Dr Jakubowicz, from Virginia Commonwealth
University, has been recommending
a hearty breakfast to her patients
for 15 years.
She tested it against a low carbohydrate
diet in a study of 96 obese and physically
inactive women.
This diet involved 1,085 calories
a day - the majority of these coming
from protein and fat.
Breakfast here was the smallest
meal of the day - just 290 calories,
with just seven grams of carbohydrates.
Her "big breakfast" diet involved
more calories - 1,240 - with a lower
proportion of fat and more carbohydrates
and protein.
Breakfast here was 610 calories,
with 58 grams of carbohydrates, while
lunch and dinner were 395 and 235
calories respectively.
Four months on, the low-carb dieters
appeared to be doing better, losing
an average of 28 pounds to the 23
shed on the "big breakfast" diet.
However, after eight months, the
situation had reversed, with the low-carb
dieters putting an average of 18 of
those pounds back on, while the big
breakfasters continued to lose weight,
on average 16.5 pounds each.
They lost a fifth of their total
body weight on average, compared with
less than 5% for the low-carb dieters.
Slower metabolism
Dr Jakubowicz reported that the
big breakfasters said they felt less
hungry, particularly in the mornings.
She said: "Most weight loss studies
have determined that a very low carbohydrate
diet is not a good method to reduce
weight.
"It exacerbates the craving for
carbohydrates and slows metabolism
- as a result, after a short period
of weight loss, there is a quick return
to obesity."
She said that the bigger breakfast
helped by making people feel fuller
during the day, and was healthier,
because it allowed more fibre and
fruit to be included.
Dr Alex Johnstone, from the Rowett
Research Institute in Aberdeen, said
that other studies had shown that
while low-carb diets were a "good
tool" to reduce weight quickly, they
were not a "diet for life".
She said that the regaining of lost
weight by these dieters could be more
a sign of the relative monotony of
the two diets, rather than their ability
to necessarily reduce cravings.
"It could be that it is simply easier
for people on a higher-carbohydrate
diet to comply with it over a longer
period."
A spokesman for the British Nutrition
Foundation said there was evidence
that a good-sized breakfast could
help dieters.
She said: "Research shows that eating
breakfast can actually help people
control their weight.
"This is probably because when we
don't have breakfast we're more likely
to get hungry before lunch and snack
on foods that are high in fat and
sugar, such as biscuits, doughnuts
or pastries."
