A LIVERPOOL dietitian has warned of the dangers of low carbohydrates diets after seeing an influx of patients with health problems.

Anna Ashton, Registered Dietitian for Liverpool Community Health NHS Trust (LCH), said she had seen lots of patients complaining of a lack of energy and constipation.

The popularity of weight loss programmes like the Atkins Diet have had a huge impact on people’s attitudes to carbohydrates, according to the dietitian.

She said: “We have had a number of patients in the clinic saying they are scared of carbs.

“They make a big effort to cut bread and other carbohydrates out of their diet; however, they still find they are not losing weight because they supplement the lack of carbs with high-calorie food.

“Not only this, some are suffering from issues such as low blood glucose levels making them feel unwell and constipated.

“With such a low carbohydrate intake, they are also taking higher risks in the long term.

“If a person wants to lose the weight, then the secret is portion sizes and to only consume the amount of food that we need, not to cut one food product out.”