Study: Pork Perfect Power Food For Your Diet
Filed under: Study — @ February 20, 2007
Dr. Wayne Campbell reveals a surprising weight loss power food–PORK!
It seems like we are seeing lots of research coming out all the time regarding the health and weight benefits of eating meat because of the healthy levels of protein it provides (some examples of these studies can be found here, here, and here). These exciting new scientific foundations for protein consumption are revealing what many of us who are livin’ la vida low-carb have already discovered–protein and fat in animal-based foods are playing a major role in keeping hunger satisfied while aiding in permanent weight loss. It’s about time, right?
This new study on protein published in this week’s issue of the scientific journal Obesity focuses specifically on pork meat.
Lead researcher Dr. Wayne W. Campbell, associate professor of Foods And Nutrition in Purdue University’s Laboratory for Integrative Research in Nutrition, Fitness and Aging, and his fellow researchers observed 46 overweight and obese women between the ages of 28 to 80 with a BMI of 26-37 over a period of 12 weeks. What they wanted to know was the impact of dietary protein on weight loss, appetite, mood, as well as cardiovascular and kidney health.
Each of the study participants were placed on one of two specific low-calorie diets:
NORMAL-PROTEIN (NP) GROUP–A 750-calorie diet with 18% protein
HIGH-PROTEIN (HP) GROUP–A 750-calorie diet with 30% protein
Both of these groups were also split into pre-obese and obese subcategories according to their BMI. The HP group was provided with 6 ounces of lean pork on average daily as part of their high-protein consumption.
At the end of the study, all of the participants involved had lost weight, fat mass, and lean body mass. But the lean body mass losses were less in the HP group than the NP group. In fact, the pre-obese HP group lost less lean body mass (3.3 pounds) than the obese NP group (6.2 pounds).
Additionally, the HP group experienced greater satiety than the NP group (something research has shown protein to provide), thus the perceived pleasure of the diet was increased with the HP group and decreased with the NP group.
Finally, blood pressure and cholesterol levels improved for all groups while kidney function had no significant change, regardless of the protein consumption. These findings were important since people who oppose high-protein diets worry about damage to the kidneys and heart (although this recent study confirmed there are no heart health risks to a high-protein, low-carb diet).
Click here to learn more about this remarkable new research on the positive role of pork in a healthy diet and why the researchers actually sell themselves short by neglecting the beneficial properties of a certain macronutrient (hint, hint: it’s NOT carbohydrates!).
