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Jun 17, 2006
Atkins diet: YES or NO?
by SirGan
 The fact is that The Atkins Diet, popularly called The Atkins Nutritional Approach, is the most marketed and well-known of the low-carbohydrate diets on the marked today! The Atkins diet promises that not only a person will lose weight and not be hungry, but it will also be on the right path to better heart health and memory function, as well as other wellness benefits. The Atkins Diet had been highly successful due to the popularity of the diet, and is considered the iconic of the larger low-carb diets mania.Beginnings, Dr. Robert AtkinsMost people are familiar with the fact that The Atkins diet was invented by Dr. Robert Atkins (1930-2003) in the 1960's and the first goal of this diet was to resolve his own overweight condition. After successfully treating over 10 thousand patients, he popularized the Atkins diet in a series of books- “Dr. Atkins' Diet Revolution”. For several years it was the most famous and most successful diet ever promoted in the US. However, different factors have led to its decreasing in success. The company Atkins Nutritionals of Ronkonkoma, New York, filed for bankruptcy in July of 2005. But it still isn't forgotten and the Atkins logo is still visible on different branding for food products and related merchandise.
The Atkins diet principlesThe diet is based on the theory that overweight people eat too many carbohydrates and that’s all. They claim that human bodies burn both fat and carbohydrates for energy, but carbs are used first. By drastically reducing carbs and eating more protein and fat, our bodies should naturally lose weight by burning stored body fat more efficiently.
Atkins claimed there are two main factors in obesity:
Exercise and foods you can eatImportant fact is that the Diet plan allows a person to eat foods that many dieters have only dreamed about.
It generally allows a person to eat foods traditionally regarded as rich: meat, eggs, cheese, and more. The fact is that on the Atkins diet, you're eating almost pure protein and fat. You can consume red meat, fish, fowl, and regular cheese.
Carbs are restricted!!!On the other hand, carbs are restricted on about 20 grams of net carbs per day which translates to three cups of loosely packed salad or two cups of salad with two-thirds cup of certain cooked vegetables each day. This is only so rigorous in the first two weeks of diet! Then, over time, the transition from weight loss to weight maintenance is made by gradually increasing carbs so long as gradual weight loss is maintained.
Exercises are important!!!Exercise in all phases as part of a healthy lifestyle is now emphasized more than when the diet was first introduced.
KetosisAtkins promotes high restriction of the intake of carbohydrates in order to switch the body's metabolism from burning glucose to burning fat. This process is called lipolysis and it normally begins when the body enters the state of ketosis. Ketosis is a state which begins as a consequence of running out of carbohydrates to burn. Although people really don’t know a lot about this- they should know that ketosis is an entirely normal state but, several researches done in the past have proven that it can cause troubles if prolonged.
Phases of Atkins dietThere are four phases to the Atkins diet.
The first phase is called Induction. It lasts for at least two weeks, although this phase can be continued for much longer if a person can bear it! During this phase, person should severely limit intake of carbohydrate to a 20g a day. Foods that should be avoided include: biscuits, cakes, chocolate, crisps, fizzy drinks, croissants and pastry, bread, potatoes, pasta, rice, milk, fruit... What should be eaten? Well the food that’s allowed is red meat, chicken, fish, cheese, eggs, mayo, cream and butter. It’s during the Induction phase that your body switches from burning carbs to burning fat and blood sugar levels stabilize.
The second phase is known as Ongoing Weight Loss. It allows a person to slightly increase carb intake by 5g daily for a week at a time until a person finds Critical Carbohydrate Level for Losing Weight, which is very important! This is the maximum amount of carbohydrate that person can eat each day to lose between 1 and 3lb a week.
The phase three is called Pre-maintenance. The fact is that there is just 5-10lb left to lose. During this phase, person increase carb intake by 10g each day for a week at a time. The idea is to slow down weight loss to no more than 1lb a week in an effort to prepare body for the final phase, weight maintenance.
The fourth and final phase, Lifetime Maintenance, aims to help you maintain your weight for longer periods of time. It is a fact that most people need to limit carbs to less than 90g a day.
Atkins diet side effectsEvery person that’s planning to loose some weight should be familiar with the fact that unpleasant side effects can occur with the Atkins diet. Several researches done in the past have proven that burning fat results in the production of substances called ketones as a body enters a state called ketosis. This can result in:
Constipation may also occur as a consequence of avoiding typically high-fibre foods such as fruit, vegetables, beans, whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, wholegrain breakfast cereals and jacket potatoes.
Long term side effects:Although people really don’t know much about all this- the fact is that, when it comes to long-term side effects, many experts are concerned that the Atkins diet may have serious dangers. First- the high intake of fat may increase the risk of heart disease. There are also concerns that the unbalanced nature of the Atkins diet may lead to nutritional deficiencies, which cause health problems in later life. For example poor intakes of bone-building calcium may increase the risk of osteoporosis, while poor intakes of antioxidant nutrients have been linked with a host of health problems ranging from heart disease and cancer to premature ageing and cataracts.
Some experts are also worried that high intakes of protein may cause kidney problems or weaken bones.
Success rateMany people are interested to hear more about success rate but the fact is that precise numbers are difficult to come by. Some recent studies have shown that after a few months of Atkins, people tend to lose about twice as much weight as they would on the standard low-fat, high-carbohydrate approach recommended by most health organizations.
Criticism of the DietIn several years while the diet was very popular, it has also experienced some serious critics from several different sources. Low-carbohydrate diets have been the subject of heated debate in medical circles for three decades:
Forbes magazine found that the Atkins Nutritional Approach is one of the five most expensive diet plans of the ten plans Forbes analyzed. The Atkins diet nevertheless involved more than an 80% premium over average American food expenses.
This company has tracking the habits of successful dieters over a longer term, 10 years. Despite this diet's overwhelming popularity compared to other diets, of the 5,000 Americans confirmed to have lost an average of 32 kg and able to prove they have kept it off for at least 6 years of the decade, less than 1% were confirmed to be Atkins adherents.
A 2001 scientific review by Obesity Research magazine have determined that initial advantage in weight loss was a result of increased water loss, and that after the initial period; low-carb diets produce similar fat loss to other diets with similar caloric intake.
This organization has noted that in East Asian countries, the average person's diet consists of mainly carbohydrates but these groups have very low rates of obesity.
Studies on Atkins dietTwo studies have been publicized as supporting the diet and confirming the weight-loss ability. But is this really the case?
The first was conducted by the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center, where 132 severely obese patients were randomly put on either a low-carbohydrate diet. Only 79 people managed to complete the six-month trial. Low-carbohydrate dieters lost an average of 13 pounds, compared to four pounds for low-fat dieters.
The second study was carried out over one year, led by researchers at the University Of Pennsylvania School Of Medicine. Only 63 obese men and women took part, and were either assigned to a low-fat diet or the Atkins approach. They discovered that at three months Atkins dieters had lost an average of 14.7 pounds, compared with 5.8 pounds; at six months the losses were 15.2 pounds and 6.9 pounds respectively.
Negative points are due the next facts:
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