Overview:
This best seller claims that dieters can lose all the weight they want by eating “forbidden foods.” Dr. Atkins charges that processed carbohydrates and insulin, not excess calories, is the only thing responsible for obesity in the United States.
Advantages:
User’s seem to gravitate to the plan’s simplicity. By eliminating carbohydrates and sugar from the diet, a significant number of calories are also eliminated.
Disadvantages:
The downside to the plan is the reliance on protein. High-protein diets put the body in a state of ketosis, causing headaches, bad breath, nausea and carbohydrate cravings due to depleted glycogen stores. The plan is too high in saturated fat and too low in fruits, whole grains, calcium and fiber.
Long-Term Success:
Information from the National Weight Control Registry indicates that high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets are not maintained for life. This low-carb, high-protein plan consists of 1,200 and 1,800 calories. This limited calorie range can result in weight loss, but the dieter eventually rebounds when carbohydrates are reintroduced into the diet.
Incidentally, Atkins was called to testify before the Senate Select Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs in 1973, because of charges against the diet from the American Medical Association.
Dr. Atkins died at the age of 72 at 258 lbs. with a history of heart disease. According to the Wall Street Journal, “Before his death, he had suffered a heart attack, congestive heart failure and hypertension,”(1)
*(1)http://www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/02/10/atkins.widow.ap/index.html
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