
Weight for Wellness
About This Show
Show Info: The podcast where you learn and apply the latest scientific discoveries for achieving your healthy weight.
Show Info: The podcast where you learn and apply the latest scientific discoveries for achieving your healthy weight.
I don't know about you, but I love pasta! But I've been concerned that pasta and healthy eating can't co-exist. It turns out, my concerns seem to be misplaced. A newly release study tells us pasta can be part of a healthy diet without packing on the pounds. Unlike the vast majority of refined carbohydrates that rapidly absorb into the bloodstream, due to it's low glycemic index properties, pasta causes smaller increased in blood sugar levels compared to high glycemic index foods. A newly published study conducted at St. Michael's Hospital conducted a review of 30 studies with nearly 2,500 participants who consumed pasta in place of other carbohydrates as part of a healthy low glycemic index diet. Lead author Dr. John Sievenpiper scientist with the hospital's Clinical Nutrition and Risk Modification Centre, comments, "In fact analysis actually showed a small weight loss. So contrary to concerns, perhaps pasta can be part of a healthy diet such as a low GI diet." GI in his comment refers to glycemic index. Study participants on average consumed about 3.3 servings of pasta a week in place of other carbohydrates. A serving equals to about 1/2 cup of cooked pasta. At the 12-week check-in, participants lost about one pound as the median loss amount. Returning to Dr. Sievenpiper conclusions, "In weighing the evidence, we can now say with some confidence that pasta does not have an adverse effect on body weight outcomes when it is consumed as part of a healthy dietary pattern."