Both are good for weight loss, which is better for high blood pressure: higher protein or higher fat?

Most of you reading this are aware that a lower glycemic diet can promote weight and fat loss through its beneficial effect on insulin levels. But which is better for blood pressure control, a higher or lower protein to fat ratio? This study recently published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition was designed to answer that question.

"There is controversy over dietary protein's effects on cardiovascular disease risk factors in diabetic subjects. It is unclear whether observed effects are due to increased protein or reduced carbohydrate content of the consumed diets. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of two diets differing in protein to fat ratios on cardiovascular disease risk factors."

What did their data show? Interestingly,...

"Both diets were equally effective in promoting weight loss and fat loss and in improving fasting glycemic control, total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, but the...HP–LF [high protein-low fat] diet improved significantly both systolic and diastolic blood pressure when compared with the LP–HF [low protein-high fat] diet. No differences were observed in postprandial glucose and insulin responses."

The authors conclude:

"A protein to fat ratio of 1.5 in diets significantly improves blood pressure and TG [triglyceride] concentrations in obese individuals with DM2 [type 2 diabetes]."