Posted on 04/17/2007 2:03:10 PM PDT by freedomdefender
The beleaguered Atkins diet may get a breath of life from a new study that suggests the high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet regime leads to more effective weight loss with fewer negative health effects than three other weight loss strategies.
The study, which pits the Atkins diet against the Zone, Ornish and LEARN diets, appears in the current issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
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But the findings could be too little too late for the popular diet, which at one time changed the way Americans ate.
Proponents of Atkins say the study is only the latest piece of evidence testifying to the effectiveness of a diet that cuts carbs to a minimum.
"Clearly, this study shows that controlling carbohydrates is as or more effective than the low-fat, low-calorie approaches we've seen in the past," says Dr. Stuart Trager, author of "The All-New Atkins Advantage: 12 Weeks to a New Body, a New You, a New Life."
"The proof is now in the pudding," says Dr. Fred Pescatore, former medical director of the Atkins Center and best-selling author of "The Hamptons Diet," a guide on another low-carb regime.
"These findings are consistent with over a dozen papers in the past five years demonstrating the beneficial effects of carbohydrate restriction," says Dr. Eric Westman, associate professor of medicine and director of the Lifestyle Medicine Clinic at Duke University Medical Center. "I think low-carbohydrate diets should be first-line therapy for weight loss."
But will the new research be enough to save Atkins — or even restore it to its former lead position in the pack of new diet regimes? Many diet experts say no.
"Health is not measured as the combination of several cardiac risk markers and weight over the course of a year," says Dr. David Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine. "If it were, every patient getting chemotherapy would be 'healthy.'"
"Some heart indicators were better, but what about the mountains of evidence about high consumption of fruits and vegetables to promote overall health?" says Keith-Thomas Ayoob, associate professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine's department of pediatrics in Bronx, N.Y.
The JAMA study suggests that women on the Atkins diet not only lose more weight than those on the other diets studied, but that these women also maintain better cholesterol profiles and blood pressure levels.
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But Dr. Dean Ornish, creator of the Ornish diet and president of the Preventive Medicine Research Institute in San Francisco, says the conclusions from these findings are misguided.
"This is simply not true," he says. "If you read the study carefully, you will find that the authors reported that there was no significant difference in weight loss between the Atkins and Ornish or LEARN diets after one year.
"This directly contradicts their primary conclusion."
Other experts say the fact that the study only features results for up to one year makes such conclusions premature at best.
"The weight loss with Atkins maxed out after six months and really started regaining then, and somewhat faster than with the other diets," Ayoob says. "It would be interesting to see if, by 18 months or so, everything evened out."
"The public may not realize that keeping weight off for one year is no indication of permanence," says Carla Wolper of the Obesity Research Center at St. Luke's Hospital in New York City.
"It may be that more than two years of weight stability are required before one can feel safe with weight loss achieved."
And some say the shortcomings of the research reach beyond simple weight loss. In particular, there's a belief that the study downplays the wide spectrum of factors that contribute to heart health.
"Numbers don't lie, but they don't tell the whole story — by a mile," says Jackie Newgent, instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City. "There are more than just a couple numbers that determine your overall health. And as cholesterol numbers and blood pressure levels improve, it doesn't mean other heart-health indicators improve."
Since heart concerns have remained at the center of the debate over low-carb diets since their inception, the study may do little to silence critics with these concerns.
In recent years, the Atkins diet has also found itself surrounded by a lean, mean pack of other diet regimens, most with their own best-selling books.
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Michael Roizen and Mehmet Oz's "You: On a Diet," one of the more recent wunderkinds of the growing diet genre, is now enjoying its 17th week on The New York Times best-seller list.
Other diets, low-carb and otherwise, likewise flood bookstore shelves — a phenomenon that threatens to lead to diet-reader fatigue as the choices become ever more diverse and, in many cases, complex.
So, what's a dieter to do?
In short, losing weight and keeping it off may be more a function of adopting an overall healthier lifestyle — and less about cutting whole classes of foods out of your diet.
"This is the message of this article — focus on lifestyle and environmental factors and don't worry about the macronutrient composition of the diet, particularly if you can achieve the NHLBI guidelines of a 5 to 10 percent weight loss," says Dr. George Blackburn, chair in nutrition medicine at Harvard Medical School. "I think that was my message for the past 20 years."
"A healthy diet is the same as it ever was," Katz says. "Focus on health, and the long term, and your weight will take care of itself."
"It's not about demonizing whole food groups," Ayoob says. "It's about how much and how often, and learning to strike a balance between what we know we need, and what we don't want to live without."
And for diet book authors on both sides of the debate, an armistice in the "diet wars" would be a positive outcome by any measure.
"I'm tired of these diet wars," Ornish says. "It's not low-fat versus low-carb. It's both. An optimal diet is low in total fat and low in refined carbohydrates, emphasizing whole foods such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains."
"The future needs to be about getting away from this 'beauty pageant' mentality of what diet is best," Trager says. "It needs to be about incorporating the best practices of each approach to make lifestyle changes more achievable and improve adherence."
I don’t have any web links; it was in a letter without any linkable info.
You’ll need something to wash down your low-carb meal;
“There are other reasons why the Atkins diet can be harmful and downright dangerous.”
Name one.
Hood has been producing low-carb milk for years.
http://www.hphood.com/products/prodList.aspx?id=575
i lost twenty pounds on atkins but as a trade off my cholesterol was through the roof and my kidneys hurt (yes, i drank all the water he prescribes). so ‘healthy’ may not be the best word to describe it. ‘easy’ is a better word.
You’re blaming the wrong cause.
You should have first opened your gallbladder first, and then done a series of coffee enemas. You were not digesting the fats properly, and that can only mean a plugged up liver and gallbladder. (unless you are old enough to be lacking in stomach acid)
The internet has plenty of information regarding the Atkins diet and as with all things one must do their research on both the pros and cons of any given issue.
Here is an excerpt from just one website. I have also posted the link to it below so you can read the rest if you wish. My doctor does not recommend the diet, and is in fact, extremely against it. But some posters on this forum have stated that their doctors actually recommended it.
EXCERPT: “There are numerous ways to lose weight. However effective they may be, some are just not safe. We certainly would not advocate smoking cigarettes or snorting cocaine for weight loss (even though they may be effective) as both these methods sharply increase one’s risk of a heart attack. We should not advocate weight loss via drugs, or high-protein, high-fat diets for the same reason; you may pay a substantial price: your life!
A meat-based, low fiber diet like Atkins advocates with no fruit, or starchy vegetables, will almost double your risk of certain cancers, especially of meat-sensitive cancers, such as colon cancer.
Stomach and esophageal cancer, for example are linked to populations that do not consume sufficient fruit. Atkins’ menus average 60-75% of calories from fat and contain no fruit.”
http://www.health101.org/art_Atkins_diet.htm
“A meat-based, low fiber diet like Atkins advocates with no fruit, or starchy vegetables, will almost double your risk of certain cancers, especially of meat-sensitive cancers, such as colon cancer.
Stomach and esophageal cancer, for example are linked to populations that do not consume sufficient fruit. Atkins’ menus average 60-75% of calories from fat and contain no fruit.”
You, and the doctor, are so far off-base as to make this my last post on the subject. It’s obvious you’ve never read any Atkins’ publications because both those sentences are patently false.
And going to some goofy website for your source.
Do you take yours with cream and sugar, or black?
And going to some goofy website for your source.
I chose the website at random. If that one seems "goofy" to you, perhaps there is another one better suited to your tastes (pun intended). I have read Atkins publications in the past but must admit that was some time ago. However, the last place I would look for any possible health issues associated with the Atkins diet would be their very own publication.
With all that is going wrong in this world, the Atkins diet is one of the least of my concerns. You apparently think it's a good diet plan with no negative health risks and I respectfully disagree. Have a nice day. :)
Since he provides absolutely zero cites to any of these assertions, you'll have to excuse my skepticism of what a vegan like Don Bennett has to say about Atkins.
You do know that health101.org is run by fructo-vegan Don Bennett. Right?
The same Don Bennett that states "It is impossible for humans to have an allergy to wheat, dairy products, or soy." (Feb 2006).
And later states :"Bottom line: The more uncooked fruits and veggies you get into your diet, the better. The more cooked, animal-based "food" you get out of your diet, the better." (Apr 2007).
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