowcarb diets. “No evidence has been brought forward regarding the safety of this diet for patients with specific chronic conditions,” he says. “Diet alone can’t curb the rising epidemic of noncommunicable diseases. Greater emphasis needs to be placed on promoting physical activity and making lifestyle changes,” Snyman says. Banting or not, weight loss alone improves markers of heart disease such as high blood pressure. In some cases where Banting has led to weight loss, this has also been the case. Losing weight helps reduce the risk for a range of diseases such as cancer and diabetes. Snyman suggests consulting a professional before embarking on a specific diet, especially if you already suffer from a chronic condition. Van Zyl says a diet that favours portion control, vegetables and fruit over high-starch meals, can only make for better health.