A Pilot Study to Determine the Feasibility of the Low Glycemic Index Diet as a Treatment for Overweight Children in Primary Care Practice

Young, Paul C.; West, Shala A.; Ortiz, Karen; Carlson, Joseph

doi:10.1367/1539-4409(2004)004<0028:APSTDT>2.0.CO;2

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Volume 4, Issue 1 , Pages 28-33, January 2004

A Pilot Study to Determine the Feasibility of the Low Glycemic Index Diet as a Treatment for Overweight Children in Primary Care Practice

Paul C. Young, MD
- From the Department of Pediatrics (Drs Young and Ortiz), University of Utah School of Medicine, and Department of Foods and Nutrition (Ms West and Dr Carlson), University of Utah Salt Lake City, Utah
- Address correspondence to Paul C. Young, MD, Department of Pediatrics, The University of Utah School of Medicine, 50 North Medical Dr, Salt Lake City, UT 84132
Shala A. West, MS
- From the Department of Pediatrics (Drs Young and Ortiz), University of Utah School of Medicine, and Department of Foods and Nutrition (Ms West and Dr Carlson), University of Utah Salt Lake City, Utah
Karen Ortiz, MD
- From the Department of Pediatrics (Drs Young and Ortiz), University of Utah School of Medicine, and Department of Foods and Nutrition (Ms West and Dr Carlson), University of Utah Salt Lake City, Utah
Joseph Carlson, PhD, RD
- From the Department of Pediatrics (Drs Young and Ortiz), University of Utah School of Medicine, and Department of Foods and Nutrition (Ms West and Dr Carlson), University of Utah Salt Lake City, Utah

Received 7 August 2003; accepted 12 October 2003.

Background.—The prevalence of overweight children is increasing. Experimental evidence and specialty clinic trials suggest that a low glycemic index (LGI) diet could be an effective primary care–based treatment for overweight children.

Objective.—Conduct a pilot study to determine whether parents of overweight children can lower the glycemic index (GI) of their child's diet after receiving brief instructions and a handout from their pediatrician; and the diet's impact on body mass index (BMI).

Patients.—Children 5–12 years with BMIs greater than the 95th percentile.

Intervention.—Brief description of the LGI diet and a handout categorizing foods based on their GI and sample meals.

Design.—Nonrandomized, 12-week pilot study.

Measures.—BMI, 24-hour recall, and food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) at entry; 3-day food records at 3, 6, and 9 weeks; BMI, FFQ, and questionnaire at 12 weeks. A GI score derived from standard GI tables.

Results.—Of 34 children initially enrolled, 15 completed the study. Of these, 14 lowered their GI score (mean initial score = 26.6; mean score at 12 weeks 15.6; P < .0001). Mean daily carbohydrate (CHO) intake decreased by 73 g over the study period (P < .02), and mean daily caloric intake decreased by 292 kcal (P < .02). All 15 parents described the diet as easy to understand; 10 reported that their child was generally able to follow the diet. BMI Z-score decreased in 12 of 15 children.

Conclusion.—This pilot study suggests that implementing the LGI diet is feasible in primary care for some patients. Further study is warranted with larger study and comparison groups.

KEY WORDS: low glycemic index diet , obesity , overweight