Finding a weight loss program shouldn’t be that hard. After all, each program—no matter how different—is based on the same basic principle, right? Essentially, the idea behind losing weight is to take in fewer calories than you burn. But when you consider the literally hundreds of different philosophies, approaches, and explanations behind the myriad weight loss programs extolled today, finding the weight loss program that works for you can be very difficult.

But the search need not be so difficult. Professor Arne Astrup, of the Institute of Human Nutrition in Copenhagen, Denmark, advises taking the best of the two leading weight loss approaches: low carbs and low fat diets.

According to Astrup, taking the best aspects of low carb diets and low fat diets not only help increase weight loss initially, but will also be more effective and better for you in the long run.

Low Carb Diets

Diets that promote eating primarily protein and minimizing carbohydrate intake—such as Atkins—have seen great popularity. Even Astrup’s report admits that such diets have a greater initial weight loss than low fat diets. However, after Astrup and his colleagues completed a comparative study of different diets, they found that in the long run not only were low carb diets no better at keeping the weight off than low fat diets, they also had several potential side effects.

According to Astrup’s study, people on low carb diets often suffered from diarrhea, muscle weakness, and dehydration. “In the long term,” added Astrup, “we fear that this low intake of fruits and grains could increase the risk of colon cancer.”

As if those side effects weren’t bad enough, low carb diets may also be the culprit behind your halitosis. If, since starting your low carb diet, you’ve noticed people shying away from sharing the same air with you, it may be because of a process called ketosis. Low carb, high protein diets cause your body to burn stored fats for fuel rather than carbohydrates. “As fat burns, ketones build up in the body, and some are released through breath,” explains registered dietician and spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, Jeannie Moloo. (If this is the case for you, just eat some carbohydrates and it should clear up.)

Despite all these possible side effects, no one can argue with the results. A study conducted in 2002 by the Duke University Medical Center and published in the American Journal of Medicine reported on the results of a group of participants who participated in an Atkins-like diet for a period of six months. The researchers found that 80 percent of the 50 participants kept with the program and lost an average 10 percent of their body weight. This loss translated into roughly 20 pounds per person. An added-and unsuspected—result of the study also showed that participant’s cholesterol levels also improved.

Unfortunately, if you ask most low carb dieters, the long term results of the diet are all too common. The weight comes back, often with a vengeance, as soon as the diet ends. The more extreme the diet is, explained Astrup, the less likely people are to adhere to it. “You cannot live without carbs for years,” added Astrup. For those that lost weight by cutting carbs from their diet, returning to those carbs spells disaster.