Fun Article About ' Atkins ' Diet

[Skeptical Greg]

Chewing the fad

A couple of choice quotes..

Experts have claimed the diet could, in the long term, cause heart disease, kidney stones, bowel cancer, liver damage and osteoporosis. Since the only person who's really been on it long term is Atkins, there's no real evidence for this, except a projection of what one's body might do if deprived of carbohydrates for good.

Do we know what a fad is, ladies and gentlemen of the renowned seven years' training? It is a trendy thing that doesn't last very long. The only weight-loss method with any serious danger attached to it is anorexia.
Now, that will be very easy to refute, since every doctor everywhere will have met someone once who ate nothing but carrots for six months and ended up with no lungs (though very good night vision).

How's it going Wile E. Coyote?

( corrected name spelling.. )

 

[Wile E. Coyote]

It's going great, so far. I feel great, have lost about 40 lbs of fat, and gained about 15-20 lbs of muscle.

My wife is thinner than she was when she was in college and also feels great.

For some reason, when I stick to the diet, I do not suffer from allergies. I have not been sick in months. I have a lot of energy. On the ocassions when I do go off the diet, I feel a marked difference. I get more irritable and my allergies act up. This was what I felt most of the time before I started the diet. Also, a friend who started Atkins mentioned that his attitude has improved dramatically.

I have also noticed that Atkins is like a closet diet. No one will admit to being on it for fear of being assaulted with the scare "facts" of the traditional nutritionists. However, if you listen closely in restaurants or family gatherings, you will hear mention of carbohydrates.

The fact that that quote said "deprived of carbohydrates for good" demonstrates how uninformed it is about the diet. Elimination of carbohydrates for good is not part of the diet. Moderation of carbohydrates is. I would wager that Atkins dieters on the maintenance plan are eating a more well-rounded diet than most Americans.

Oh, and I seldom feel hungry or weak. So far, so good.

 

[Skeptical Greg]

If you read the article carefully, the writer seems to think the diet is as good as any other, but not likely to be followed for any length of time.


It sounds like you are doing great so far. Way to go..

 

[Wile E. Coyote]

Yes, I saw that the author was not too critical of the diet. I guess the way I worded my response to the quoted comment came off a little wrong. I was merely adressing the one comment, and how it sheds a poor light on the diet.

And yes, very few people actually stick with it. In fact, very few people stick with any weight-loss diet. It is against our nature to lose weight.

Thanks for the hand clapping guy!

 

[Upchurch]

To add my anecdote. My fiancee and I have been on it for 11 weeks now. I'm down 27 lbs and she's down 32 lbs.

For what it's worth, I stopped having heartburn too.

 

[Skeptical Greg]

To add my anecdote. My fiancee and I have been on it for 11 weeks now. I'm down 27 lbs and she's down 32 lbs.

For what it's worth, I stopped having heartburn too.

What I found interesting, was that the things I used to think caused heartburn was not completely true.. Pizza, for instance.. I can eat all the topping off a Supremo-Maximo with everthing on it, with no problem.. It was just the crust, after all...

Same thing for large grilled steak.. I can eat it all day with large green salad.. If you try to throw in potatoes...
Bingo! Acid reflux..


Looks like those starches were the real culprits..


All those greasy things, that you think cause heartburn?? Nada..

 

[EvilYeti]

I think alot of bad press involving the Atkins diet is the fault of its most diehard promoters. When I first heard of Atkins in the media it was presented by one of its practioners as a means to eat huge amounts of food without gaining weight. I'll never forget the image of a man frying up a pound of ground chuck with a STICK of butter, for breakfast. That was enough to turn me off the diet for a LONG time.

When I finally got around to reasearching it more I found it to be very reasonable, carbs are only prohibited during the induction phase and gradually phased in later.

Considering the very real dangers of obesity, if an individual can make the Atkins diet work for them, good for them. The small risks of the diet outweigh (ha ha) the big risks of chronic obesity.

 

[dissonance]

I think alot of bad press involving the Atkins diet is the fault of its most diehard promoters. When I first heard of Atkins in the media it was presented by one of its practioners as a means to eat huge amounts of food without gaining weight. I'll never forget the image of a man frying up a pound of ground chuck with a STICK of butter, for breakfast. That was enough to turn me off the diet for a LONG time.

Not just the fault of the diehard promoters - the way the media has chosen to profile Atkins is as the 'eat all the bacon, eggs, and steak you want!' diet.

I don't really agree completely with Atkins. I think the saturated fat issue is one potential problem with the diet. I know Atkins proponents will tell you that saturated fat isn't a problem if you are in ketosis, but I have yet to see anyone present any hard evidence of that. Many Atkins dieters also don't get nearly enough fibre. Other than those two issues, I think low-carb diets are going to be around for a while, for the simple reason that they work!

The other big problem with low carb is something that has just started happening, and I fully expect to become a huge issue within the next couple of years. One of the reasons that the mass switch over to low-fat diets actually led to people gaining weight is that the food manufacturers started putting out low-fat products that had the same number of calories - and in some cases more! - than the full fat versions. People saw 'low-fat' and took that as an excuse to eat more.

It's taking time, but we're starting to get a lot more low-carb products on the shelves. The food manufactureres aren't stupid; low carb dieters are a big untapped market. And if people eat freely of low-carb products the way they do of low-fat products, they aren't going to lose weight, because in the end it still comes down to the calories.

 

[The Don]

I'm concerned that the Atkins diet appears to be an effective quick fix. Rather like the cabbage soup diet or the grapefruit diet it relies on people eating drastically fewer calories for a period of time.

If you are willing to make the lifestyle changes which would enable you to keep the weight off, then good on you, by all means use Atkins to shift the initial lard. If you do what they do here at work, use it as a means to shift a few pounds before vacation but don't address lifestyle issues then you'll return to being a lardy bloater as soon as you start living and eating "normally"

 

[HarryKeogh]

i've definitely lost weight with atkins but i'm still not sure why...was it because i was in a state of ketosis and burning fat for fuel or was it because i was hardly hungry (when i'm eating carbs i'm usually starving all the time) and just not taking in that many calories.

regardless, it's pretty easy to follow and whoever thinks it's just meat, butter and eggs for life hasn't done their research.

 

[Skeptical Greg]

Not just the fault of the diehard promoters - the way the media has chosen to profile Atkins is as the 'eat all the bacon, eggs, and steak you want!' diet.

You mean it's not? I certainly 'eat all the bacon, eggs, and steak ' I want ..

Many Atkins dieters also don't get nearly enough fibre.

As opposed to the 60%+ of Americans who are clinically obese?

Actually, if they ( Atkins dieters ) are not getting enough fiber, it's because they choose not to eat fiber rich foods, the same as anyone else. It is not because it's not part of the Atkins guidelines..

 

[Zep]

There is only ONE WAY to lose weight: Consume more energy than you take in. Period.

How you go about achieving that is the issue. You can do more exercise (consume more energy) or eat lower calorie food (take in less energy) or consume less food (still take in less energy), or any combination of these, and get the same results. Remember, though, that there is a minimum daily energy requirement for each person to simply keep themselves alive and healthy - go below that and you start to look and get sick.

Acid reflux: Being a pig at mealtimes usually gives you acid reflux, unless you are ill for some reason. If you are now not consuming a particular food and notice that you no longer have reflux, could it not be that you are simply consuming less VOLUME by cutting out this ingredient? You could test it - try replacing meal ingredients instead of adding them (e.g. potato INSTEAD of salad, not potato PLUS salad).

Allergies: You notice less issues with allergies on this diet? OK, what are you NOT eating now that you did eat before you went on the diet? Are there commonly allergic foods in that list of dropped foods? E.g. peanuts (peanut butter or other "chocolate" spreads too), chocolate, tomatoes, certain fruits, seeds from some plants, eggs (especially egg-white), etc, etc. Maybe you've just found one...

 

[dissonance]

Not just the fault of the diehard promoters - the way the media has chosen to profile Atkins is as the 'eat all the bacon, eggs, and steak you want!' diet.

You mean it's not? I certainly 'eat all the bacon, eggs, and steak ' I want ..

I phrased that badly. Atkins states that you should eat until satisfied. That has been misinterpreted by many people to mean that you can gorge yourself stupid. That is not the case. Low-carb works by reducing appetite, so if you stuff your face with as much protein and fat as you can cram in, you aren't going to lose any weight. If you let yourself be guided by whether you are hungry or not, then it works great.

The other thing I was getting at is that the media portrayal of Atkins is of only meat and eggs and cheese. Doing Atkins properly actually involves eating a lot of vegetables as well, but you never see that in the news reports.

Many Atkins dieters also don't get nearly enough fibre.

As opposed to the 60%+ of Americans who are clinically obese?

Actually, if they ( Atkins dieters ) are not getting enough fiber, it's because they choose not to eat fiber rich foods, the same as anyone else. It is not because it's not part of the Atkins guidelines..

Well, yeah, obviously. But the point is, fibre is a carb. If you are avoiding carbs, you make it that much more difficult to get adequate fibre.

 

[Wile E. Coyote]

Allergies: You notice less issues with allergies on this diet? OK, what are you NOT eating now that you did eat before you went on the diet? Are there commonly allergic foods in that list of dropped foods? E.g. peanuts (peanut butter or other "chocolate" spreads too), chocolate, tomatoes, certain fruits, seeds from some plants, eggs (especially egg-white), etc, etc. Maybe you've just found one...

The only things on your list that cannot be eaten on Atkins are the chocolate and most fruits. Eggs are a major part of the diet.

I have a feeling that some wheat products may aggravate my allergies. Here is the odd thing: I am lactose intolerant, and before the diet a moderate amount of dairy would give me problems. On the diet, I can eat as much cheese as I want and not feel any effects. Previously, cheese was my worst offender.

Also, with not having allergies as much, I find that other illnesses are slower to take hold. My immune system seems to have corrected itself quite nicely.

 

[Upchurch]

Well, yeah, obviously. But the point is, fibre is a carb. If you are avoiding carbs, you make it that much more difficult to get adequate fibre.

It's true that fiber is a carb, but it is an undigestable carb. It doesn't count towards your total carb intake, nor do sugar alchohols.

In Atkins' book, he stresses that the three cups of veggies you're supposed to eat daily during the Induction phase, you're supposed to go for high fiber, high nutrient veggies like brocolli and spinich. Even then, he makes a point of also adding supplements like multivitamins and extra fiber to your daily routine as well.

If you ever look at the low carb snack stuff they have out on the market now, you'll see that the total carb count is relatively high, but that most of it is fiber and sugar alchohol. The total digestable carbs (i.e. the carbs you have to worry about) is equal to the total carbs minus the fiber and sugar alchohol. I think there are some others that aren't digestable either, but their minor and neglegable.

If anything, on this diet, I'm probably getting a more regular supply of fiber and vitamins than I ever did before.

 

[Upchurch]

Oh, and my opinion is that those who try the Atkins diet and get sick or hurt themselves most likely didn't read the whole plan and just did what they thought was the diet.

My fiancee has a friend that did that and put herself in the hospital because all she did was eat meat and cheese. No veggies, no vitamins or supplements, nothing but meat and cheese, which was just stupid.

 

[Skeptical Greg]

The other thing I was getting at is that the media portrayal of Atkins is of only meat and eggs and cheese. Doing Atkins properly actually involves eating a lot of vegetables as well, but you never see that in the news reports.

Hmmmm... Meat, eggs, cheese and lots of vegetables.. What a radical diet plan...


P.S. Upchurch covered the fibre thing...

 

[Samus]

Here is the odd thing: I am lactose intolerant, and before the diet a moderate amount of dairy would give me problems. On the diet, I can eat as much cheese as I want and not feel any effects. Previously, cheese was my worst offender.

That is odd, considering some cheeses are pretty much lactose free, and cheese is usually the safest lactose product because the aging process can eliminate the offending 'ose.

Atkins, like any other dietary plan, can be done improperly, or overdone. Last week, there was an article in the New York Post about a teenage girl that had cardiac arrest and was on Atkins. The article all but asserted that the latter caused the former. I know, I know, it's the NY Post, which is 3/4 of a newspaper at best, but my girlfriend reads it.

Anyway, what the article neglected to mention is that she was probably doing the diet incorrectly, or was too young to be on that kind of diet without someone else monitoring her.

My girlfriend greatly resists the Atkins diet, because it goes against a lot of what she learned in college (she started out as an aspiring dietitian). She's come to change her tune a little in recent months, with the success of the diet amongst some friends, and me explaining it to her in more detail.

I still won't go on the diet, because I like my carbs too much and am not overweight. In fact, I keep losing weight just despite my terrible eating habits, which is probably a different problem altogether.

 

[Zep]

The only things on your list that cannot be eaten on Atkins are the chocolate and most fruits. Eggs are a major part of the diet.

Why not fruits? They have almost no fat, low sugar content, the sugar is very simple (unlike most carbs which are very concentrated), and they usually have high fibre. They rarely need any preparation beyond washing (i.e. they are "natural"). Highly recommended by ALL good nutritionists...

Most chocolate products also contain nut substances as filler or extender, plus the ground up coating of the chocolate seed itself. Not to mention the oils and other stuff that give it its flavour! And, of course, milk to various proportions. Lots of possible allergins in there...

Raw egg white - albumen - is a protein that a few people are definitely allergic to (I'm one!). However, once the protein is denatured by heat or extreme cold, the allergenic effect is lost. Raw egg white makes me puke, cooked egg (including in baked products) is fine.

I should have added to the list that various seafoods, especially shellfish, that are allergenic.


I have a feeling that some wheat products may aggravate my allergies. Here is the odd thing: I am lactose intolerant, and before the diet a moderate amount of dairy would give me problems. On the diet, I can eat as much cheese as I want and not feel any effects. Previously, cheese was my worst offender.

Lactose is simply milk-sugar, a slight variation of ordinary table sugar. You intolerance may actually depend on where your milk and cheese come from! Milk definitely carries active traces of what the cows were eating - grass, hay and clover, etc! It is what gives milk from different locations its subtley different flavours. Do you know if you have allergies to various grasses like paspalum or hay? This is not uncommon at all.

Cheese may or may not carry those milk allergens - mature "tasty" cheese usually doesn't (it's salted) while the lighter soft cheeses are more likely to. Plus most supermarket cheese is made from milk NOT from the area you live and get your milk from.

Also, with not having allergies as much, I find that other illnesses are slower to take hold. My immune system seems to have corrected itself quite nicely.

If you immune system is not being assaulted all the time by dealing with allergies, it will naturally build back up to normal strength. Imagine having low-grade hay-fever all the time - pretty debillitating. Now imagine getting over it - you feel lots better now!

 

[Skeptical Greg]

Why not fruits? They have almost no fat, low sugar content, the sugar is very simple (unlike most carbs which are very concentrated), and they usually have high fibre. They rarely need any preparation beyond washing (i.e. they are "natural"). Highly recommended by ALL good nutritionists...

Atkins is more concerned with how quickly foods raise your blood sugar. Some fruits are more likely to do this than others.

I'm not sure what Wile E. was referring to when he said ' most fruits ' , but after the initial ' induction ' period, Atkins does recommend generous amounts of some fruits. However, keeping your ' carb ' count significantly lower than the tradtional western diet ( last 30 or so years ) is an important part of the plan..