Some of have claimed that red wine is key to the “French Paradox,” so it is interesting that they are seeing problems in people not likely to be drinking red wine (children). The “French Paradox” though often talks about heart health instead of obesity, so it would be interesting if red wine helps control obesity as well. Others have stated that obesity is controlled in French women by eating small portions slowly and savoring their food, which again might not be something children would do.

The study found that one type of sugar, fructose, gets converted to fat more quickly than the other types of sugars. High-fructose corn syrup is a common sweetner in many products. Paying attention to the types of sugars in food products while on a diet and avoiding those with fructose may be another way to help improve weight loss. The study found that even four hours after a high fructose drink was consumed, the body was more likely to store fat instead of burn it.

Interestingly, the low-carb diet worked best for men while the Mediterranean-style diet worked best for women in terms of weight-loss. It was not clear what the reasons are for this, but some experts hypothesized (guessed) that men need a more clear-cut regimen while women are more sophisticated at dieting and following more complex plans.

See the original paper published in the New England Journal of Medicine.