photo via: dotbenjamin.

For many guys, the onset of the holidays means packing on an extra 5-10 pounds that we then have to work off after New Years. But how about keeping that weight off in the first place? It's time to take a second look at what diets work best for men.

For years we have heard that a low fat diet is the most effective way to lose weight and keep it off. That meant cutting out lots of yummy stuff like red meat and desserts - hard to do for the holidays.

But new research suggests that low fat isn't always the best way to go. According to a new study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine, low-carbohydrate and Mediterranean diets may be safer and more effective in achieving weight loss than the standard, medically prescribed low-fat diet.

photo via: cletch

Low carb diets restrict foods like bread and pasta, but allow you to indulge in foods like read meat. Atkins and South Beach are the best known low carb diets. Mediterranean diets have lots of fiber from fruits, veggies, and breads, and include healthy portions of unsaturated fats like olive oil.

In the two-year study, 322 moderately obese people were intensively monitored and were randomly assigned one of three diets: a low-fat, calorie-restricted diet; a Mediterranean calorie-restricted diet with the highest level of dietary fiber and monounsaturated/saturated fat; or a low-carbohydrate diet with the least amount of carbohydrates, highest fat, protein, and dietary cholesterol. The low-carb dieters had no caloric intake restrictions.

Although participants actually decreased their total daily calories consumed by a similar amount, net weight loss from the low-fat diet after one year was only 6.5 lbs. (2.9 kg) compared to 10 lbs. (4.4 kg) on the Mediterranean diet, and 10.3 lbs. (4.7 kg) on the low-carbohydrate diet.

The low-fat diet reduced the total cholesterol to HDL ratio by only 12 percent, while the low-carbohydrate diet improved the same ratio by 20 percent. Lipids improved the most in the low-carbohydrate, with a 20 percent increase in the HDL ("good") cholesterol and, 14 percent decrease in triglycerides.

So this holiday season, think twice before stressing about that fat you're gobbling up. There may be better ways to keep trim.