To counter the current flood of misinformation surrounding high-protein fad weight-loss diets, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) is launching a national print and TV ad campaign. The print ad, "High-Protein Diets Can Have Surprising Results" http://www.safediets.org/ads.html, which ran in USA Today, warns that meat-heavy diets put people at risk for osteoporosis, kidney disease, and maybe even colon cancer. A TV ad containing the same warning has aired so far in Houston, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. Other major cities will be targeted.
"For weight loss, studies show that high-protein diets do not work any better than other diets, but they do lead to a quick loss of calcium and, very likely, an increased risk for colon cancer," says Neal D. Barnard, M.D., president and founder of PCRM. "PCRM is countering the flood of misinformation about fad diets."
A study recently published in American Journal of Kidney Diseases shows that high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets, such as the Atkins Diet, cause a rapid and pronounced loss of calcium in the urine, while studies of vegetarian diets have shown safe, effective weight loss. Groundbreaking studies published in Lancet (1990) and Journal of the American Medical Association (1998) show that a low-fat vegetarian diet can reverse heart disease. Each year, there is additional scientific evidence that a diet rich in fruit and vegetables is best in terms of long-term health. Visit PCRM's new Web site at http://www.safediets.org for further information.
In the three targeted cities, the TV ad will run during the "Oprah Winfrey Show."
Founded in 1985, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is a nonprofit health organization that promotes preventive medicine, especially good nutrition. PCRM also conducts clinical research studies, opposes unethical human experimentation, and promotes alternatives to animal research.
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