Atkins diet

[purplemackerel]

The same poor soul I work with who believes that if she doesn't eat meat once a week will become violent is trying to get everyone in the shop on to this diet. I use to have lots of articles as to why a high protein, low/zero carb' diet is harmful and I seem to have lost them all. If anyone knows of any good links please can you post them.
Cheers

[karabear]

i found this site which has a list of a bunch of medical studies that show the dangers of those types of diets. and this is a funny review from someone who was on the atkins diet. and there's also pcrm's site about the atkins diet. hope this helps!

[dernami]

Here's an essay I wrote. It's very long, so it'll take multiple posts to copy here.

PREMISE

The basis of the Atkins diet is to lose weight by severely limiting your intake of carbohydrates and replacing it with protein. Protein has a lesser caloric affect than carbs, and does not contribute to fat gain, thus, the theory goes, as your body has less carbs to run off of and store in fat, it will burn the fat it has to make up the extra calories. Sounds good so far (at least on the surface.)

But first we have to question what the purpose behind going on an Atkins diet is. Does the person want to be healthy, or merely lose weight? The two are not one and the same. Overweight people can be healthier than skinny people, and losing weight does not necessarily mean you're becoming healthier. An anorexic person who starves themself loses weight, but they are not becoming healthier. The same principle must be applied to Atkins, so we can't outright assume that merely losing weight is evidence of the healthfulness of the diet.

FAT, CHOLESTEROL, AND HEART DISEASE

The link between saturated fat, cholesterol and heart disease is undeniable. Mountains of evidence have been compiled over the decades implicating staurated fats and cholesterol as the single highest cause of heart disease and stroke. It's amazing to think that just 50 years ago, hospitals would serve bacon and eggs to someone recovering from a heart attack.

Fortunately, we've learned a thing or two since then. Doctors and nutritionists have, for a long time now, understood the connection between heart disease and diet. High blood cholesterol levels cause deposits on artery walls, which eventually shrink the opening for blood to pass to a close, thus causing a heart attack or stroke. This disease of the arteries is called atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis is the leading killer of Americans, with more people dieing from heart disease than cancer and car accidents combined. It is a plague of phenomenal proportions, with 60% of Americans overweight, and no other premature cause of death being more common.

Meat, dairy and eggs are high in cholesterol and saturated fat. Very few fruits and veggies contain saturated fat, those that do are not common foods, such as coconut. No fruits or veggies contain cholesterol. A common tactic of misinformation regarding cholesterol is to talk about the importance of cholesterol to your body, but a closer look at this alleged information reveals the truth. First, understand the difference between your body "needing cholesterol to be healthy" and your body "needing dietary cholesterol to be healthy." The fact is that your body produces 100% of the cholesterol it needs, period. There is no need to eat any cholesterol. All dietary cholesterol is excess cholesterol, therefore.

Another tactic of misinformation is to talk about the "good" cholesterol and the "bad" cholesterol. In addition to the above, where we note your body does not need ANY dietary cholesterol (good or bad), we must examine why the so-called good cholesterol is considered good. Much like certain fats are considered good, because they eliminate saturated fats, certain cholesterol is considered good, because it lowers blood cholesterol. The reality regarding these situations is that the excess is eliminated through the colon, which is not meant to handle such things. Therefore, by pushing out the excess that your body didn't need in the first place through the colon and bowels, the so-called good stuff is merely making a bad problem worse, since this leads to colon problems, including colon cancer.

Whereas, if someone just avoids the saturated fats and cholesterol in the first place, the good fats (such as those found in olives, avocados, soy, etc) can help your body without destroying your colon, and your body can use cholesterol that it produces itself for what it needs to, instead of wasting energy and effort eliminating it unnaturally.

People on diets like the Atkins diet eat foods very high in saturated fat and cholesterol.

[dernami]

FIBER

The importance of fiber in one's diet cannot possibly be overrated. Fiber is one of the most important and overlooked nutrients we need to be healthy in dozens of different ways. Fiber is indigestible, so it has no caloric affects, and as it passes through your system it performs countless crucial functions.

Fiber makes you feel fuller when eating, so you get the signal to stop eating more accurately. Fiber acts as a "broom," of sorts, travelling through your intestines. It sweeps up things you don't want sticking around, bonds to them, and carries them out in your stool. It removes toxins, carcinogens, harmful bacteria, rancid matter, and many other harmful and dangerous substances from your body this way.

Fiber is critical in the prevention of colon cancer. A diet high in fiber has larger, looser stools, which makes it easier to pass the stool and reduces unnecessary strain on the colon. In this manner, fiber also speeds up the transit time your food takes to pass through your intestines, which reduces the formation of cancer-causing chemicals and bacteria caused by food sticking around too long in the intestines, and lessens the reabsorption of toxins your body is trying to eliminate in your stool. Diets high in animal fat are especially problematic in this regard, too, since animal fat is solid at body temperature, the fats clog up intestines much like congealed grease clogs a drain.

Scientists can tell the diet of a person just by examining and smelling their stool. Those of people who get adequate fiber smell less pungent (since their stool is made up of less bacteria), are softer, larger and moister. The stools of people who eat high fat, low fiber diets are small, hard, foul-smelling, and dry. The people producing the former stools have significantly less occurences of colon cancer.

Fiber also lowers the risk of heart disease, hemorrhoids, varicose veins, misshaped colon, hiatal hernia, diverticulosis, irritable colon syndrome, constipation, and appendicitis.

Meat, dairy and eggs are all fiberless. Fiber is found in most significant quantities in many fruits (blueberries, grapefruit), veggies (broccoli, leaf lettuce (not iceberg), sprouts), nuts (almonds) and whole grains (brown rice, bran). People on the Atkins diets usually eat very few foods containing fiber, since most foods containing significant amounts of fiber also contain significant amounts of carbs.

SEROTONIN

Serotonin is another substance linked with carbs that we must look at. Serotonin is what is generally believed to be the regulator behind mood, and low serotonin levels are believed to be a cause of depression. Not surprisingly, serotonin and other depression-related factors are closely linked with diet.

Serotonin is produced by the amino acid tryptophan. Complex carbs raise the level of tryptophan in the brain, thus leading to higher serotonin levels, creating a calming affect (this is why certain foods are considered "comfort foods"). High protein foods encourage the production of dopamine and norepinephrine, which increase alertness and anxiety. Foods high in saturated fats, such as meats, dairy, and eggs, are also linked with mental sluggishness and fatigue.

Based on these facts, anyone who suffers from depression, has suffered from depression, or becomes depressed after being on the Atkins diet, should absolutely avoid the Atkins diet. Robbing your body of complex carbs could be catastrophic to this condition, due to the drop of serotonin levels associated with it.

[dernami]

GLUCOSE, DIOXIN, AND DIABETES

Furthermore, when regarding the brain, there's the issue of glucose (blood sugar). Glucose is made from carbs, nothing else. Your brain can only use glucose as a fuel, and if it runs out of glucose, you're in for some big problems, which could be very serious. People considering the Atkins diet should be very careful that they don't starve their body of this crucial nutrient, and eat some carbs.

Glucose is also important in studying the causes of Type II diabetes. Oftentimes, glucose is said to be the sole culprit in this health problem. While it is important to make sure that we don't encourage sporadic blood sugar levels/insulin production by drinking sugary sodas or other refined junk sugars, carbs by themselves are not necessarily implicated in Type II diabetes.

A far more common cause of Type II diabetes is actually a chemical called dioxin. Dioxin is a potent and harmful chemical used in manufacturing, production of things like Agent Orange, and because of it's use and disposal, dioxin has entered our food chain in significant quantities.

What happens when a compound such as dioxin enters the food system is it works it's way up the food chain, growing more and more concentrated and potent at each step. A cow raised for beef/milk eats foods which have been contaminated, and the dioxin concentrates in their body fat, and throughout the cow's life more and more dioxin is concentrated in their fat. Then when you eat the cow, you're getting that cow's LIFETIME amount of dioxin. The result? A typical 1/4 lb. hamburger has 100-1000 times the levels of dioxin that the EPA considers "safe."

Dioxin is quite possibly one of the most dangerous and carcinogenic chemicals known to man, and it's connection to Type II diabetes is undeniable. Diets like the Atkins diet encourage eating large quantities of foods (even organic milk/meats are contamined, because the contamination comes from air pollution from factories, not pesticides sprayed on feed-crops) known to carry extraordinarily dangerous levels of dioxin.

CALCIUM

When it comes to calcium, most people are led to believe (by the Dairy industry, no less) that the way to get enough calcium is to suck down as much milk as possible. This is a horrible misconception based on the premise that ingesting lots of calcium means your bones will get lots of calcium.

First, your body must absorb the calcium it's being given, which requires vitamin D. Next, your body must retain it. You see, your body has a continual process of absorbing and excreting calcium. This is called your calcium balance. If you excrete less calcium than you absorb, you have a positive calcium balance. If you absorb less calcium than you're excreting, you have a negative calcium balance. Having a positive calcium balance is more important than ingesting a lot of calcium, and someone who drinks 10 glasses of milk a day, if they have a negative calcium balance, is doing themselves no good whatsoever.

So you may be wondering what any of this has to do with the Atkins diet? Well, one of the most crucial factors in determining your calcium balance is how much protein is in your diet, and what kind of protein it is. High protein diets are the leading cause of negative calcium balance. Your body uses up calcium trying to break down the protein, and animal protein is a bigger problem than plant protein.

The Atkins diet encourages the loss of calcium in your body via negative calcium balance, which is not a good thing at all, especially for young people who are still growing, and people at risk for diseases like osteoperosis.

[dernami]

Because of the link between high protein diets and negative calcium balance, anyone at risk of osteoperosis (or who wants to stay not-at-risk), people who are still growing, and anyone who is having issues related to teeth, bones and calcium should avoid the Atkins diet completely.

In fact, they should go it one further, and actively reduce their overall (especially animal) protein consumption in general. They should get their calcium from vegetable sources such as spinach, kale, and broccoli, since these foods have much less protein than milk, and are still high in calcium. They should also make sure they're getting adequate amounts of vitamin D.

LIVER

The liver is possibly one of the most important organs in your body. Amazingly versatile, the liver has several critical functions to maintain health. Unfortunately most people knowingly or unknowingly are very abusive to their liver, and this can lead to very bad health problems.

Perhaps the most important function of the liver is the secretion of bile. Bile is necessary for the digestion of fats, and thus eating fatty foods - like those prescribed in the Atkins diet - requires more work on your liver. The liver is also the "filter" of your body, detoxifying your bloodstream. The digestion of protein causes ammonia to be formed as a byproduct, and this requires extra work by your liver to remove the ammonia from your system.

In addition to the damage done to the liver via fat and protein digestion, diets such as the Atkins diet put additional stress on the liver by encouraging users to eat foods that are high on the food chain. This, by the same process discussed in dioxin, means the consumer is eating large, concentrated quantities of not just dioxin, but pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics, hormones, and other dangerous chemicals that have entered the food chain and concentrated in animal fats. Trying to detoxify the body of all these substances is very, very difficult on the liver.

Symptoms of cirrhosis of the liver include constitpation or diarrhea, fever, upset stomach, fatigue, weakness, poor appetite, generalized itching, weight loss, enlarged liver, vomiting, red palms, swelling of the abdomen and legs, anemia, bruising, jaundice, and edema. People concerned about healthy liver function should not consider the Atkins diet.

KIDNEYS

Somewhat related to the liver problems are problems with your kidneys. High animal-protein diets put stress on the kidneys because excess protein must be eliminated in your urine. This can cause a number of problems, including the following; Bright's disease, nephrotic syndrome, uremia, and edema. Edema causes fluids to build up in the body, causing ankles and hands to swell, and the person to become short of breath, and uremia causes toxins to build up in the bloodstream. Symptoms of kidney disease can include abdominal pain, back pain, chills, nausea, vomiting, appetite loss and bloody urine.

People with kidney disease/problems are advised to avoid all meats, eggs, and most dairy products, as plant proteins are much easier on the body and more than adequate. The Atkins diet encourages users to eat foods likely to cause or exasperate kidney problems.

[dernami]

IRON

Like all nutrients, iron is absolutely crucial to good health. But also like all nutrients, balance is essential, and too much of a good thing can become a bad thing. Iron is perhaps one of the most clear examples of this. In too high quantites, iron is extraordinarily toxic to your body, especially in children (this is why vitamins containing iron are required to have a childproof cap).

Iron is stored in the various tissues and organs of the body, so it can be easy to get too much. Toxic levels of iron encourage the creation of free-radical cells (free-radicals are the main culprits in aging and cancer), increasing the risk of heart disease and cancer. Too much iron can also cause bronze skin pigmentation, cirrhosis of the liver and diabetes.

So important is it that you not get too much iron, that most nutritionists recommend that unless you're pregnant or diagnosed with an iron deficiency after bloodwork, NOT to take any supplements containing iron or eat lots of foods high in iron.

Meats and eggs are very high in iron, people on the Atkins diet eat extraordinarily large quantities of foods like this which are high in iron, making the risk of reaching toxic levels of iron very likely.

CONTAMINANTS IN MEAT

As already discussed, when contaminants are entered into the food chain, the higher on the food chain you eat, the more time the contaminant has had to concentrate, and thus the more damaging it is. You ingest much higher doses of pesticides, for example, if you eat a 1/4 lb. burger from a cow who has eaten 1,000 pounds of pesticide sprayed crops than if you ate 1/4 lb. of pesticide sprayed crops yourself.

Pesticides are chemicals designed for the sole purpose of killing creatures. They're extraordinarily toxic, carcinogenic, and just outright dangerous at any level. Do you really want to be taking in highly concentrated doses of it in the animal fat you're eating?

Antibiotics are another matter altogether. Due to the highly intensive conditions modern factory farms have resorted to in an attempt to increase profits, animals are highly prone to deadly disease spread from the crowded and unsanitary conditions in which they live. Thus, most animals are dosed with high levels of antibiotics on a regular basis to stop the spread of disease. The meat production industry consumes approximately 70% of all antibiotics produced in the U.S. In addition to this reckless practice adding to the already bad problem of antibiotic resistant bacteria, it's also horrible for your health.

Another problem with meaty diets is hormones. To further the effort to gain every penny possible from the production of meat, corporate factory farms have taken to giving their animals growth hormones to encourage faster, bigger growth. Like other toxins, these hormones concentrate in the animal's fat and are then ingested by you when you eat the animal. These hormones have been shown to affect all kinds of human health conditions, including being a possible carcinogen, contributing to early puberty in children, and causing children to grow at unnatural rates.

Further upsetting the food chain are Genetically Modified Organisms, or GMOs, fed to animals raised for food. The fact in the U.S. is that nearly all processed foods contain GMOs, and a majority of soy and corn you'll find in the local chain grocery store are GMO. However, it's even worse when we're talking about farm animals. Farm animals are fed the lowest quality (meaning, highest pesticide soaked and mostly GMO) crops because they're not subject to the same regulations as food grown for humans. This means the animals you're eating are eating crops that are of far less quality than what you'd eat, even if you were to pick very low-quality foods.

It's true that you are what you eat, but you also are what the things you eat ate. The things fed to what you eat don't just disappear - they get passed on to you, in much higher and more concentrated doses. That is, if you eat high on the food chain. Eating lower on the food chain will not only improve your health by supplying fiber, keeping you clear of saturated fats and cholesterol, providing easily assimilated protein, plenty of vitamins, and lowering your risk of several diseases including heart disease, a handful of cancers, liver disease, kidney disease, bowel problems, and several more - but eating a balanced and healthy plant-based diet will help you lose weight, in a HEALTHFUL manner. Plant foods provide all the necessary basis for a balanced diet needed to encourage energy production and shave off those pounds, all while not only avoiding the health risks of an Atkins-type diet, but also by improving other aspects of your health as well.

It is important, of course, that to accomplish this that the person changing their diet should avoid as many processed foods as possible. They should also, in addition to avoiding animal fats and proteins, avoid refined carbs like those found in sodas, white bread, french fries, etc. Raw foods are especially good, as well as whole grains, moderate amounts of pastas, fruits, and veggies like broccoli, spinach and kale. Diets incorporating these principles of eating a varied diet and avoiding any extreme in regards to carbs vs. protein vs. fat are going to be the best for you and lead you down a path to a more healthful lifestyle.

[dernami]

OTHER OPINIONS

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, November 19, 2002

CONTACT:
Ms. Simon Chaitowitz, Communications Director
tel: 202-686-2210, ext. 309; simonc@pcrm.org



Doctors Speak Out against Atkins Diet



Washington, D.C.-Neal Barnard, M.D., nutrition researcher and president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), released this statement today following news reports about the Atkins Diet:

“It’s time for a reality check on the Atkins Diet. Despite the current ‘carbophobia’ among some people struggling with weight problems, high-protein, low-carb diets remain a serious health risk.

“The huge load of animal protein ingested in such diets leaches calcium from the bones and sends it through the kidneys, into the urine. A recent report in the American Journal of Kidney Diseases showed that people on the Atkins Diet lose calcium at rates 55 percent above normal. Over the long run, that can spell osteoporosis.

“Even worse, Harvard researchers showed that this sort of meaty dietary pattern is linked to a three-fold increased risk of colon cancer. Other potential dangers include cardiovascular problems and renal disease.

“What about weight loss? Controlled studies show that the Atkins approach works at about the same speed as any other weight-loss diet: about one pound of lost weight per week. That is the same rate seen with old-fashioned low-calorie diets or with far-healthier low-fat, vegan diets.

“The truth is that the skinniest people on the planet-Asians and vegetarians-eat plenty of rice and other carbs. What makes Americans fat is not their occasional servings of rice or potatoes, but rather their penchant for cheese, meat, and fried foods.”

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NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, December 30, 2002

CONTACT:
Jeanne S. McVey
tel: 202-686-2210, ext. 316; jeannem@pcrm.org



Doctors Rate Best-Selling Diet Books
Heart-Healthy, Low-Fat Approach Gets Five Stars; High-Protein, Fatty Diets Earn “Unsafe” Rating



Washington, D.C.-For Americans resolving to slim down in 2003, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine has completed an analysis of the 15 most popular weight-loss books. PCRM rated each book’s daily diet recommendations on five criteria critical to good nutrition and safe, healthy weight loss: a minimum of 25 grams of fiber, five servings of fruits and vegetables, no more than 50 milligrams of cholesterol, no more than 30 percent of total calories from fat, and no more than 10 percent saturated fat.

Only one book, Dr. Dean Ornish’s Eat More, Weigh Less, satisfied all the criteria for long-term healthfulness and earned PCRM’s top rating of five stars. Lowest rating of “no stars” went to Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution by Robert Atkins and Protein Power by Michael and Mary Eades, both of which espouse a high-protein diet that is also high in cholesterol and saturated fat.

“If you’re looking for a healthy weight-loss book, stick with the fad-free vegetarian approach,” says PCRM’s clinical research coordinator Brie Turner-McGrievy, M.S., R.D. “You can also find healthy options outside the list of top 15 bestsellers, such as Dr. John McDougall’s The McDougall Program for Maximum Weight Loss.”

“With all the current hype about high-protein diets, what gets lost is the fact that there have been no long-term studies on safety. We know from the scientific literature that diets heavy on meat, eggs, and cheese, such as the ones we rated ‘unsafe,’ have been linked to a higher risk of colorectal cancer, heart disease, impaired renal function, and osteoporosis,” says Ms. Turner-McGrievy. A study released in August in the American Journal of Kidney Diseases shows that high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets, such as the Atkins Diet, cause a rapid and pronounced loss of calcium in the urine, while studies of vegetarian diets have shown safe, effective weight loss.
Diet Book Ratings

FIVE STARS-Outstanding

* Eat More, Weigh Less by Dean Ornish, M.D.

FOUR STARS-Good

* Get with the Program! by Bob Greene
* The pH Miracle by Robert O. Young, Ph.D., and Shelley Redford Young

THREE STARS-Marginal

* Eat Right for Your Type (Type A) by Dr. Peter D’Adamo
* 8 Minutes in the Morning by Jorge Cruise
* The Peanut Butter Diet by Holly McCord, M.A., R.D.
* The Zone by Barry Sears

TWO STARS-Unsatisfactory

* Body for Life by Bill Phillips
* Eat Right for Your Type (Type O) by Dr. Peter D’Adamo
* The Fat Flush Plan by Ann Louise Gittleman, M.S.,C.N.S.
* The Insulin Resistance Diet by Cheryle Hart, M.D., and Mary Kay Grossman, R.D.
* The Omega Diet by Artemis P. Simopoulos, M.D., and Jo Robinson
* Sugar Busters! by H. Leighton Steward; Sam S. Andrews, M.D.; Morrison C. Bethea, M.D.; Luis A. Balart, M.D.

ONE STAR-Poor

* Eat Right for Your Type (Type AB) by Dr. Peter D’Adamo
* Eat Right for Your Type (Type B) by Dr. Peter D’Adamo
* The Schwarzbein Principle II by Diana Schwarzbein, M.D.

NO STARS-Unsafe

* Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution by Robert Atkins, M.D.
* Protein Power by Michael Eades, M.D. and Mary Eades, M.D.

[dernami]

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AtkinsDietAlert.org
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Health Risks

Despite press accounts of seemingly dramatic weight loss, the effect of high-protein diets on body weight is similar to that of other weight-reduction diets. Two recent studies (one at Duke University1 and a second at the University of Pennsylvania, whose results are as yet unpublished) suggest that the average weight loss with high-protein diets during the first six months of use is approximately 20 pounds. This is not demonstrably greater than that which occurs with other weight-loss regimens or with low-fat, vegetarian diets.2

High-protein, very-low-carbohydrate, weight-loss diets are designed to induce ketosis, an abnormal state that also occurs in uncontrolled diabetes mellitus and starvation. Over the long run, ketosis can contribute to a variety of physical problems, including calcium losses, increased risk of osteoporosis, and an increased propensity to form kidney stones.3

High-protein diets typically contain higher-than-recommended amounts of dietary cholesterol, fat, saturated fat, and protein, and very low levels of fiber and some other important dietary constituents. The Nutrition Committee of the Council on Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Metabolism of the American Heart Association states, “High-protein diets are not recommended because they restrict healthful foods that provide essential nutrients and do not provide the variety of foods needed to adequately meet nutritional needs. Individuals who follow these diets are therefore at risk for compromised vitamin and mineral intake, as well as potential cardiac, renal, bone, and liver abnormalities overall.”4

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Misunderstandings and Deceptive Statements

Recent prominent news stories have encouraged the circulation of significant misunderstandings among members of the public, sometimes further encouraged by inaccurate statements in the course of media interviews. Some patients may be confused or misled about important dietary issues based on the following inaccurate notions:

1. “High-protein diets cause dramatic weight loss.”

As noted above, the weight loss typically occurring with high-protein diets-approximately 20 pounds over the course of six months-is not demonstrably different from that seen with other weight-reduction regimens or with low-fat, vegetarian diets. People adopting vegetarian diets-whose nutrient pattern is much more healthful than high-protein diets-tend to lose approximately 10 percent of their body weight. Anecdotal accounts of greater weight loss with high-protein diets are atypical and may represent the additional effects of exercise or other factors.

2. “Fatty foods must not be fattening, because fat intake fell during the 1980s, just as America's obesity epidemic began.”

Some news stories have encouraged the public to discount health warnings about dietary fat and saturated fat, suggesting that fat intake declined during the 1980s, an era during which obesity became more common. However, food surveys from the National Center for Health Statistics from 1980 to 1991 show that daily per capita fat intake did not drop during that period. For adults, fat intake averaged 81 grams in 1980 and rose to 86 grams in 1991. While the American public added sodas and other non-fat foods to the diet, forcing the percentage of calories from fat to decline slightly, the actual amount of fat in the American diet steadily climbed.

A notable contributor to the increased fat intake during that period was a dramatic increase in cheese consumption. Per capita cheese consumption rose from 15 pounds in 1975 to more than 30 pounds in 1999. Typical cheeses derive approximately 70 percent of energy from fat and are a significant source of dietary cholesterol.

3. “Fat and cholesterol have nothing to do with heart problems.”

Abundant evidence has established the ability of dietary fat and cholesterol to increase cardiovascular disease risk. Nonetheless, some popular-press articles have suggested that evidence supporting this relationship is weak and inconsistent. In addition, widely circulated news reports of a heart attack recently suffered by diet-book author Robert Atkins have suggested that diet (or atherosclerosis) played no role in the unfortunate event. The net result of such reporting may be to suggest that individuals may disregard well-established contributors to heart disease.

4. “Meat doesn't boost insulin; only carbohydrates do that and that's why they make people fat.”

Popular books and news stories have encouraged individuals to avoid carbohydrate-rich foods, suggesting that high-protein foods will not stimulate insulin release. However, contrary to this popular myth, proteins stimulate insulin release, just as carbohydrates do. Clinical studies indicate that beef and cheese cause a bigger insulin release than pasta, and fish produces a bigger insulin release than popcorn.11

Also, it is important to realize that different carbohydrate-rich foods have very different effects. Most cause a gradual, temporary, and safe rise in blood sugar after meals. Beans, green leafy vegetables, and most fruits are in this healthful category. The main exceptions are large baking potatoes, white bread, and sugary foods, which can cause an overly rapid rise in blood sugar.

5. “People who eat the most carbohydrates tend to gain the most weight.”

Popular diet books point out that a carbohydrate restriction may induce ketosis as well as a reduction in energy intake, resulting in temporary weight loss. This has been misinterpreted as suggesting that carbohydrate-rich foods are the cause of obesity. In epidemiologic studies and clinical trials, the reverse has been shown to be true. Many people throughout Asia consume large amounts of carbohydrate in the form of rice, noodles, and vegetables and generally have lower body weights than Americans-including Asian Americans-who eat large amounts of meat, dairy products, and fried foods. Similarly, vegetarians, who generally follow diets rich in carbohydrates, typically have significantly lower body weights than omnivores.

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Dr. John McDougall, M.D., author of several books on weight loss and healthy living
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High-protein Diets: Trading Your Health for Temporary Weight Loss

Once again, medical doctors and the paperback book industry advocating high-protein and fat- laden diets are grabbing the attention of millions of desperate people. "Lose 20 pounds in 30 days!" "Eat all the bacon you want and be thin as a breadstick!" The truth about these types of fad "diets" is that people can temporarily lose large amounts of weight, and can even lower their blood cholesterol, sugar, and triglycerides -- but the method is unhealthful.

The only study published on the most popular high-protein diet, Dr. Atkin's diet, shows the cholesterol goes up and LDL "bad" cholesterol goes up significantly, and HDL "good" cholesterol goes down significantly in women. Free fatty acids levels, which when elevated are associated with heart arrhythmias, are doubled. (J Am Diet Assoc 77:264 - 270, 1980).

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The "Ketogenic" High-Protein Diets

There are two kinds of high-protein diets popular today: Those that limit calorie intake by causing the body to develop a metabolic state known as ketosis; and those that make stringent rules which limit the dieter's intake of food.

The "ketogenic diets" cause the body to produce ketones by severe restriction of carbohydrate intake while allowing unlimited fat and protein intake. With insufficient intake of the body's primary fuel, carbohydrate, the body turns to fats from foods and from body fat for fuel. Byproducts of this metabolism are acidic substances called ketones (acetacetic acid, B-hydroxybuteric acid, and acetone). The metabolic condition is known as ketosis. Ketosis is associated with loss of appetite, nausea, fatigue, and hypotension (lower blood pressure). The result is a decrease in food (calorie) intake. Ketosis is the key to the diet's success, by allowing the body to starve while reducing the suffering of severe hunger pangs.

This same condition, ketosis, occurs naturally when people are literally starving to death or seriously ill. During starvation this metabolic state is a kindness of nature allowing the victim to suffer much reduced pains of hunger while dying. During illness the suppression of the appetite frees the person to rest and recuperate, rather then be forced by hunger to gather and prepare food. Because ketogenic diets simulate this metabolic state seen with serious illness, I refer to them as "the make yourself sick diets." As we will see below, another reason low-carbohydrate, high-protein diets deserve this title is they contain significant amounts of the very foods -- the meats -- that the American Cancer Society and the Heart Association tell us contribute to our most common causes of death and disability.

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The Second Phase of Weight Loss

People who manage to stay on high-protein diets also lose weight because these diets restrict carbohydrate calories such as fruits, vegetables, breads, cereals, and legumes. Think about Thanksgiving on a high-protein ketogenic diet. You can have turkey, ham, butter, mayonnaise, and sour cream; but you can't have potatoes, yams, bread dressing, cranberry sauce, breads, corn on the cob, hot cider, or pumpkin pie. By eliminating so many foods from your diet, you automatically reduce your calorie intake, resulting in a negative calorie balance and therefore weight loss. Doris Bosnyack of San Bernardino says, "I stayed on it about 3 weeks. After a while I couldn't eat; the taste of the food was terrible. I didn't enjoy it -- just meat, meat, meat. I wasn't a big meat eater to begin with. I got constipated and lethargic. I looked terrible. I looked like someone ran over me. My eyes got sunken in and blackened. I just felt sick."

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Ketogenic Diets Are Not for Humans

I have had Dr. Atkins on my radio show twice in the past and there are only two things we could agree on: first, his patients are constipated (there is no dietary fiber in meat, fish, poultry, cheese, butter, or eggs); and second, all major health organization make dietary recommendations opposite to his approach. Major professional health organizations, including the American Heart Association, the National Cholesterol Education Program, and the American Cancer Society endorse a diet that is composed of 10% to 15% protein, 55% to 60% carbohydrates, and 25% to 30% fat. The Atkins Diet can be more than 80% protein or fat, and less than 6% carbohydrate depending upon the low-carbohydrate foods selected. High-fat, high-protein diets are believed to be the underlying cause of our major diseases, including heart disease, strokes, adult-type diabetes, and obesity. In a report in the October 9, 2001 issue of the journal Circulation, the Nutrition Committee of the American Heart Association wrote "High-protein diets may also be associated with increased risk for coronary heart disease due to intakes of saturated fat, cholesterol, and other associated dietary factors" (Circulation 104:1869, 2001). "High-protein diets are not recommended because they restrict healthful foods that provide essential nutrients and do not provide the variety of foods needed to adequately meet nutritional needs. Individuals who follow these diets are therefore at risk for compromised vitamin and mineral intake, as well as potential cardiac, renal, bone, and liver abnormalities overall."

Dr. Atkins recommends you eat all you can eat of roast rack of lamb, lobster dripping in butter, and bacon and eggs. He believes human beings are carnivores -- an observation contradicted by all aspects of our anatomy and physiology. Our teeth are not like a cat's, we have no claws for tearing apart meat, our intestine is designed for digesting plant foods, not meat, and our livers have a limited capacity to metabolize cholesterol, which is one big reason our cholesterol levels rise on the Western diet.

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One of the most important reasons for the popularity of high protein diets is they work--people lose lots of weight fast--but it's mostly water. Stored carbohydrate contains large amounts of water. Switching to a low-carbohydrate diet results in the loss of these stores and the associated water, with an impressive initial weight loss. In addition, if the diet is low enough in carbohydrate, like the Atkins diet, then the body goes into ketosis, causing suppression of the appetite, thereby you eat and suffer less. I call these "the make yourself sick diets," because they simulate metabolic changes that take place during illness--ketosis is a natural state that occurs when people are sick--a time when they shouldn't be gathering and preparing food, but rather recuperating.

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(Barry Sears' "Zone" diet is a similar low-card, high protein diet to the Atkins plan, though allows for more carbs than Atkins)

On June 9, 1997, I met Barry Sears, the author of the number one national best seller, Entering the Zone, at Bally's in Las Vegas for the first of our 3 debates (see page 7 for more information). After telling a crowd of nearly 4000 people the virtues of his diet for controlling insulin and eicosanoid levels with resulting weight loss and improved health, I proceeded to explain why his diet is merely a semi-starvation diet and like all such diets it is impossible to follow for any length of time. I used Barry Sears as an example:

Barry Sears weighs 210 pounds and is 6'5" according to information from his book. His diet is based on 30% of the calories from protein, 30% fat, and 40% carbohydrate. He says he eats 100 grams of protein a day. He has been following his diet for 4-5 years. He says he is still on his diet because he still needs to lose more weight.

If Barry Sears eats 100 grams of protein that translates into 400 calories of protein (1 gram of protein = 4 calories). Since the proportions of the diet are 30/30/40, this means he also consumes 400 calories of fat, and about 500 calories of carbohydrate. His total calorie intake is therefore 1300 calories per day. A conservative estimate of his actual needs would be over 2300 calories a day, with only sedentary activity. This means every day he is 1000 calories short of his needs. Every week he comes up 7000 calories short, which must be made up from his fat stores. One pound of fat amounts to 3500 calories. Therefore, Barry Sears must lose 2 pounds of fat a week on his diet. Every year by calculation he loses 104 pounds. Since he says he has been on his diet for 4 to 5 years this means he has lost over 400 pounds.

At this point in the debate I asked him, "Barry Sears: A) Did you start your diet at over 600 pounds? B) Do you defy the laws of nature? or C) Is it that you cannot and do not follow your own diet?"

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During the next round of the debate I pointed out that Barry Sears had not answered my question. Therefore, I must assume he cannot and does not follow his own diet. He admits to only 35 pounds of weight loss over the past 4 years (less than 9 pounds a year), therefore he must be consuming at least 2300 calories a day. This leaves two possibilities:

If he is following his rule that to be in "the zone" you must adhere to proportions of 30/30/40; then based on a 2300 calorie intake he must be eating 173 grams of protein and 77 grams of fat daily (1 gram of protein = 4 calories and 1 gram of fat = 9 calories). Therefore he must be in a high-protein, high-fat zone. However, he admits to eating only 44 grams of fat a day, so the next possibility is more likely.

If he follows his rule that he eats a specific amount of protein daily to be in "the zone" and for him that's 100 grams of protein a day; then based on 2300 calories of a day his diet would be 17% protein, 17% fat and 66% carbohydrate, which would place him in a high-carbohydrate zone.

My next question to him was, "Barry...please tell us--are you on a high-protein (Atkins-Type) diet or are you on a high-carbohydrate (McDougall-Type) diet?" He still wouldn't answer. He finally said something about not being interested in weight loss, but was really trying to protect himself from heart disease, since he has a strong family history.

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[dernami]

CONCLUSION

All in all, people will be healthy if they incorporate one thing into their lives: balance. Balance in everything will achieve the results you want. Starving yourself (through calorie-restricting diets like the Atkins diet) because you sit around watching TV all day isn't balanced, leading an active lifestyle and eating well to make sure you get all your vitamins and minerals is balanced. Adequate, balanced exercise is one important aspect to a healthy lifestyle (and losing weight). Anyone who tries to tell you you can healthfully lose weight without exercising is either a liar or completely misinformed, and any diet which attempts to portray itself as a miracle diet that will drop the pounds without making you work up a sweat would be a diet you'd be well-advised to be wary of. It may well drop the pounds (temporarily, in water-weight), but not without taking a drastic, dangerous and long-lasting toll on your body.

Likewise, balance in diet is key. Dr. Atkins wants you to think that by going to an extreme - eating tons of protein and fat and little or no carbs - you can lose weight. For most people, that is technically true, they WILL lose weight on the Atkins diet. They will lose water-weight initially, and if they manage to stay on the horribly calorie-restrictive diet long enough, they'll eventually lose the fat weight through ketosis. However, they won't do so healthfully - and that is the problem.

Just as eating way too many carbs in a silly attempt to avoid fat and protein will lead to unhealthfulness, so will the Atkins plan. It's an extreme diet and one that will wreak havoc on your body, even if that havoc takes the form of cancers, cirrhosis of the liver, kidney failures, etc, that aren't diagnosed till many years, even decades later.

To achieve balance in your diet, it's important to get calories from all three sources: protein, fat and carbs. All in moderation, they compliment each other very nicely and lead to a much healthier lifestyle. As long as you're getting quality protein, poly and monounsatured fats (as opposed to saturated fats), complex carbs more than simple carbs, and exercise, your body will take care of the rest.

Furthermore, a truly balanced diet will make sure that you get all the necessary vitamins and minerals within your caloric limits. Meaning, if you have to eat 7,000 calories a day to get the vitamins and minerals you need to be healthy, you're not eating a balanced diet. High protein diets that depend on meats so much lack several vitamins and minerals needed for healthfulness, since these nutrients are found in fruits and veggies that contain the dreaded fructose and complex carbs.

Based of all the above, I believe the Atkins diet to not only be nutritionally deficient, but outright dangerous.

REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
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Prescription for Nutritional Healing by Dr. James F. Balch
Diet For a New America by John Robbins
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine's Website (http://www.pcrm.org)
http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/lmtan...eg_health.html http://www.pcrm.org/health/Info_on_Veg_Diets/milk.html
http://www.emagazine.com/january-feb...0102feat1.html
http://www.cqs.com/obesity.htm
http://www.pcrm.org/health/Preventiv.../diabetes.html http://www.foxriverwatch.com/diabete...dioxin_1a.html
http://www.pcrm.org/health/Preventiv...t_disease.html
http://www.pcrm.org/news/health.html
http://www.atkinsdietalert.org/consumer.html
http://www.drmcdougall.com/protein_diets.html
http://www.drmcdougall.com/debate.html

[dernami]

Oh, I forgot Alzheimers!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/2772499.stm

Vegetables ward off Alzheimer's

Eating a diet rich in vegetables may be one way to reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, research suggests.

US scientists found that a diet high in unsaturated, unhydrogenated fats - found in vegetables and some oils - may help lower risk.

However, a separate study found antioxidant vitamins - widely touted as good for general health - offer no such protective effect against Alzheimer's.

In the first study, scientists from Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center in Chicago, examined 815 people aged 65 and older over a four year period.

There are studies to suggest that a diet high in unsaturated fat and low in saturated fat may raise levels of good cholesterol and lower levels of bad cholesterol in the blood

Dr Martha Clare Morris
At the start of the study none of the volunteers had Alzheimer's, but by its end 131 had developed symptoms.

The researchers found that the risk of developing the disease was highest among those who consumed the highest levels of saturated fat - found in meat and dairy products.

People who consumed a lot of saturated fat were 2.3 times more likely to develop symptoms than those whose diet was low in these fats.

Conversely, people whose diet contained high levels of unsaturated fat were up to 80% less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease than those who consumed low levels of unsaturated fats.

[purplemackerel]

Wow, thanks for the response. Big thank you to dernami

[misanthropy]

Wow, what a wealth of information! I'm going to have to print it off and read it all later.

I had an ex-coworker go on the Atkins diet. She stuffed herself full of cheese, McD's patties, sausages, etc. She did NOT lose weight and only caused herself to become severely constipated. Yuck, I know...

[herbi]

My own father has flirted with the Atkin's diet on multiple occassions, because people he works with allegedly went on it and "it really worked-- they lost weight!" I told him that I knew a couple people who became speed-freaks who lost weight too, and if he wanted me to I could hook him up, because it'd probably be at LEAST as healthy for him to do it that way... He declined, but I think he got my point. Just because something "works" doesn't mean it's a good idea! Keep in mind this is a man with high blood pressure already and a family history ragingly full of heart disease! I made him promise me he wouldn't do it anymore because I was afraid he'd give himself a coronary, but I know he wants to. To make it even worse, when he was "on the diet" before, he didn't even stick to the strict no-carbs rule, as he would top off his bacon-double-cheeseburger with extra mayo but no bun with... wait for it... potato chips!!! Completely misses the point. Actually, when I decided to go vegan, it was as if there were 2 opposing forces in my family, one consuming no animal products whatsoever, and the other straining to consume as many as humanly possible! Sigh.

[thegronc]

The Atkins diet is actually an excellent and healthy diet. I see a great deal of misinformation on this thread and would like to see a more factual discussion, since this thread is almost void of facts.

Two research projects have been done and have shown excellent results with the diet when it was followed correctly. Many of the misgivings on the diet have been because someone "did not" follow it correctly. Only the first "two weeks" of the diet are strict on very low carbs. Atkins DOES promote eating vegetables and, eventually, soy products and fruit. He DOES NOT say, anywhere, that the "extreme" is where you are to stay(dernami- you really need to read the links I'm posting).

For some reliable info on the Atkins diet:

www.atkinscenter.com (the horses mouth)

forum/lowcarber.org

*Information is key to understanding. And, yes, you can go vegan and still do the diet.

p.s. The pcrm is NOT a reliable source of information, it is a figurehead for Peta.