The Study
Effect of Low-Carbohydrate and Low-Fat Diets on Metabolomic Indices and Coronary Heart Disease in U.S. Individuals.
This study watched what people ate for many years and saw that those who ate more healthy foods (like veggies and whole grains) tended to have fewer heart problems. But it didn’t make people change their diets — so we can’t say the food itself caused the change.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
Eating healthy carbs and plant-based foods, whether you eat fewer carbs or less fat, helps your heart. Eating lots of meat or sugary foods hurts your heart, no matter which diet you pick.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 559 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes—these differences are large enough to meaningfully affect how many people have heart attacks over time.
- 2Healthy low-carb: 15% less heart disease.
- 3Healthy low-fat: 13% less heart disease.
- 4Unhealthy versions: 14–17% more heart disease.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Journal of the American College of Cardiology
Year
2026
Authors
Zhiyuan Wu, Binkai Liu, Xiaowen Wang, Hala B AlEssa, O. Zeleznik, A. Eliassen, Clary Clish, Molin Wang, Kenneth J Mukamal, E. Rimm, Yang Hu, Frank B. Hu, Qi Sun
Related Content
Claims (10)
Eating more plants and whole grains instead of meat and sugary refined foods matters more for preventing heart disease than just how much fat or carbs you eat.
It doesn’t matter as much how much fat, carbs, or protein you eat—what really matters is whether the foods you eat are healthy or processed.
If you're a health professional in the U.S. and you eat a low-carb diet full of plants, nuts, and whole foods instead of meat and sugary carbs, you're less likely to get heart disease — it’s not just about cutting carbs, but what you replace them with.
Eating low-carb or low-fat diets that are full of meat or sugary refined foods might raise your risk of heart disease by about 14% to 17% compared to eating healthier versions of those same diets.
Eating more plants, whole grains, and healthy fats can lower your risk of heart disease by about 13 to 15%, no matter if you're cutting carbs or cutting fat.
Eating too many unhealthy carbs or too much meat and processed food—even if you're on a low-carb or low-fat diet—can raise your risk of heart disease by about 12–14% compared to eating healthier versions of those same diets.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.