The renowened Walter Willett, M.D., Ph.D., chairman of the department of nutrition at the School of Public Health, gave this interesting TIME magazine interview regarding the differences in fats and carbs and their effect on weight gain.
It’s always worth listening to Dr. Willett, because he is one of the most pre-eminent researchers working today — his group at Harvard has looked at a whopping over 250,000 men and women for up to 30 years.
For instance, his group has conducted:
- The 121,700-member Nurses’ Health Study, initiated by Dr. Frank Speizer at the Channing Laboratory;
- The Health Professionals Follow-up Study, a cohort of 52,000 men; and
- The Nurses’ Health Study II, a cohort of younger women numbering 116,000
Please note Dr. Willett’s comments at the end of the article about how this discussion "misses" the point.
He says:
"…high intake of refined starch and sugar is related to a higher risk of heart disease and diabetes, whereas high-fiber whole-grain carbohydrates are related to a lower risk. That’s not too surprising, as we know that high intakes of sugar and refined starch have an adverse effect on blood glucose levels.
"So the quality of the diet is really important, but just looking at fat versus carbohydrate misses where all the action is."
FYI, you can learn more about Dr. Willett’s groundbreaking research in my book SUGAR SHOCK!
Now read some of TIME’s other previous interesting stories: