Big breakfast diet more effective - study

A big breakfast packed with protein and carbohydrates followed by a low carb, low -calorie diet the rest of the day is the way to lose weight and keep it off.

The "big breakfast" diet works because it controls appetite and satisfies cravings for sweets and starches.

It's also healthier than popular low-carb diets because it allows people to eat more fiber-and vitamin-rich fruit.

Most weight loss studies have determined that a very low carbohydrate diet is not a good method to reduce weight. It exacerbates the craving for carbohydrates and slows metabolism. As a result, after a short period of weight loss, there is a quick return to obesity. Compared their high-carb and protein "big breakfast" diet with a strict low-carb diet in 95 obese, sedentary women.  

Both diets were low in fat and total calories but differed markedly in their carbohydrate content.

The 45 women on the very-low-carb diet consumed 1,086 calories a day, consisting of 18 grams of carbohydrates, 50 grams of protein and 77 grams of fat. The smallest meal was breakfast, at 291 calories. For breakfast, the low-carb dieters were allowed only 8 grams of carbohydrates, such as bread, fruit, cereal and milk, and they could eat just 11 grams of protein, such as meat and eggs, in the morning.

In contrast, the 48 women on the "big breakfast diet" consumed 1,241 calories a day. Although lower in total fat (45 grams) than the other diet, the big breakfast diet had higher daily allotments of carbs (98 grams) and protein (92 grams). Dieters ate a 611-calorie breakfast, consisting of 59 grams of carbs, 48 grams of protein and 23 fat grams.

For lunch, they got 396 calories, made up of 35 grams of carbs, 29 grams of protein and 12 grams of fat. Dinner - the smallest meal of the day – was made up of 236 calories (5, 18 and 26 grams of carbs, protein, and fat, respectively).

At four months, there was no significant weight-loss difference between the two diet groups. Women on the strict low-carb diet shed an average of about 29 pounds, while women on the big breakfast diet lost nearly 24 pounds, on average. But at eight months, the low-carb dieters regained an average of 18 pounds, while the big breakfast dieters continued to lose weight, shedding another 7 pounds.

Those on the big breakfast diet lost more than 22 percent of their body weight, compared with just 4.6 percent for the low-carb group. Women who ate a big breakfast reported feeling less hungry, especially before lunch, and having fewer cravings for carbs than women on the low-carb diet.