HDL Goes Up, Triglycerides Come Way Down On A Low-Carb Diet, Researchers Find

Filed under: Study — @ January 26, 2007

Dr. Anwar T. Merchant studied how to raise HDL and lower triglycerides

There’s a new study from Canadian researchers on the ethnic differences in cholesterol levels among various people groups reveals an important fact about the low-carb lifestyle that most people eating this way are already abundantly aware of.

Lead researcher Dr. Anwar T. Merchant from the Hamilton, ON-based McMaster University observed the diet and lipid profile of 619 Canadians of Native American, South Asian, Chinese and European descent to determine if the differences in cholesterol and other blood fat levels could possibly be tied to diet.

One fascinating observation was the fact that the South Asian participants eat more carbohydrates and had the lowest levels of HDL cholesterol in their blood while the Chinese participants ate the least amount of carbohydrates and they exhibited the highest levels of HDL cholesterol.

Dr. Merchant also noticed that when fat was removed from the diet and replaced with an equal number of carbohydrate calories, both the LDL and HDL cholesterol levels drop while triglycerides go way up.

Read more about this brand new study published in the January 2007 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition confirming the effectiveness of the low-carb lifestyle on HDL and triglyceride levels by clicking here.