In a recent study from University of Missouri, researchers find that while men may lose more weight on low-carb diets, women actually see better improvements in artery flexibility.
The finding may help pre-diabetic women reduce their risk for heart disease through a low-carb diet.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 out of 3 American adults have prediabetes.
Previous research has shown that as women age, their blood vessels stiffen more so than men, putting them at an increased risk of heart disease.
By contrast, flexible vessels that expand slowly as the blood flows through them may help reduce the risk of developing serious heart conditions.
In the study, 20 middle-aged, pre-diabetic men and women were given carb-restricted meals for two weeks and were supplied meal planning instructions for an additional two weeks.
Over the four-week period, the men in the study lost 6.3% of their body weight, while women lost 4.4%.
However, using an arterial stiffness measurement called pulse wave velocity, the women showed reduced blood flow speeds of 1 meter per second, while men showed no changes in blood flow speed.
Vascular stiffness is a natural process of aging that can be accelerated by obesity, insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome.
The finding shows that weight loss can reduce arterial stiffness in as little as four weeks and that dietary carbohydrate restriction may help reduce aortic stiffness in women.”
The study is published in Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism.
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News source: University of Missouri-Columbia.
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