Study Says Atkins-Type Diets May Reduce Stress

It started out as a simple diet experiment.

Researcher David Diamond wanted to see how much weight rats would gain on a typical American high-fat, high-sugar diet compared to rats on a low-carb, Atkins-type diet.

But several weeks into the study, it took a turn.

Diamond, a psychology professor at the University of South Florida, found that the rats eating a lot of fat and sugar were not only gaining weight, they were becoming anxious. His fat, stressed-out rats were turning the idea of comfort food on its head.

“Nothing tastes better than a big cheeseburger and fries and an ice cream when you’re stressed,“ he said. But it might not bring you tranquillity.

Diamond, also an associate professor of molecular pharmacology and physiology, presented his research this week at the annual Society for Neuroscience conference in Chicago.

It’s a continuation of his work for the Veterans Administration showing stress and a high-fat diet can damage brain cells.

His latest research indicates, however, that the culprit is not fat, but the combination of fat and sugar.

Working with graduate student Shyam Seetharaman, Diamond fed one group of rats what he considered to be a typical American diet – 40 percent fat, 40 percent carbohydrates and only 20 percent protein.

They fed another group an Atkins-type diet of 70 percent fat, 20 percent protein and only 10 percent complex carbohydrates. Atkins, on its Web site, says it’s not the “bacon, egg, and cheese” or no carbs diet “as some would have you believe,“ but a diet “rooted in eating fewer refined carbohydrates and refined sugars” or “bad carbs.“

The USF team also used a control group of rats on rat chow, which is low in fat and protein and high in complex carbohydrates, which have a lot of fiber and don’t turn directly into sugar in the body as simple carbohydrates do.

About two weeks into the diet, the researchers began to expose the rats to stress. One by one, the rats were put into a box and given a mild electric shock.

A few weeks later the researchers returned the rats to the same box. The ones on chow and the low-carbohydrate diet showed no fear, but the high-fat-and-sugar eaters froze in panic.

Also, when the rats were exposed to a sudden, loud noise, the ones that ate mostly fat and sugar were more easily startled – they jumped higher – than rats in both other groups.

In another test, Diamond put the rats in a darkened area with an opening they could use to explore a brighter area. They typical rat likes dark, enclosed spaces, Diamond said. And that was the case with the rats that ate chow and mostly fat and sugar. But the low-carb-eating rats were different.

“They were very curious. They were hyper-curious,“ Diamond said. “They were looking all over the place. They had much less fear than the other groups.“

Diamond doesn’t have a firm explanation for why the different diets cause different responses to stress. That’s a topic for later research, he said.

But he sees implications for people trying to lose weight. Just at the high-carb-eating rat feels safe in the enclosed space, people feel safe at home on their couches.

“But when they’re challenged, that’s when there’s anxiety,“ which may cause them to retreat to their couches.

The problem is not the fat they eat, it’s the fat mixed with the sugary simple carbohydrates, Diamond said. Cutting way down on the carbohydrates might make it easier for them to get off the couch and face the world.

“The key is the very low carbs,“ he said. “It’s neuroprotective.“

The more serious implications are for people who suffer from serious anxiety. Much of Diamond’s previous research has focused on post-traumatic stress.

“This may be the PTSD diet,“ he said.

It’s not going to make the stress go away, he said, but it could boost someone’s ability to cope with that stress.