What if It's All Been a Big Fat Lie?

The New York Times Magazine ^ | 07/07/2002 | GARY TAUBES

[utahagen]

I agree that the weirdest thing about these dieting debates is how ANGRY the low carb people get at the mention of Atkins. Lowcarb eating has become some kind of religion to some people and I find this bizarre. If they want to follow low-fat diets, mazel tov. But why are they so threatened when others have more success with high protein diets?

[DallasMike]

The Atkins diet has much more vegetables on it than the average American diet.

You hit the proverbial nail on the head with that one! The anti-Atkins say that it's nothing but bacon smothered in cream cheese -- nothing could be further from the truth. If people don't like it, then fine, but it works very well long-term for very many people.

[meyer]

Most people CANNOT stick with low fact/low calorie diets, because A} they don't work and B} they are deprivation diets that make people sick or hungry. That's why there are no long term studies that show net losses on low fat - most show net gains because the participants drop out.

This makes me think of one of the reasons that I think people turn to alternative diets in the first place; the ultra-low calorie approach is just wrong. I've heard of doctors recommending 1200 calorie-per-day diets to obese people. This is woefully inadequate. It creates the yo-yo syndrome where people gyrate between ultra-diet and ultra-eat. In the long run, their weight chart looks like the stock market zigging and zagging but generally going in an upward trend over time.

You can't hurry weight loss (and you can't hurry love, you'll just have to wait). 1-2 pounds per week is perhaps about as much as one should try to lose.

[Arioch7]

Note that the poster below you rails against refined crap. We have done that from the get go yet somehow, we have been labeled as for being FOR processed crap because we recognize the value of carbohydrates.

Thats the all or nothing argument that libs are famous for. I NEVER siad that fat and protein were bad but I grow weary of arguing, do what you want people. I just wish they would use logic.

I hate to say it but the Atkins advocates seem like a cult. I can not debate with a cult. Good night.

I suppose we will stick with our way and they will stick with thier way and let the victors prevail... it will be us!! :D LOL!

[Dana113]

IS IT THE LACK OF REFINED CARBS? Do these countries use unrefined carbs? What is the difference between refined and unrefined carbs?

Yes, that is exactly the problem. They do not have diets loaded with processed sugar and flour products like we do here. Refined carbs are made from processed flour and sugar and create an insulin response in the body that prevents fat burning. The good carbs are vegetables, fruits, nuts, beans and legumes.

Here is a pretty good explanation written by a cardiologist who once worked for Atkins: http://www.wlbt.com/Global/story.asp?S=377377&nav=2CSQ5wO13Uqa

[meyer]

http://www.wlbt.com/Global/sto ry.asp?S=377377&nav=2CSQ5w O13Uqa

[meyer]

I hope that the auto-html works.

[Arioch7]

I dont shreik and I eat very healthy.

I said NOTHING about your personal diet and as a matter of fact, you know NOTHING of my diet so you are off base.

How do you know if I eat junk food? Which I have never eaten since I was seventeen.

[Dana113]

I agree that the weirdest thing about these dieting debates is how ANGRY the low carb people get at the mention of Atkins. Lowcarb eating has become some kind of religion to some people and I find this bizarre. If they want to follow low-fat diets, mazel tov. But why are they so threatened when others have more success with high protein diets?

It is a mystery to me, but to my astonishment I often encounter the same type of hostility about the diet that I have here tonight. People are ANGRY that there is a diet that directly contradicts what they have been taught. And they are often low fat fanatics, who, presented with the facts, just get angrier and hostile. The bottom line is that there are many diets out there and low fat is not the be-all and end-all that folks claim.

[meyer]

For the record, I don't really follow any diet. Yeah, I make sure to eat the proper amount of fruits and veggies (more or less) and I lean towards whole-grain products. But, I also eat bacon, sausage, and all those other fatty products at times. In moderation, of course.

And I exercise. 3-4 aerobic/semi-aerobic workouts per week, and 2-3 strength workouts per week. Depends on the work schedule and all, but I keep myself physical. Its necessary.

[Dana113]

AAAAHHH I can't take it! Have you people been reading my posts? Weight loss is tied to activity, and not diet change! The diet will change when the activity increases!

oh, I see. So the magic diet fairy will come along and zap me in my sleep if I start running?? Ooooookay! On what planet does this happen?

[Arioch7]

So do I.

[SamAdams76]

How about we just eat, be happy, and die when we die?

Words of wisdom. People are so obsessed about their weight that they waste their lives worrying about it. Especially women. Woman are just plain obsessed over this. I was in a supermarket checkout the other day and there was over a dozen "women" magazines. Each and every one of them had a cover photo of an anorexic model. And all the headlines were a variation of "I lost 50 pounds in six weeks and YOU can too!"

The Atkins Diet may cause you to lose weight but you could lose weight on just about every "fad diet" out there. I just think it is unhealthy to limit your diet to a particular food or group of foods. I think the Europeans have an advantage over us in the area of dining. They know how to eat well and enjoy life.

[redhead]

As a satisfied "researcher" of the Low Carbohydrate eating plans, let me tell you unequivocally that it WORKS. When I started my diet, I weighed 245 pounds, and my blood pressure was 220/110. Within a week of beginning the diet, I had to stop taking my medication because my blood pressure dropped into the low-normal range and stayed there. Last time I had my blood fats checked, I had an overall cholesterol count of 179, with the ratio so favorable that the nurse was very impressed. My website, OPINIONS UNLIMITED has a large section on low carbohydrate eating and the implications, ramifications, and consequences of high-carbohydrate eating. Just click on the "Nutrition" link on the left-hand side of the front page, and browse the numerous pages in that section. There are articles by myself, as well as several other writers on the subject. Enjoy. < /shameless self-promotion>

[Dana113]

How do you know if I eat junk food? Which I have never eaten since I was seventeen.

Oh cool, well if you have had no junk food since you were 17 you must be a fellow Atkinser!!

[Ditter]

Thanks Pokey, I needed this boost. I lost 20 lbs in 4 months (and I don't lose easily) a few years ago. I kept it off with no trouble as long as I walked 4x a week. Then a couple of minor injuries kept me from walking & I gained it back. I have been in conversation with myself about doing it again & this helps. To you nay-sayers that say this is wrong, the same diet isn't good for everyone, so don't discourage those who want to try this. It may be just what they need.

[RightWhale]

I tried this type of diet about '72, but it was Monroe rather than Atkins. Eat all the meat you want. No veggies, no food of vegetable origin. I figured that beer was as much animal as vegetable, so I got a few carbs there. Raw eggs blended with orange juice for breakfast. A lot of raw eggs. Lean cuts of meat, pork especially. Got down to my ideal weight in one month, a pound a day. Was doing some athletic training at the same time.

But I don't believe this is for older people. Dietary needs change.

The deal is that you have to stay warm in the winter when you are just standing there. Carbs and water do the trick, but you have to ease off in the summer, or skinny foreigners will talk about you in foreign languages and snicker.

[ladyinred]

I have discovered this myself from other research I have been doing, including from a wonderful doctor at the heath clinic in Santa Barbara. It has been obvious for sometime now that low fat diets were making people fat!
I eat real butter, cream, and red meat! It is much better for you than fake food! LOL

[DallasMike]

The Atkins Diet may cause you to lose weight but you could lose weight on just about every "fad diet" out there.

The argument for the low-carb way of life (I'm not calling it a diet) is that it isn't a fad after all. As the article says, a steady supply of grains and carbohydrates weren't available to our ancestors until at most only 10,000 years ago. Some, like the Eskimos, still get very few carbs and don't have problems with heart disease. One might easily call the current accepted AMA diet pyramid the real "fad diet" because many people gain weight on it.

Low carb is not for everyone. But a lot of people do extremely well on it. No one should dismiss it out of hand.

[Dana113]

The Atkins Diet may cause you to lose weight but you could lose weight on just about every "fad diet" out there. I just think it is unhealthy to limit your diet to a particular food or group of foods. I think the Europeans have an advantage over us in the area of dining. They know how to eat well and enjoy life.

SamAdams, first off Atkins is not a fad diet, this is how people ate until the advent of low fat/high carb quackery. It is low fat that is the fad and it is low fat/high carb that has caused an epidemic of obesity and Diabetes II in this country. Europeans do not consume refined carbs as 50% of thier diet as we do here. Many have high fat diets. Tehy don't have the obesity that we have here.

Further, the only food group that Atkins bans is the SUGAR food group. Whole grains are allowed. And refined sugar is BAD for you. There is absolutely no use for sugar in your diet - it only causes harm.

And Atkins does a whole lot more than weight loss. It is shown to reduce cholesterol levels, cure hypoglycemia, diabetes II and obesity.