Posted on 03/16/2003 1:57:19 PM PST by Pharmboy
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (Reuters) - It has been months since Tina Moore last bit into a bagel or a slice of toast.
"Protein is good. Carbs are bad," says 41-year-old Moore, who altered her diet five years ago in a bid to lose weight.
Moore, the owner of a hair salon, is one of the estimated 15 million-plus Americans seen as devoted followers of dieting guru, Dr. Robert Atkins, who recommends eating protein for those who want to rid themselves of unwanted weight and keep the pounds off.
"Carbs and sugar ... they give you a quick high, then you get really low. You get tired and hungry," said Moore, who sees herself as a reformed "carbohydrate addict."
The hamburger patty is good, the hamburger bun bad, according to the teachings of Atkins, who has turned his philosophies into a dieting revolution, starting with his first book, "Dr. Atkins Diet Revolution," in 1972.
Atkins books -- his latest, "Atkins for Life," was published this year -- routinely top best-seller lists. Atkins companies have racked up millions of dollars in sales of specialty low-carb food products and carb-counting scales.
But the popularity of Atkins' eating advice, now appealing to another generation, is fraying the nerves of some food companies who rely on the consumer appetite for carbohydrate-laden foods such as pastas and pizzas, cakes, cookies and cereals, to add heft to their own bottom lines.
They claim Atkins is falsely disparaging food groups that serve as a foundation for American eating. And that by teaching people to severely limit the use of flour-based products, Atkins is eating into sales of some bread and cereal products in the United States.
"Our industry has to do something, and soon. It is starting to become a mainstream belief that carbohydrates are bad," said Judi Adams, director of the Wheat Foods Council, a consortium of industry players that includes ConAgra, General Mills and Kellogg Co.
"This Atkins diet -- or, I call it Fatkins diet -- is going out unchallenged. People are starting to believe it," Adams said.
Part of the consortium's push will be in Washington, where federal health officials are starting talks on revisions to the nation's 11-year-old Food Guide Pyramid.
Wheat Foods will be actively involved in defending the grains, Adams said.
Currently, the pyramid puts bread, cereals, rice and pasta as the foundation for healthy eating, recommending six to 11 servings a day. But some are pushing for changes that would move grains off the foundation, and cut back servings.
SLIM PICKINS
There is limited funding for the anti-Atkins campaign, as most food companies spend their advertising dollars on product specific programs to tout such things as new Berry-Burst Cheerios, recently released by General Mills.
So, with only a slender budget to try to counter the Atkins phenomenon, the Wheat Foods Council is aiming its "educational" campaign" at nutritionists and the medical community.
The strategy is a direct attack on Atkins: Americans who follow the Atkins diet increase their risk of health problems that include cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol, kidney damage and some cancers, the Wheat Foods Council says.
Adding insult to injury, it claims that Atkins followers can also suffer headaches, constipation and bad breath.
The council says obesity is not specifically tied to carbohydrates but is the simple result of lazy overeaters.
"Healthful grain-based foods have become the scapegoat for weight gain, when overeating and underexercising are at issue," said Carol Pratt, a Kellogg nutrition and regulatory affairs expert, and incoming chairwoman for Wheat Foods.
FEWER COOKIES AND CAKES
Consumer eating habits are hard to track, but the latest Consumer Expenditure Survey of the U.S. Department of Labor does indicate a possible shift away from grain-based foods.
According to the government survey, consumer spending in 2001 for ready-to-eat and cooked cereals, pasta, flour, flour mixes and bakery products dropped from the previous year even as consumer spending for meat, poultry, fish and eggs and other similar products increased for the third year in a row.
Moreover, the 0.2 percent decrease in spending came as the consumer price index (news - web sites) for those foods grew 2.9 percent. As well, wheat consumption in the United States dropped 4 percent from 1997 to 2001, according to industry research.
"I'm very much concerned," said Mark Dirkes, spokesman for Interstate Bakeries, the nation's largest wholesale baker and the maker of Wonder Bread. "He (Atkins) has run a very effective campaign. That just can't be good for our industry."
CLEANING OUT THE CABINETS
Among Atkins preachings: the elimination of "white flour-laden junk food" from kitchen cabinets, and research that Atkins says shows carbohydrates work to slow the body's burning of fat and make people feel hungrier faster.
And after decades of rejecting Atkins' theories, some new scientific research studies, including work by Harvard University, have started lending credence to Atkins' ideas.
Colette Heimowitz, director of research at the Atkins Health and Medical Information Services says over-consumption of bread, cereal and baked products is partly to blame for overweight Americans. Products made with white flour, sugars and hydrogenated oils are the worst.
Still, she says, Atkins is not looking to go to war with the food companies, and that even Atkins die-hards allow for an occasional doughnut or cookie.
"We teach people how to respect it and, on rare occasions, have it in moderation," she said. "We know people can't stay away from it forever."
BTW, you're not really mean, are you? :)
This oft repeated criticism cracks me up. Isn't this what all the health experts are trying to get us to do, reduce calories? I guess it's only good if you do it their way. The point of Atkins is, whether you reduce your calories or not, you lose weight without feeling starved all the time. For those who have never tried to diet, it is tough being hungry all day long. When I was on a standard low-cal diet, I knew I wasn't losing unless I went to bed with my stomach growling every night. Low carb eating enables me to at least stop gaining, to feel better, and to eat when I'm hungry. For me that's a miracle right there. BTW, for you Atkins fans, I highly recommend the book "Life Without Bread."
The "Glycemic Index" approach is one advocated by Larry North, a Dallas bodybuilder-turned-gym-owner.
His diet guru, Dr. Cliff Sheets, advocates the low glycemic diet but only if you are on a weight-lifting, aerobic exercise regimen. The intense exercise requires some complex carbs and will burn them off. In addition, weight lifters tend to burn off fat anyway.
I know I did. But I don't lift as intensely as I did ten years ago, nor do I do aerobic exercise every day.
So, I went on Atkins, eliminating most carbs (still have a glass of wine with dinner), and have maintained my weight at 190. I cheat once a week, eating whatever I want.
Atkins is a tremendous eating program, and, with all the stuff available today with more coming into stores every day, we're gradually going to put the sugar growers into serious hurt. Sucra, a sugar substitute, tastes like sugar but has zero effect on insulin. It's truly a miracle product, and hopefully we'll see more sucra-based desserts and products.
For me, the low-glycemic carbs were OK as long as I was lifting weights and walking an hour a day.
If you look at most packaged snack products, they're mostly white flour, white sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and hydrogenated fat. You notice the food industries aren't encouraging people to eat brown rice or baked potatoes or anything else non-processed; instead, they want people to buy the high-priced junk.
I just have to have grains and milk. But thanks to Atkins I broke the habit of eating refined starches. When I eat carbs it is only the complex kind....whole wheat bread, beans and brown rice. My new food philosophy is to eat a varied diet of moderate amounts of whole, vitamin rich nutritious foods. I am happy with it.
People differ in their metabolism. I don't do Atkins; I do something closer to Carbohydrate Addicts or The Zone. It includes some carbs but low-glycemic ones. The weight loss isn't as dramatic as with Atkins.
My thoughts exactly. But try to find anything out there. I mean, it's incredible! It is a huge huge market and no one is attempting to step in and fill it. Insane!
Me too. The same. Feeling great and eating very well...
True and I am only four feet ten inches tall. The Atkins diet is really a LOT of fat and calories for somebody my size. I do better by limiting my calorie intake to 1600 a day. I am taking my cue from the government recommended daily allowance. Actually it is a very good, balanced eating plan and you don't need fancy books to follow it!
"...The Zone. It includes some carbs but low-glycemic ones. The weight loss isn't as dramatic as with Atkins."
I think that would be better for you than Atkins. And it is more practical too. God made grains, beans and milk for a reason. They are good, wholesome and nutritious foods for crying out loud!
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