Jeremy Silva

Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition

Springer - Publisher Connector

The effects of very high fat, very low carbohydrate diets on safety, blood lipid profile, and anabolic hormone status

POSTER PRESENTATION Open Access
The effects of very high fat, very low
carbohydrate diets on safety, blood lipid profile,
and anabolic hormone status
Jeremy Silva
From The Eleventh International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) Conference and Expo
Clearwater Beach, FL, USA. 20-21 June 2014
Background
Very low carbohydrate (<5 %), high fat (>70 %) (VLCKD)
diets have previously been shown to decrease fat mass in
obese or overweight individuals. The very high fat, high
cholesterol diet has caused alarm and researchers question
its safety. However, because lipids provide the raw sub-
strate necessary for the biosynthesis of anabolic hormones
such as testosterone the diet may have implications for
athletes. PURPOSE: Therefore the purpose of this study
was to investigate the effects of 11 weeks of VLCKD diet-
ing on safety, blood lipid profile, and anabolic hormone
status.
Methods
Twenty-six college aged resistance trained men volun-
teered to participate in this study and were divided into
VLCKD (5 % CHO, 75 % Fat, 20 % Pro) or a traditional
western diet (55 % CHO, 25 % fat, 20 % pro). All subjects
participated in a periodized resistance-training program
three times per week. Blood samples were taken at week 0
and 11 of the study and analyzed for safety (comprehen-
sive metabolic panel, and comprehensive blood panel),
blood lipid profile (triglycerides, HDL, LDL and total), and
insulin and testosterone. Consent to publish the results
was obtained from all participants.
Results
There were no differences in any of the safety parameters
measured (CBC / CMP) in either the VLCKD or tradi-
tional group. Total cholesterol increased slightly in the
VLCKD group while it decreased in the traditional western
group. However this rise was driven by an increase in
HDL in the VLCKD group (6.69 mg/dl) compared to the
western (-1.6 mg/dl) with no changes in LDL. Triglycer-
ides were significantly higher in the VLCKD group
(29.3 mg/dl) than the western (-8.4 mg/dl). Total testoster-
one increased significantly in the VLCKD diet (118 ng/dl)
as compared to the western (-36 ng/dl) while insulin
increased significantly in the western group (3.7 uIu/ml)
compared to the VLCKD (.1 uIu/ml).
Conclusion
This study data suggests that a VLCKD is safe. In addition
this diet strategy improves testosterone values while simul-
taneously increasing insulin sensitivity. Lastly, even though
the total cholesterol increased in the VLCKD group, their
HDL drove this response. Athletes looking to optimize
their hormone levels while employing a safe dieting strat-
egy can use a VLCKD.
Published: 1 December 2014
doi:10.1186/1550-2783-11-S1-P39
Cite this article as: Silva: The effects of very high fat, very low
carbohydrate diets on safety, blood lipid profile, and anabolic hormone
status. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition 2014
11(Suppl 1):P39.
The University of Tampa, Tampa, Florida, USA
Silva Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition 2014, 11(Suppl 1):P39
http://www.jissn.com/content/11/S1/P39
© 2014 Silva; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons
Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in
any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://
creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.


file:///data/remote/core/dit/data/Springer-OA/pdf/cb4/aHR0cDovL2xpbmsuc3ByaW5nZXIuY29tLzEwLjExODYvMTU1MC0yNzgzLTExLVMxLVAzOS5wZGY=.pdf

The effects of very high fat, very low carbohydrate diets on safety, blood lipid profile, and anabolic hormone status

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Springer - Publisher Connector

Springer - Publisher Connector