Table 2.

Clinical Guidelines for Therapeutic Carbohydrate Restriction definitions of LC diet, published with permission from Hite et al. (44).

⇒ VLCK (very low-carbohydrate ketogenic) diets recommend 30 g or less of dietary carbohydrate per day (46). Deliberate restriction of kilocalories (kcals) is not typically recommended. ⇒ LCK (low-carbohydrate ketogenic) diets recommend 30–50 g of dietary carbohydrate per day (47). Deliberate restriction of kcals is not typically recommended. ⇒ RC (reduced-carbohydrate) diets recommend 50–130 g of dietary carbohydrate per day, a level that is higher than levels listed above and lower than the U.S. DRI for carbohydrate. Deliberate restriction of kcals may or may not be recommended at this level. ⇒ MC-CR (moderate-carbohydrate, calorie-restricted) diets recommend more than 130 g of dietary carbohydrate per day with a range of 45–65% of daily kcals coming from carbohydrate. In most cases, kcals are also restricted to maintain energy balance or to achieve a deficit for weight loss. This dietary intervention reflects the amount of dietary carbohydrate typically found in “carbohydrate counting” interventions given to many people with type 2 diabetes. *Definitions of carbohydrate levels depicted above may either refer to total CHO content or to non-fiber (net) grams of CHO, as fiber is not typically metabolized to glucos.

Definitions * are based on protocols currently in use or on definitions found in the literature.