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When Unilever PLC, the British food giant that owns Slim-Fast Foods, announced in July that U.S. profits had dropped 23 percent, it quickly pointed an accusing finger at the Atkins diet, the trendy weight-loss plan high in protein and low in carbohydrates. Atkins, Unilever's chairman explained, has set off shock waves in consumption that have cut Slim-Fast's profits, and there's no way to fight a fad. Suddenly, Wall Street is blaming the diet craze for all sorts of economic upheavals, and the deafening buzz is almost enough to drown out economic sense. Time, the Economist, USA Today, and countless media...

David Blaine is being "tortured" by the smell of food wafting up from a burger van parked underneath the transparent box in which he is spending 44 days without food. The New York illusionist, 30, has been suspended 40ft in the air in his tiny plexiglass central London "home" since Friday. Tony Montana, manager of the Riverside Refreshments van parked just 50 yards from Blaine said: "If he doesn't like it, that's tough. We can't move the smell." Montana has even extended his opening hours as Blaine's stunt has upped his takings to over £1,000 a day from the transfixed...

<p>WASHINGTON, Aug. 22 (UPI) -- Nutritionists are urging the top 10 U.S. hospitals to ban the Atkins diet, reports said Friday.</p> <p>The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine announced Friday in Washington it hopes the hospitals will emulate England's Norfolk and Norwich Hospital, which is eliminating the controversial diet from its menus, fearing a link to kidney damage.</p>

FLATULENCE is responsible for the death of hundreds of cattle exported to the Middle East each year. Cows gas themselves to death by emitting fatally high levels of ammonia during the lengthy voyages, a University of New England conference has heard. The exact reason for high fatality rates on cattle export voyages had eluded scientists until now, the university said. Researcher Jeisana Accioly said the cows' high protein diets were the cause of the problem. Voyages to the Middle East can take between 13 and 31 days. Temperatures on board can soar dramatically as the ship crosses the Equator, leading...

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- Former Charles Manson disciple and convicted murderer Susan Atkins is suing Gov. Gray Davis, contending his policy opposing parole for nearly all murderers has made her a political prisoner. Parole board members and prison officials also are named in the federal civil rights lawsuit, which accuses them of ignoring the Constitution and parole rules to keep Atkins behind bars. "Over the course of her incarceration, Ms. Atkins has been transformed into a political prisoner," said the suit, filed by attorney Eric P. Lampel of Irvine. He said psychiatrists call her a model prisoner who is not a...

Now, food companies and retailers are hoping for similar happy results by focusing on products that fit the Atkins plan. But some of those sales gains are coming at the expense of companies whose foods aren't Atkins-friendly. :VERY LARGE BREAK IN ARTICLE: A low for carbs The Atkins boom worries companies that depend on carbohydrates – such as pasta, tortilla and bread makers. Pasta consumption is still growing, but hardly at the carbo-loading inspired rates of the 1980s, according to American Italian Pasta Co., the largest U.S. pasta maker. "Our industry would be growing faster if not for the Atkins...

Well, Some of us Freepers are going to give the Atkins Diet the good ole college try! Now that several articles have been posted on the Atkins diet.. a truly good proven way to lose weight we invite all you folks who are serious to come and join in our comments and suggestions. Since staying positive adds to the joy on the journey, I invite you to stay POSITIVE. Let us know what works for you and what doesn't. I would like to suggest that we "freep mail" each other through out the week for support. Also Let's comment on...

<p>Thanksgiving dinner: Turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes and the most served dish of all in America: guilt.</p> <p>Every newspaper reader knows it. Americans are growing wider. According to the federal government, 61 percent of American adults are overweight -- 26 percent are obese.</p>

<p>The Atkins low-carb, high-fat diet is supposed to be simple, but it's raising complex medical and nutrition questions. Now two new studies show that those who follow the diet can lose significant amounts of weight, but other research is raising concerns about the safety of the program, linking it to an increased risk of kidney stones and bone loss.</p>

A crazed attacker who bit off a man's eyebrow in an unprovoked, late night attack outside a kebab van almost certainly ate it, British police said yesterday. Officers were horrified by the savagery of the attack on the man in is 30s in Trowbridge on Sunday night, said Detective Constable Paul Clifford of Wiltshire Police. "In all my years I have not come across somebody with such a facial injury. It was a completely and absolutely unprovoked attack. The attacker was clearly spoiling for a fight. "The man had tried to walk away and this man had clamped his jaw...