A chance to settle diet wars via metabolic typing

In last week's column, I cheekily proclaimed it's safe to love carbs again. As predicted, I heard from my share of Atkins adherents holding down the fort for their high-protein, low-carb diet.

Even though carbs (of the "healthy" variety) are coming back in style, there are still quite a few gluten-intolerants among us. Dr. Joseph Mercola, author of "Total Health," goes so far as to claim grains as the main culprit in our nation's ill health because they disturb insulin levels.

On the other hand, it is widely recognized that one of the best ways to keep your calorie count down is to eat whole grains.

But no matter what foods are restricted in a diet, ultimately most of them fail. A third of Americans are on some form of diet, yet it is widely quoted that up to 95 percent of those dieters will regain the weight they lost no matter what diet they are on.

Just as not all people are created equal, not all diets are created equal for all people.

William Wolcott addresses this issue in his book, "The Metabolic Typing Diet."

"We're unaware of a very fundamental reality, which is this: Any given food or nutrient can have virtually opposite biochemical effects on different metabolic types."

According to Wolcott, we all fall into three of these "metabolic types": protein, carbohydrate or mixed, a combination of the first two.

Protein types tend to have strong appetites, crave fatty or salty foods, have energy problems and will typically fail on any low-calorie diet.

They need to eat 70 percent of their calories from proteins and fats. They do best on bacon, liver and beef ("high purine" proteins). Only 30 percent of the calories should come from carbohydrates. Grains should be avoided.

Carbohydrate types have relatively weak appetites and a high tolerance for sweets. They also have problems with weight management (the downside for that sweet tooth). They tend to be pretty high strung -- type-A personalities -- and they love their caffeine.

They should eat the majority of their calories (60 percent) in carbs, and only 40 percent in proteins and fats. Whole grains -- which aren't as quick to break down into sugar in the body -- are best. All proteins should be of the low-fat, "low-purine" variety -- chicken breasts, turkey, lean pork, "light fish" (that means no salmon).

There is also a third category -- mixed type -- that combines the characteristics of the protein and the carb types. They need to make sure they eat a balance of carbs and proteins every day, and always get a good balance of both types of proteins (high and low purine).

Basically, we know that we are following a diet that is incorrect for our metabolic type when our energy level drops or our mood shifts after eating, and we don't lose weight on it.

You can get some idea of your basic metabolic type by taking a test about the impact of food on your mood and energy. It can be found in "The Metabolic Diet" by William Wolcott and Trish Fahey (Broadway Books, New York.)

I doubt if metabolic typing will settle any scores in the diet wars. As for me, I am sticking with the Peanut Butter Diet. I haven't lost any weight on it, but I am forever optimistic.

Dr. Michael O.L. Seabaugh, a Cape Girardeau native, is a clinical psychologist who lives and works in Santa Barbara, Calif. Contact him at mseabaugh@semissourian.com.