The Neurological Institute Neuromed in Pozzilli, Italy, released a study on July 4 that revealed that eating pasta does not make you fatter, but instead, it can actually help lose weight. The study was executed with more than 23,000 Italian citizens to study how the Mediterranean diet works on the human body.

Pasta consumption has been linked with abdominal obesity for a long time, due to the considerably large amount of carbs in the food and the amount of non-healthy components linked with the sauce usually added to pasta dishes. 

The Neurological Institute Neuromed in Pozzilli, Italy, released a study on July 4 that revealed that eating pasta does not make you fatter, but instead, it can actually help lose weight. Photo credit: My Little Italian Kitchen
The Neurological Institute Neuromed in Pozzilli, Italy, released a study on July 4 that revealed that eating pasta does not make you fatter, but instead, it can actually help lose weight. Photo credit: My Little Italian Kitchen

Findings that  change the perception

So far, pasta has been famous for its bad reputation among people who encourage healthy lifestyles and losing weight techniques. Consumption of pasta is often related to being fat, so reducing the amount of pasta consumed is an essential part of most diets.

On the other hand, a high index of pasta consumption is inevitably related to the traditional Mediterranean diet, where people in Europe are exposed a lot to pasta dishes and is linked to a cultural part of their identity, at least in Italian communities.

The result of those two facts is some tension between encouraging pasta consumption or reducing it, instead.

This recent investigation,  however,  revealed that consumption of pasta, contrary to what we used to think, is not associated with an increase in body weight, but it is actually the opposite.

“Enjoying pasta according to individuals’ needs contributes to a healthy body mass index, lower waist circumference and better waist-hip ration, was one of the conclusions in the study,” according to the study

The Mediterranean Diet

There is a lot of debate about Mediterranean diet, whether it’s healthy or not. But scientific evidence backs up the theory that this kind of food in a ver nutritional regime, due to its variety and amount of nutrients in the foods that compose the diet.

But the particular role of pasta was never studied, and this is the first research that aimed to understand the role of pasta in the regular health and size of people who consume pasta on a regular basis.

About the Study

The study was executed by G. Pounis, A. Di Castelnuovo, S. Costanzo, M. Persichillo, M. Bonaccio, C.Cerletti, M. B. Donati, G. DeGaetano and L. Iacoviello.  It was named “Association of Pasta Consumption with body mass index, and waist-to-hip ratio: Results from Moli-sani and INHES studies. It was published bu the scientific journal Nutrition & Diabetes.

“By analyzing anthropometric data of the participants and their eating habits, we have seen that consumption of pasta, contrary to what many think, is not associated with an increase in body weight, rather the opposite … Our data show that enjoying pasta according to individuals’ needs contributes to a healthy body mass index, lower waist circumference and better waist-hip ratio,” the lead researcher, Pounis, said to the New York times.

So this may be the starting point to change the way of thinking about pasta, diets, and carbs.

Source: Science Daily