A shift toward a high-fat diet in the current metabolic paradigm: A new perspective

Investigations into the relationship between dietary carbohydrate restriction and health are mixed. Current guidelines for nutrition promote low-fat foods and higher carbohydrate consumption for optimal health and weight loss. However, high-fat, low-carbohydrate diets are revealing both intra- and extracellular adaptations that have been shown to elicit favorable cardiometabolic changes associated with obesity. Moreover, dietary fat is associated with higher satiety levels from the hormones adiponectin, leptin, and cholecystokinin. Additionally, insulin responses from high-glycemic carbohydrates are known to alter these pathways, potentially leading to an increase in energy consumption and a possible mechanism for obesity.

There is convincing evidence of beneficial effects of controlled trials implementing high-fat, low-carbohydrate diets in both sedentary and obese individuals, but longer duration clinical trials are required to confirm this hypothesis.