Cut Calories for Heart Health

Even if you are fit and have healthy blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels, you may still have a good reason to eat less. Cutting just 300 calories per day, Duke researchers reported in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, can significantly lower the risk of diabetes and heart disease—even in healthy people.

An Interesting New Concept. The randomized, controlled trial was part of a larger, ongoing project called CALERIE (Comprehensive Assessment of Long-term Effects of Reducing Intake of Energy) that is exploring the idea that health benefits don’t come only from weight loss, but also from a metabolic change that occurs when we eat less than we use.

In this segment of the project, 218 lean, normal, or slightly overweight young and middle-aged adults were assigned to either a caloric-reduction group or a control population. The researchers specifically chose younger participants to better understand the potential long-term effects of dietary changes.

In the active group, each participant underwent testing to identify his or her precise caloric requirement and was then asked to cut 25% of those calories while following one of six meal plans. For the first month, participants ate three precisely measured meals each day at a clinical center, and then they transitioned to following the program at home.

Not all participants were able to maintain a 25% caloric reduction over the full two-year study. While most started strong, the deficit lessened over time, resulting in an average reduction of 12% or about 300 calories. But even at that level, the researchers saw benefits.

The Results. By the end of the study, people in the caloric restriction group lost about 10% of their body weight, 71% of which was fat. Even after controlling for the effects of weight loss, the calorie cutting yielded health improvements:

• Total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol decreased significantly.
• High-density lipoprotein cholesterol rose. (HDL is the “good” cholesterol.)
• Serum triglyceride concentrations dropped 24%.
• Systolic, diastolic, and mean blood pressure levels decreased, even in people with normal baseline levels.
• Insulin levels were significantly reduced, while insulin sensitivity improved.
• Plasma high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) concentrations dropped from 14.1 to 8.38 millimoles per liter (mmol/L), indicating a significant reduction in low-grade chronic inflammation. The American Heart Association notes that people with hs-CRP concentrations less than 9.5 mmol/L have half the risk of coronary heart disease compared with people with hs-CRP levels between 9.5 and 28.6 mmol/L. High hs-CRP is also implicated in cancer and cognitive impairment.

What This Means for You. Even if you’re at a healthy weight, cutting back on snacks or slightly reducing portion sizes throughout the day may provide added protection.

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