Camryn Ashton-Marie Valencia

English 1302 - 53007

Professor Deva

April 19, 2018

Research Process

Simple Thesis​:

The Mediterranean diet is a healthy and sustainable modern day diet for

weight loss.

PRO/CON​:

“Atkins Diet: Expert Reviews.” ​U.S. News & World Report​, U.S. News & World

Report, Jan. 2018, health.usnews.com/best-diet/atkins-diet/reviews. This

article is an overview of the atkins diet pros and cons. Atkins doesn't help

with type 2 diabetes at all, unsustainable, doesn't follow dietary guidelines

and is not nutrient complete. (CON)

“Chapter 1 Key Elements of Healthy Eating Patterns.” ​Key Recommendations:

Components of Healthy Eating Patterns - 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines​,

2015,

health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/chapter-1/key-recommendation
 s/#key-recommendations-components-of-healthy-eating-patterns. This is the

Dietary Guidelines​’ as of 2015. I am using this as a standard to compare

diets to. (PRO)

“DASH Diet: Expert Reviews.” ​U.S. News & World Report​, U.S. News & World

Report, Jan. 2018, ​health.usnews.com/best-diet/dash-diet/reviews​. This

article touches on the DASH diet somewhat effectiveness to weight loss. It

compares this diet undesigned for weight loss to diets that are designed for

weight loss. (CON)

Dyson, Pamela. "Popular Diets: Are They Effective for People with Type 2

Diabetes?" ​Wiley Online Library | Scientific Research Articles, Journals,

Books, and Reference Works​, 9 June 2014,

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pdi.1863. This article compares the

results of many popular diets effects on health and weight loss. Recent

evidence suggests that the Mediterranean diet is effective for weight loss.

(PRO)

Effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy based on the Mediterranean diet for

the treatment of obesity Corbalan M.D., Morales E.M., Canteras M.,

Espallardo A., Hernandez T., Garaulet M. (2009) ​Nutrition​, 25 (7-8) , pp.

861-869, ​https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nut.2009.02.013​ This is the discussion of

 a study about the Mediterranean diet treatment for obesity. It also discusses

the main setbacks of trying to losing weight on a diet. (PRO)

Engelhart, Katie. "Cavemen Who Walk among Us." ​Maclean's​, vol. 123, no. 8, 08

Mar. 2010, pp. 53-54. EBSCO​host,​

dcccd.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.dcccd.idm.oclc.or

g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=48373520&site=ehost-live​. This

article gives reason why the Paleo diet could be difficulties to follow. As

well as, the it’s lack of evidence. (CON)

Fuhrman, Joel. "Weight Watchers Focuses on Weight, Not Health." ​Smart

Nutrition, Superior Health. | DrFuhrman.com​, 21 May 2016,

www.drfuhrman.com/library/eat-to-live-blog/79/weight-watchers-focuses-o

n-weight-not-health. Accessed 18 Apr. 2018. This article discusses the

effects of the food that weight watchers promotes and sells, and its effects on

the consumers body. It also talks about life after weight watchers. (CON)

Harvard Health Publishing. “Mediterranean Diet Sails Well in the USA - Harvard

Health.” ​Harvard Health Blog​, Sept. 2008,

www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/mediterranean-diet-sails-well-in-

the-usa​.​ ​A Mediterranean eating pattern was first identified in the 1950s as

 part of a study of health and habits in seven countries. Greece, Finland, Italy,

Japan, the Netherlands, the United States, and Yugoslavia. One of its most

intriguing findings was that people living in Crete, other parts of Greece, and

southern Italy lived longer and had the lowest rates of heart disease in spite

of a high-fat diet and limited medical care. (PRO)

Kring, Lorna. "The Pros and Cons of 7 Popular Diet Plans." ​Foodal​, 3 Oct. 2017,

foodal.com/knowledge/paleo/pros-cons-popular-diet-plans.This article

analysis the 7 most relevant diets to date. It states that it could be difficult

receiving the full benefits of the DASH diet because it is very restrictive.

Paleo diet encourages consuming a lot of red meat. This is contrary to

prevalent health advice, including the ​American Cancer Society’s

Guidelines on Nutrition​ and Physical Activity for Cancer Prevention.

Vegan diets can be ​low in certain nutrients​ and is obviously very

restrictive. (CON)

LaMotte, Sandee. “'Best Diets' Ranking Puts Keto Last.” ​CNN​, Cable News

Network, 4 Jan. 2018,

www.cnn.com/2018/01/04/health/keto-worst-diet-2018/index.html​. CNN
 analysis the US News and World Report ranking of many diets. The DASH,

Weight Watchers, the ​flexitarian​, keto, and the Whole30 diet. (PRO/CON)

Lluís Serra-Majem, Blanca Roman, Ramón Estruch; Scientific Evidence of

Interventions Using the Mediterranean Diet: a Systematic Review, ​Nutrition

Reviews​, Volume 64, Issue suppl_1, 1 February 2006, Pages S27–S47,

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1753-4887.2006.tb00232.x​ Discussion on resulting

effects the mediterranean diet has on health. A few specific being

cardiovascular disease, body composition, diabetes and lipoproteins. (PRO)

MacMillan, Amanda. "What Can You Eat on the Mediterranean Diet?." ​Time.Com​,

16 Jan. 2018, p. 1. EBSCO​host,​

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g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=127363291&site=ehost-live​. This

article speaks about the Mediterranean diets help for health and

unintentional benefits in weight loss. (PRO)

McDANIEL, JENNIFER and MARYGRACE TAYLOR. "Secrets of the World's

Healthiest Eaters." ​Prevention​, vol. 69, no. 12, Dec. 2017, pp. 18-21.

EBSCO​host​,
 dcccd.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.dcccd.idm.oclc.or

g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=125897354&site=ehost-live. This

article tells what the people living on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea

typically eat. It also states that based of a mass amount of evidence, the

benefits of the Mediterranean diet are in both weight and health. (PRO)

McManus, K., et al. "A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Moderate-fat,

Low-energy Diet Compared with a Low Fat, Low-energy Diet for Weight

Loss in Overweight Adults." ​International Journal of Obesity​, 4 Oct. 2001,

rdcu.be/MT6K. This is a trial between Mediterranean diet in Mediterranean

versus non-Mediterranean populations. This is a significant difference

because of the difference in the food available. (CON)

“Mediterranean Diet: Expert Reviews.” ​U.S. News & World Report​, U.S. News &

World Report, Jan. 2018,

health.usnews.com/best-diet/mediterranean-diet/reviews.“ The ​U.S. News &

World Report ​ranking of the Mediterranean diet for long-term weight loss

and short-term weight loss. It also claims that is follows very closely to the

Dietary Guidelines. (PRO)

“Mediterranean Diet: Health Vs. Hype." ​Tufts University Health & Nutrition

Letter​, vol. 31, no. 7, Sept. 2013, pp. 1-4. EBSCO​host​,

 dcccd.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.dcccd.idm.oclc.or

g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=89975164&site=ehost-live​. All

three eating plans -- ​DASH​, OmniHeart and ​Mediterranean​ -- strongly

resemble the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans. (PRO)

“MIND Diet: Expert Reviews.” ​U.S. News & World Report​, U.S. News & World

Report, Jan. 2018, ​health.usnews.com/best-diet/mind-diet/reviews​. The​ ​U.S.

News & World Report says the MIND is no good for short or long term

weight loss. It was only designed to prevent Alzheimer’s disease. (CON)

MOHR, CHRIS. "The Lard Is Your Savior?." ​Men's Health​, vol. 32, no. 7, Sept.

2017, pp. 102-122. EBSCO​host,​

dcccd.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.dcccd.idm.oclc.or

g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=124224419&site=ehost-live​. This

tells how the keto diet is good for short term weight loss, although has a few

setbacks. The keto diet is known to be unsustainable and dieters usually end

up plateauing. (CON)

“‘New' Review from Two Experts." ​USA Today​, n.d. EBSCO​host​,

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g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=J0E191415765510&site=ehost-live​.
 This article shows how restrictive the atkins diet is. It gives examples of

common foods with health benefits that it doesn't encourage. (CON)

Nilsson, Jessica, et al. "A Low-Carbohydrate High-Fat Diet Decreases Lean Mass

and Impairs Cardiac Function in Pair-Fed Female C57BL/6J Mice."

Nutrition & Metabolism​, vol. 13, 15 Nov. 2016, pp. 1-12. EBSCO​host​,

doi:10.1186/s12986-016-0132-8. “Low-carbohydrate diets like the Atkins

Diet are popular for rapid weight loss, but the long-term consequences

remain the subject of debate.” (CON)

Noah, Ann. "There are many Mediterranean diets." ​Wiley Online Library |

Scientific Research Articles, Journals, Books, and Reference Works​, 20 Dec.

2001, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11708604. This small study gives details

about the different kinds of Mediterranean diets. It is significant to note

because there are 18 countries along the Mediterranean sea with a similar,

but not identical diets. (CON)

Openshaw, Robyn. "The Paleo Diet.....what is It, Really?" ​GreenSmoothieGirl​, 27

Dec. 2017, greensmoothiegirl.com/the-paleo-diet-what-is-it-really/. This

article talks about the very significant difference in the modern day Paleo
 diet versus the diet of Paleolithic people, that the modern day diet tries to

mimic. (CON)

“Scientifically Proven Diets That Work." ​Harvard Men's Health Watch​, vol. 19,

no. 11, June 2015, pp. 1-7. EBSCO​host​,

dcccd.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.dcccd.idm.oclc.or

g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=102811099&site=ehost-live​. This

article compares and contrast the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension

(DASH) diet and the Mediterranean diet. Both emphasize eating plant foods

and healthy fats to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. (PRO/CON)

Scott, Jennifer R. "Weight Watchers: Pros and Cons." ​Verywell Fit​, 22 Apr. 2009,

www.verywellfit.com/pros-and-cons-of-weight-watchers-3496212​. The

Weight Watchers weight loss positives versus the negatives that are usually

overlooked. Some variables include the price, the constant counting of point

and the promotion of unhealthy foods. (CON)

Sifferlin, Alexandra. "The Top 5 Diets to Try in 2018, According to Experts."

Time.Com​, 09 Jan. 2018, p. 1. EBSCO​host​,

dcccd.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.dcccd.idm.oclc.or

g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=127218918&site=ehost-live​. This

article from time gives me an overview of the most popular diets to date and
 why. It gave me insight to what diets i should compare in order for my

research to be up to date. (PRO)

SLOAN, ERICA. "A History of Diets 1950-2018." ​Prevention​, vol. 70, no. 3, Mar.

2018, pp. 42-44. EBSCO​host,​

dcccd.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.dcccd.idm.oclc.or

g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=127655161&site=ehost-live​. This

article gives a timeline of when diets were most mainstream. Again, this

gave me insight to what diets i should compare in order for my research to

be up to date. (PRO)

Stephanie. "10 Reasons Why Weight Watchers is Bad for Your Health."

TotalBeauty​, 1 June 2012,

www.totalbeauty.com/community/blog_post/6135231_10-reasons-why-weig

ht-watchers-is-bad-for-your-health​. A few lines from this article goes into

detail about what we as consumers should expect from a sustainable diet. It

also speaks about Weight Watchers extreme counting of calories and

promotions of unhealthy foods. (CON)

“Weight Watchers Diet: Expert Reviews.” ​U.S. News & World Report​, U.S. News

& World Report, Jan. 2018,

health.usnews.com/best-diet/weight-watchers-diet/reviews​. The ​U.S. News

 & World Report ​speaks highly of weight watchers due to it’s support groups

and impressive short term weight loss. (CON)

Winston J Craig; Health effects of vegan diets, ​The American Journal of Clinical

Nutrition​, Volume 89, Issue 5, 1 May 2009, Pages 1627S–1633S,

https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.2009.26736N​ Vegans tend to be prone to having

a nutrients deficiency in some essential vitamins but the vegan diet raises the

amount of intake of other vitamins. Non-vegan diets show rates of obtaining

cancer but also vegan diets show the same but for different reasons. On the

contrary, vegetarians show lower risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD),

obesity, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers. (CON)

Strongest Evidence Supporting Arguments​:

“Mediterranean Diet: Expert Reviews.” ​U.S. News & World Report​, U.S. News &

World Report, Jan. 2018,

health.usnews.com/best-diet/mediterranean-diet/reviews.“ The

Mediterranean diet closely conforms to the Federal Government's 2015

Dietary Guidelines. Many experts described it as a healthful, nutritionally

sound approach to eating. (PRO)

Lluís Serra-Majem, Blanca Roman, Ramón Estruch; Scientific Evidence of

Interventions Using the Mediterranean Diet: a Systematic Review, ​Nutrition

Reviews​, Volume 64, Issue suppl_1, 1 February 2006, Pages S27–S47,

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1753-4887.2006.tb00232.x​ The Mediterranean diet

showed favorable effects on lipoprotein levels, endothelium vasodilation,

insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, antioxidant capacity, myocardial and

cardiovascular mortality, and cancer incidence in obese patients and in those

with previous myocardial infarction. (PRO)

Harvard Health Publishing. “Mediterranean Diet Sails Well in the USA - Harvard

Health.” ​Harvard Health Blog​, Sept. 2008,

www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/mediterranean-diet-sails-well-in-
 the-usa​.​ ​A Mediterranean eating pattern was first identified in the 1950s as

part of a study of health and habits in seven countries. Greece, Finland, Italy,

Japan, the Netherlands, the United States, and Yugoslavia. One of its most

intriguing findings was that people living in Crete, other parts of Greece, and

southern Italy lived longer and had the lowest rates of heart disease in spite

of a high-fat diet and limited medical care. (PRO)

Stephanie. "10 Reasons Why Weight Watchers is Bad for Your Health."

TotalBeauty​, 1 June 2012,

www.totalbeauty.com/community/blog_post/6135231_10-reasons-why-weig

ht-watchers-is-bad-for-your-health​. Weight Watchers promotes junk food

like candy, pizza, and fries – as long as they are within your daily points, eat

as much as you like (Stephanie 2012). (PRO)

Fuhrman, Joel. "Weight Watchers Focuses on Weight, Not Health." ​Smart

Nutrition, Superior Health. | DrFuhrman.com​, 21 May 2016,

www.drfuhrman.com/library/eat-to-live-blog/79/weight-watchers-focuses-o

n-weight-not-health. Accessed 18 Apr. 2018. Members eat small portions of

 nutrient-poor junk food daily as ‘treats,’ therefore never losing their

addictive cravings. (PRO)

LaMotte, Sandee. “'Best Diets' Ranking Puts Keto Last.” ​CNN​, Cable News

Network, 4 Jan. 2018,

www.cnn.com/2018/01/04/health/keto-worst-diet-2018/index.html​. Because

of the "cycling" nature of the diet, taking breaks and then starting it again,

experts also warn that hormones could fluctuate. (PRO)

Strongest Evidence Counter Arguments​:

“Weight Watchers Diet: Expert Reviews.” ​U.S. News & World Report​, U.S. News

& World Report, Jan. 2018,

health.usnews.com/best-diet/weight-watchers-diet/reviews​. Even recently it

was ranked as number one for short-term weight loss by the U.S. News &

World Report after being compared to thirty-seven other diets. (CON)

MOHR, CHRIS. "The Lard Is Your Savior?." ​Men's Health​, vol. 32, no. 7, Sept.

2017, pp. 102-122. EBSCO​host​,

dcccd.idm.oclc.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com.dcccd.idm.oclc.or

g/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=124224419&site=ehost-live​. People
in a 2014 Spanish study who followed a very-low-calorie ketogenic diet lost

an average of 44 pounds in a year. (CON)