Pasta not a factor in obesity

New study says pasta not a factor in obesity

Angry Shrimp Pasta

Last week on Facebook and in my Twitter feed, there were plenty of posts about a new study saying that eating pasta doesn’t make you fat. Some posts touted that it may even keep you lean.

Pasta is one of the true comfort foods. And it’s often one of the first foods to cut out if you’re dieting or trying to reduce carbs.

The study released Monday in the Nutrition & Diabetes journal followed 23,000 people and was, of course, conducted in the land of pasta: Italy.

“We have seen that consumption of pasta, contrary to what many think, is not associated with an increase in body weight,” George Pounis, an author of the study, said in a news release. “On the contrary: our data show that eating pasta results in a healthier body mass index, lower waist circumference and (better) waist-hip ratio.”

But before you go and grab a big bowl of pasta drenched in a fat-ladened al fredo sauce, the study found that pasta only was associated with a lower BMI (Body Mass Index). It didn’t say it can completely lower BMI. And the thrust of the study pointed to pasta being consumed as part of a Mediterranean-style diet.

More of a lifestyle than a diet, the Mediterranean-style of eating is one that is rich in fruits, olive oil, vegetables, whole grains and fish. In the U.S., pasta has long been associated as being off-limits in certain diets because of its calories and carbohydrates, especially low-carb, high protein diets.

The study found that there was a positive relationship between pasta and foods associated with Mediterranean diet. The conclusion? “As a traditional component of the Mediterranean Diet, pasta consumption was negatively associated with BMI, waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio and with a lower prevalence of overweight and obesity,” the I.R.C.C.S Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed study said.

Today’s dish Angry Shrimp Pasta fits in with the study in several ways.

The first, of course, is the pasta. You can use any long strand pasta you like. And the shrimp is a lean source of protein. Shrimp is easy and takes mere minutes to cook.

There’s also plenty of olive oil in this dish. The olive oil becomes the base of a sauce that gets stretched out with a little help from the pasta cooking water.

This dish has a good kick to it from the crushed red pepper flakes. If you think you might be sensitive to it, start out with just 1 teaspoon. You can add more at the end of cooking.



source: www.freep.com