Active Low-Carber Forums - View Single Post - Pasta Lowers Your BMI

Another Epidemiological study with the selection bias present one would expect considering the source of those conducting the study. Janet's comments really summarize the issue here. One of the things I like to do with these studies is to go to the source to read their conclusions. So I went to the IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed who conducted the study to see if I could find the funding sources or to examine the conclusion from the "horses mouth". It's obvious that there is a strong regional and cultural bias in favor of the Mediterranean Diet and with pasta in particular. Here's how the group on their website (http://www.neuromed.it/) reported on the study's findings:

http://www.neuromed.it/la-pasta-non-ingrassare-anzi/ Note: I don't read Italian, so I used Google Translate to come up with the English version:

Quote:

The pasta is not fattening, indeed
A search dell'I.R.C.C.S. Neuromed in Pozzilli shows that, contrary to what many believe, the consumption of pasta does not contribute to obesity, but is instead associated with a decrease in body mass index

In recent years, the dough was found on him a bad reputation: would you fat. Which he has led many people to decide to limit its consumption, often as part of one of those aggressive diets "do it yourself." Now a study conducted by the Department of Epidemiology dell'I.R.C.C.S. Neuromed in Pozzilli does justice to this fundamental element of the Mediterranean diet, showing how the consumption of pasta is actually associated with a reduction of obesity, considering both the general and specifically the abdomen.
The research, published in the journal Nutrition and Diabetes, examined over 23,000 people placed in two large studies: Moli-sani and INHES (Italian Nutrition & Health Survey), conducted by the Department. "Analyzing the anthropometric data of the participants and their eating habits - explains George Pounis, first author of the work - we have seen that consumption of pasta, contrary to what many think, is not associated with an increase in body weight. On the contrary: our data show that eating pasta results in a healthier body mass index, lower waist circumference and waist-hip ratio better ".

From the many studies already conducted, the Mediterranean Diet is clear for its health benefits, including weight control. Very little, however, it was known, the specific role of a basic component such as pasta. Data from the study Neuromed now going to fill this gap, confirming some remarks recently conducted in the United States and Greece.

"The dough - says Licia Iacoviello, Head of the Molecular Epidemiology Laboratory and Nutritional Neuromed - is often considered a factor limiting when following a diet to lose weight. There are those who completely eliminates its meals. In light of this research, we can say that is not a correct attitude. We're talking about a fundamental component of Italian Mediterranean cuisine, and there is no reason to do without it. The message that emerges from this study, as in other scientific work already emerged in the context of the Moli-sani Project and INHES, is that follow the Mediterranean diet, moderation in consumption and in the variety of all its elements, the dough in the first place , is a benefit to your health. "

http://www.nature.com/nutd/journal/...utd201620a.html

The study was partially supported by Barilla S.p.A. through the MISE (Italian Ministry of Economic Development) Within the frame of the ATHENA program MI01_00093 - New Technologies for Made in Italy (D.I. PII MI 6/3/2008) and Epicomed Research srl

The Moli-sani Project

Party in March 2005, involved about 25,000 citizens living in the Molise region, to learn about the environmental and genetic factors underlying cardiovascular disease and cancer. The study Moli-sani, now based nell'IRCCS Neuromed, has transformed an entire Italian region in a big science lab.

The Project INHES

The Project INHES (Italian Nutrition & Health Survey) is a research program designed to generate information on eating habits, the factors influencing the choice of food and awareness about the relationship between diet and health in the Italian population. Through telephone interviews, they were collected and nutritional data on the health of 9.319 citizens of all Italian regions.

The conclusion, according to the group, is that pasta is a healthy portion of a balanced Mediterranean Diet that doesn't cause weight gain. What would we expect from a study "partially supported by Barilla?" Thank goodness! All is safe and right with the world, because without pasta, where would we be??? Barilla is making health foods!!!

Now I'd like to have them go in and do a real study to link insulin release over time designed to track the same with pasta ingestion. Only until this is done can the findings be reported accurately and with conviction. Until then? More of the same and fodder for the news media trying to find interest stories over a slow early summer period.