[kingu]

I don't know if this Atkins thing is good or bad - some people I know have been on it for a while, and their pounds lost and good health reports (including lower cholesterol tests) sound great. But I seriously question the wisdom of businesses jumping onto a health fad like this.

I can easily see someone a few years down the line turning around and suing a company for their 'low carb' food.

I hope for the sake of business, and for the sake of the health of consumers that this Atkins thing is actually the good thing it appears to be.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

The "experts" try so hard to paint the Atkins Diet in a bad light, it has to make one wonder, why?

Atkins

[DB]

They’re simply trying to cater to a person like me that is willing to part with my money for good tasting low carb, no MSG, no hydrogenated oil high protein food. It is too hard to find currently.

And as far as:

"And though no studies have been done on the long-term health effects of high-protein, low-carb diets like Atkins, saturated fats are known to increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. As is the case with so many diet fads, however, the evidence is contradictory."

That isn't true. The studies that connected saturated fats to heart disease included trans fatty acids that are very bad for you (hydrogenated vegetable oils in many, many things now). Remove those from the studies of saturated fats and you get an entirely different result.

Also every study of the Atkins diet health wise has come out the opposite of what the researches were expecting to prove. That the high animal fat and high protein diet actually improves health and lowers bad cholesterol.

The eggheads that created the food pyramid with refined wheat at its base were wrong. As people have increased there consumption of carbs mostly in the form of refined wheat and sugar water over the years we have gotten fatter.

[prion]

there's no guarantee the low-carb craze might not go the way of low-fat, low-salt, and low-caffeine fads of the past two decades.

Whoa, wait a second! Fads? All three of those - low salt, in particular - were nutritionist orthodoxies. Still are, as far as I know.

It's just going to kill them when they finally have to admit America got fat not by ignoring their advice, but by taking their advice.

[SamAdams76]

I hope for the sake of business, and for the sake of the health of consumers that this Atkins thing is actually the good thing it appears to be.

A low-carb (I prefer to call it "normal-carb") diet only works if the diet is properly followed and that exercise is a major component of the program. At least that is my experience.

I went from 300 pounds last April 1 to 199 pounds presently, which puts me in the normal weight range for my 6'3" height. I would still like to get to 190 but those last few pounds are proving to be stubborn! Nevertheless, I have gone from size 48 "relaxed-fit-elastic-waistband" trousers to having size 34 trousers fit comfortably and I feel great.

But exercise is key. I walk several miles a day and even in the current cold snap, I get out there and walk. Yesterday, it was -8 degree but I still went for my usual Saturday morning 2.5 hour walk (about 10 miles). During the week, I walk at least five miles a day - more when I can.

Also, I never bought into the Atkins plan as written. I elected to go on what pretty much amounts to a "whole food" diet. A whole food diet consists of mostly meat, vegetables, fish, berries, nuts, yogurt, olive oil, eggs, cheese, etc. If it is a "whole" food or made from "whole foods" (such as cheese), I eat it. If it comes in a package at the supermarket with a bunch of weird ingredients like "high fructose corn syrup" and "hydrogenated vegetable oil" then I avoid it.

The only problem I have with the Atkins diet is that they promote these low-carb "candy bars" and other junky stuff like that. Also, a lot of low-carbers want to literally "have their cake and eat it too." I am not convinced that Splenda-flavored cakes and pies is the way to go. In my opinion, things like cakes and pies should be eliminated from your diet whether they have a lot of carbs or not. (Perhaps they can be an occasional treat once you have reached your weight goal.)

As for the Subway sandwich, I did try one this week (without the ranch dressing which I refuse to eat because it has a bunch of artificial ingredients) and it was pretty good. I would like to see more restaurants offer this kind of fare as I'm getting tired of bringing a can of sardines or a bag of nuts to work with me everyday.

[Beck_isright]

"I hope for the sake of business, and for the sake of the health of consumers that this Atkins thing is actually the good thing it appears to be."

The AMA reversed itself last year which is why the restraunt and food manufacturing industries are cranking out the foods. You should have tried this diet when all of these products were not available. It was brutal.

[Diddle E. Squat]

Every time I hear about the Atkin's stampede I am reminded of the glasses Steve Martin invented in 'The Jerk'.