Atkin's Diet

[LochnarITB]

Something or somebody really does not want me to respond to your post. I was sitting here trying to decide if I could respond without going into a rant when BAM! I hear the thunder boom followed immediately by the click of my cable router shutting down and the TV going off. Always one to enjoy a good storm, I went out to sit on the porch and listen to the rain while I thought about what I might say and waited for the cable to be restored. I came back in just in time for the cable to come back. I did a few other things and then came back to my saved tab session (Firefox lovers will know what I mean) to try to compose something. I had just started when BZZZZ! I heard what I thought was the transformer on the pole frying. Out went all the power. It turns out it was just the wire to our house because the rest of the neighborhood still had power. It took a couple hours but the power is now back so, here I go.

Fatkins died from his own diet.

This is not true. You are pushing the myth that was put out there by the medical establishment that can't see past what they have decided to be true. Take a look at this link and this one.

Both his cardiac problems and his "obesity" are explained very reasonably. Someone I went to high school with died from heart damage caused by a viral infection he had as a young child. Over the last few years, I dealt with large wounds and associated infections. One of the major concerns of the doctors was to follow me for any possible heart damage brought on by the infections. I have also seen, and personally experienced, how the body can bloat and change when normal functions shut down and the fluids, both consumed and pumped in by the doctors, are not properly eliminated. People can become almost unrecognizable to even those closest to them over a very short period of time.

Excercise and moderation have worked since the dawn of time (or, rather, since the dawn of the point when people had enough surplus food for obesity to become a national problem), and they'll always work.

True. However, this is somewhat dismissive. It does not recognize the time and societal pressures that people experience today. The ideal, of course, is to take the time needed to do what's needed for yourself. The reality is that many people spend so much time on family, friends, work and all the other things that need to get done that they don't even have time for adequate sleep. When out doing all these things, a person driving down the main drag in any small town or big city is inundated with all the eateries just screaming "Good Eats" and "Super Size Me". TV, movies and periodicals further taunt us with all the things we enjoy or think we would probably enjoy. Walking down the aisles of even the small grocery stores we are confronted with more temptations than much of the world or even our grandparents could ever imagine. It is no wonder that studies have shown that less than 5% of dieters actually maintain their weight loss long term (although that number has gone up 0.0000004% because there is no way I am taking back what I've gotten rid of!).

If you deprive your body of carbohydrates (energy), it will tap into its reserves (fat) to compensate.  The problem is that rapid fat-loss (and the subsequent weight loss) can lead to ketones, gall stones, and possibly even kidney stones - of course, any kind of rapid weight-loss (including starvation) can do that.

ketones - True. However, ketones are normal. Ketones are a fuel for the body just as is glucose. Ketones are part of breaking down the fat deposits. Atkins uses ketones as a measuring stick for the effectiveness of the program. Ketones can be flushed out in the urine instead of being burned for energy. This is broken down fat being washed out of the body without ever being used as fuel. Therefore, you get the loss of weight from the ketones that are burned up in the body as well as the bonus of those flushed without ever being used. Ketones are only a problem in the condition know as ketoacidosis. This happens in diabetics and the acid is the component that is damaging to the organs and circulatory system.

gall stones - False. Gall stones are not brought on by the fat loss but rather by what is often lacking in the diet that brought about the weight loss. Gall stones are usually made of cholesterol in the bile produced in the gall bladder. This formation is normally kept in check by bile acids. However, these bile acids are made from food, mainly from protein. Lack of protein, as well as excess carbohydrates, can reduce this production allowing the bile to thicken and drop cholesterol out of suspension forming stones.

kidney stones - False. Kidney stones are also not formed by the fat loss but by the change in blood chemistry caused by the diet used to lose the fat. Atkins does get a black mark here. High protein consumption raises the acidity of the blood. Lack of other foods to buffer the acid requires the body to do it. The body uses calcium to buffer the acid. If the consumption of calcium (preferably from food sources) is insufficient, the body uses its stores of calcium, the bones. This calcium is then deposited in the kidneys and, in large enough amounts, can form kidney stones. This leeching of calcium from the bones is also of concern because of the possible long term contribution to osteoporosis. This calcium factor is something that is becoming less of a problem as research is learning more about how to better supplement calcium for those who don't or can't get enough from their diet.

With the Fatkins diet, you're literally starving your body of energy, forcing it to tap into its reserves to make up for the lack.

And this a problem because...? That is what any weight reduction diet must do. If the body does not tap into its reserves, it will never burn off the stored fat. In fact, any diet (note that diet does not mean weight reduction diet) that does not exactly balance output will bring about a gain if the imbalance is excessive in. To better illustrate this, if one were to eat a single ounce of hard cheese (about a 1" cube) in excess of their body's need each day, over a one year period you would gain ten pounds!

The only difference is that, unlike fasting, your body won't go psycho to rebuild the lost stores once you start eating normally again.

This a very significant difference, particularily while in the weight loss phase of the diet. The Atkins diet brings much greater sustained satiety. Other types of diets, particularly those that choose carbohydrates and restrict fat and protein, tend to bring on what I like to call "chinese food syndrome" - 30 minutes after eating you want to eat again. This is actually very real. The reason that people experience this often with chinese food is that they tend to use protein as a flavor agent. They also tend to be low in fat unless you go for the deep fried whatever. They tend to be vegetable which the stomach processes quickly and moves it on. They also raise blood insulin quickly which then falls again just as quicly causing more hunger. The body quickly screams "Give me more!"

Now, my take on Atkins:

Most of the people out there that say they are on Atkins or, more accurately, low carb high protein know very little about what they are doing. They have never opened one of the books or even done any research on the internet. They have taken what they have seen in the news on TV or in the paper and gone with that - "I'm gonna start counting carbs. Billy Bob said I should have 40 (or 60 or 100). What do you mean bananas have carbs, aren't bananas good for me!?"

Carb count has become a marketing ploy for sellers to play with. Carb count has morphed into effective carbs. They take the carbs and subtract fiber and sugar alchohol. It has been shown that fiber passes through the body without affecting the body's chemistry but the same can't be said for sugar alchohols. Marketing people know that there are no regulations on this so they feel they can just pull this out of their hats and know that most people will accept it under the false assumption that it must be true if they are allowed to put it on their labels. It is also used for marketing proteins. Walk down the frozen or fresh meat aisle and see how many are labeled "0 Fat Grams!" Duh!

Because most people don't really understand the actual Atkins program, it gets bad press for what people actually do. I recently saw a news report of a survey of people who claimed to be on a low carb high protein diet. More than 60% of the people surveyed, more than Atkins, South Beach, Neandrathal, etc. combined, reported to be on "Their Own Version". Luckily, low carb high protein is now becoming "sexy". There are researchers out there that would love to make their mark by proving established medicine wrong. They have glommed on to it and are finally doing studies on the validity of Dr. Atkins' claims. They are starting to prove that people do lose weight faster in the short term but that over time the weight loss tends to converge with other methods. They are also showing that the program can assist diabetics by better regulating blood sugars. They are also showing that, contrary to majority medical opinion, the diet actually improves blood cholesterol, possibly due to lost weight with excess fat being a contributor to high cholesterol and for the same reasons it can help diabetics.

The biggest misunderstanding about Atkins is the carbs. It does not support a total lack of carbs. Instead, it is about making wise choices of a limited number of carbs. It pushes you toward natural lower carb vegetables and fruit. It also discourages processed foods. For example, it welcomes butter but forbids margarine, the former a natural fat and the latter a highly processed one. Another benefit of limiting carbs and putting the focus on low carb vegetables and fruit and on protein is that these are foods that have a low glycmic index. This means that blood sugar levels are much more regular and don't exhibit large spikes shortly after eating. This keeps the insulin level even also which prevents crashing blood sugars, due to excess insulin, which promote further hunger and cravings.

I have done Atkins in the past. I was successful with it. The reason I didn't continue with it was boredom. I didn't want to play with it like so many people do. They didn't even have a lot of the "low carb" things that they do now because it had not yet become the in thing that it is now. Lots of steak and roast beef was great but the cheese burger without the great big bun and brocoli or cauliflower instead of the baked potato under the sour cream just got old. My current success has been due to being one of those that are on "Their Own Version". It is kind of a half breed of high protein and low calorie. I eat a lot of low fat protein and my carbs tend to be salads and low calorie high fiber breads. It has done very well by me.

I think that Atkins and its many variants are additional tools for people who want to lose weight. As with any tool, a person must chose the one that fits the job. In this case, the job is to be a diet that brings the desired weight loss and is relatively easy for the person to stick with.

In my not-very-informed opinion, I think the reason that the low-carb diets work is that most junk foods are primarily carbohydrates.  So, people on low-carb diets have more motivation to avoid snacking.  You have to be really hungry to grab a bun-free hot dog or something when you're just looking for a snack.

Sort of. "Snacking" is not a bad thing. In fact, my current weight loss has been done with what would appear to be snacking to someone that doesn't undersand. What I actually do is to have 5-6 small meals spread throughout the day rather than 2-3 large meals. This helps to prevent hunger both by frequency and leveling blood sugar. The problem with most food that people snack on is that they tend to be carbohydrates, often highly processed and refined, combined with fat. Think about it - candys, chips, crackers and pastries - all are examples of a starch and/or a sugar combined with a fat such as oil for frying or butters and chocolate. The carbs spike the blood sugar and the body spikes its insulin. Insulin tells the body to store fat and the fat built into the snack is quickly and easily tucked away for later use.

Exercise helps three ways.  First, it burns calories directly.  About 65 calories per km (and the amazing thing is that that number is relatively constant if you walk, jog, run, or even swim).  Second, the muscle mass developed from exercise burns more calories.  It raises your basal metabolic rate, so that you can actually "diet" and be eating more.  Third, it is (after a while) both fun and addicting.  Which is good, considering the other beneficial effects.

I would like to get to the point of addiction to exercise. In my high school years and early 20's, I got a fair amount of exercise. It was mostly things like walking the golf course, riding bike and some tennis. I never had any interest in the gym. That was where all the hard bodies and jocks were, very few of whom did not see fit to have fun at my expense. I was more into doing my own thing where I could enjoy myself and do well enough that others at least did not feel the need to berate me. When I got out into the working world and ended up behind a desk, much of even that exercise went away because it was too time consuming. Over the last year and a half, I have been completely sedentary due to medical issues. 23+ hours a day I was in bed or in a chair with my legs up. Even with that restriction, I was able to lose weight through diet alone. As things are now improving, I find myself wanting to hit a gym. I am getting old enough to no longer care what others might say or do. I know how far I have come and they will never understand that so they can think whatever they want. Besides, the gym is where all the hard body females hang out too. I'm sure there are one or two just aching for an older man to sweep them away so they can finally give up all that exercise silliness. :lol:

I've been on a reverse diet for the last 15 years.  It's not going too well though.  I've only gained 10 pounds.

I've always been skinny.  When I was a teenager, my father encouraged me to eat sticks of butter.  I always figured it would be something I'd grow out of and that one day I'd have to stop eating whatever I wanted.  Well, I recently turned 30 and I can still eat whatever the hell I want without gaining an ounce.

:blink: <_< :( :angry:

Well, I guess it turned into a rant after all. Oh well, it had to be said.