Low carb diets automatically exclude some of the world’s most fattening junk foods. This includes sugar, sugary drinks, fruit juices, pizzas, white bread, french fries, pastries and most unhealthy snacks.
There is also an obvious reduction in variety when you eliminate most high-carb foods, especially given that wheat, corn and sugar are in almost all processed foods.
It is well known that increased food variety can drive increased calorie intake. Many of these foods are also highly rewarding, and the reward value of foods can impact how many calories we end up eating.
So, reduced food variety and reduced intake of highly rewarding junk foods should both contribute to a reduced calorie intake.
The bottom line is, low carb diets exclude many foods that are highly rewarding and extremely fattening. These diets also have less food variety, which may lead to reduced calorie intake