Low-carb diets might not be the healthiest for a long life — two big new studies suggest they're linked to higher risk of death

A new study of more than 24,800 adults in the US found that those who limit carb intake have a 32% higher risk of death from any cause than people on high-carb diets.
That finding aligns with other new data on more than 447,500 people around the globe.
Limiting carbs might be a good strategy for weight loss, but experts say it's not a great plan to follow long-term.

Low-carb diets have many iterations, each with a devoted following. Atkins dieters eat lots of meat and eggs, before slowly and carefully reintroducing carbs, while the ketogenic diet urges people to severely cut carbs and focus on upping their fat intake from butter, cheese, and avocados.

But increasingly, scientists are discovering that going low-carb may not do you any favors in the long run.

A study presented Tuesday at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2018 looked at the self-reported eating patterns of

Healthy carbs like whole grains and beans arent bad for you

This new study comes on the heels of another worldwide investigation of death data published in the Lancet earlier this month. The research found that if people eat a moderate amount of carbs and focus on whole, healthful foods like veggies, legumes, and nuts, they tend to live longer than people who limit their carbohydrate intake.

It's more evidence that the best long-term diet strategy is a regimen rich in vegetables, filling whole grains, and healthy fats from naturally oily sources like olives and avocados.

What's more, low-carb dieters who trade grains and fresh produce for more meat and fish may unwittingly acidify their urine, putting them at risk for developing kidney stones.

That said, there are a few good reasons to go low-carb

Still, low-carb diets offer real benefits for certain populations.

The ketogenic diet — keto for short — was originally developed to help curb epileptic seizures in children. Cutting sugar and eating more fat has been shown to help control seizures when drugs can't and stop them completely i

control blood glucose levels

Cancer doctors also think that keto diets may have a role to play in making certain types of treatment more effective, and have studied how cutting sugar from mice's diets helps more effectively kill tumors. Human trials of this drug-diet combo are coming this fall.

But for most people, restricting carbs is done by ramping up one's intake of meat and other proteins and forgoing high-fiber, carb-heavy foods like beans, carrots, and legumes that help keep you satisfied until your next meal.

That said, cutting back on carbs does help dieters eat healthier in one important way: it reduces their sugar intake.

Sugar is essentially all carbs, and research has clearly shown that eating sugar can lead to all kinds of health problems, like weight gain, heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes if left unchecked.