The Low Carb Diet: The Lipophilia Hypothesis Tells Us Why It Works

The low carb diet is supported by an alternative theory of obesity -- technically known as the Lipophilia Hypothesis (Lipophilia means "fat-loving"). It tells us:

Diets High in Carbohydrates		Elevated Insulin Levels		Weight Gain

Diets Low in Carbohydrates		Regulated Insulin Levels		Weight Loss

To learn more about the Lipophilia Hypothesis, click on the links below:

• The technical theory behind the low carb diet.
• Predictions. Lipophilia makes certain testable, falsifiable guesses about how nature works. Thus, evidence from the real world should be able to confirm or refute the theory. Below is a list of eleven of these key predictions.

  Phenomenon	Lipophilia Explanation
  1. Weight Gain	Overeating and inactivity are consequences of getting fat.
  2. Weight Loss	Appetite control and increased activity are consequences of losing fat.
  3. Weight Maintenance	Unconscious homeostatic mechanisms maintain our weight over time, just like they maintain other aspects of the interior milieu, like body temperature.
  4. Calorie is a Calorie?	All calories are not equal. The body is a complex machine.
  5. Obesity Epidemic	The switch to a low fat/high carb diet has caused the obesity epidemic.
  6. Diseases of Civilization	Obesity associates with diseases like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, Alzheimer's disease, malnutrition, and gout because they all stem from a common cause: chronic hyperinsulinemia.
  7. Carb Restricted Diets	Carb restriction and other measures taken to improve blood insulin levels can lead to weight loss even when calories are unrestricted.
  8. Role of Behavior vs. Role of Physiology in Obesity	Obesity is a physiological problem that can often be fixed simply by a low carb diet.
  9. What is Our Fat Tissue	Provides a very specific explanation of how, why, when, and where fat accumulates as well as why some people get fat and others don't.
  10. Unexplained Weight Changes	Weight changes resulting from medications, genetics, hormonal changes, and so forth must be caused by indirect changes to fat tissue metabolism.
  11. Public Conviction that Calories Count	Health authorities almost unanimously support the Caloric Balance Hypothesis only because they are unaware that the Lipophilia Hypothesis even exists and because they have, by and large, ignored the science supporting the low carb diet.

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