by RubyTuesday 34 Replies latest watchtower medical
I've used the Atkins diet a few times and it DID work, but i quit because of 1) going crazy for carbs!; and 2) concern for health. The news yesterday and today, while argued back and forth, is interesting, in case you missed it.
Sorry, my above link didn't work so here's another one:
Well, never mind....it seems they all change it to "subscribers only" when I paste it. It's about Dr. Atkins purportedly being obese at the time of his death.
Pat
Well, never mind....it seems they all change it to "subscribers only" when I paste it. It's about Dr. Atkins purportedly being obese at the time of his death.
I saw that news story! Atkins was 6' and 258 pounds. He died of a heart attack and docs said his heart was [obviously] in poor shape.
I am on a low carb, no sugars, no soda/alcohol, no sweets, lots of fruits, veggies, and for the first time drinking a cup of green tea a day, which totally supresses my appetite and sugar cravings. In two weeks I've lost 6 pounds.
He died of a heart attack
I thought he slipped on the ice and died of complications from his head injury.
Actually the recent press on Atkins is incorrect. He died because he slipped on ice outside his home and cracked his head. He did have a history of some heart disease but it was caused by infection, not arterialscloris (spelling?).
I have been on it for 4 years and it controls my weight quite well when I keep up a normal exercise routine and don't cheat. However a bigger result has been in my health. I used to be sick all the time with asthma and other health problems. I was virtually unemployable. Now I am in great health. If I go off Atkins, all my body chemistry goes whack and my blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar all get too high. If I stay on, I'm well within the range of healthy. In fact, very healthy.
I do have a strong family history of diabetes which I am trying to prevent getting. This may also play a part in why I do so well on reduced carbohydrates.
However a bigger point to make here is that the diet is only very restrictive during the initial weightloss phases and once you hit maintenance, most foods come back into your diet, though you still have to watch quantities and try to avoid the "white" starches. Thus fruit and veges, legumes and whole grains, all make it back into a well rounded low-carb maintenance program.
Additionally, exercise ups the number of carbs you can handle each day and keep the weight off.
I think a lot of the bad press is due to a general trend to oppose changes in the status quo. All I can say there is that 1 out of 5 kids is overweight and a much higher percentage of adults are having weight issues. Heart disease and diabetes are at all time highs and rising.
So if the traditional food pyramid and suggestions of low fat/high carb are so smart, why is our society getting unhealthier?
In my case I've cheated a LOT over the past year. I haven't done Atkins per se since summer, but I have been refraining from eating rice, pasta, and sugar, with a major cheating at least once a week if not twice. Other than that my diet is fairly normal, except I have been addicted to eating Just Fruits which are utterly delicious (so yeah, I get my sugar from fruit). But I've consistently kept those 20 lbs. off, and I've found the most important things is to weigh myself everyday and simply NOT OVEREAT. If I notice I'm on an upward swing in weight gain, I simply hold off on eating carbs or sugar for that day. And that seems to keep my weight in check. It's like working the stock market, shorting (i.e. cheating) on down swings, etc.
I did it in the past...but I found that if you live with other people it is difficult to follow it......the first phase especially.
IT does work, but you really need to monitor your health with those pee strips and stuff....and drink plenty of water so your breath is not too nasty.
The problem is once you fall off of the Atkins diet, the pounds come right back on...believe you me, I know!!!!!
NeonMadman congrats!!! that is quite an achievement!
Mulan, congrats to you too....I have a friend that just started South Beach about a month ago too...I was thinking of getting the book to check it out. It sounds a bit like Atkins, but at a moderate pace.
There is that Glymeric Index thing too....havent read about that...but I heard that is more of a lifestyle change too, which is what seems to work the best. Before I moved I had just cut back on portions, drank more water, watched the little things that used to sneak into my mouth, like those pesky candy bars and shakes...and went to the gym 3 or 4 times a week...and I lost about 20 lbs slowly over a few months but felt great....now that I moved, I have no gym...never can get out of the house and have been too lazy...so it all came back....my bad.
I do have a pilates dvd and good yoga for dummies dvd I used to do...I just need the motivation is all sigh
Hi Holymoly,
As I said, Dr. Atkins weight is in dispute by his widow.
Congratulations on finding a program that works so well for you. I think one advantage the low-carb plans offer is that it discourages/forbids the SIMPLE refined carbohydrates, which pile on the weight. I try to eat macrobiotically which is simply mostly whole grains and vegetables, fruits secondary. It keeps my cravings in control. That's probably a similar effect that the low-carb plans have too.
Pat
I don't like the whole idea personally. I think it contrary to all good sense. I agree with Stilla, eat sensibly and excercise.
Just because you lose the weight, doesnt make it healthy. Mind the food pyramid, and portions. If you cut out all your grains and cereals, you will become deficient in B vitamins and others that are needed to regulate your health, and even process other nutrients.
Little Witch, I agree with you whole heartedly, eating sensibly is the ONLY way to maintain weight control AND stay healthy. However the definition of "eating sensibly" seems to be the point even the experts dispute.
About all we really know if that caloric restriction causes weight loss. In dispute is how best to lose this and lose more fat than muscle. High protein/low carb has been demonstrated to do this better in a number of studies.
However when it comes to blood pressure, heart disease, etc., there isn't any agreement yet, nor do I expect there to be since everyone has to support "their" programs and opnions. Remember ego gets in the way of everything, plus the food companies and the drug companies have tons of money on line depending on what "the answer" is.
Some say eating fat is bad, some say eating fat is good and necessary. Some say eat high protein, others say high protein is hard on your kidneys. You get the idea. There isn't a consensus, just a lot of opinions with a few facts sprinkled here and there and twisted to support whatever view the "expert" has.
I suspect that if we step back 150 years, we see a diet that has fewer processed foods, more protein and less sugar, artificial colors, etc. Thus I suspect anyone eating a more "natural" diet is probably going to have fewer problems healthwise.
We can also look to other cultures and find different ways of staying healthy. Another really big point is that exercise makes all the difference in the world regardless of what diet you eat.
We can also agree that some foods have no positive value (save emotional) in the human diet. Sodas, potato chips and donuts are among these, yet are also wildly popular.
As to Atkins, even they recommend a vitamin supplement, and in some cases a fiber supplement in the beginning stages, but again, once you get closer to the maintenance program, you are including high fiber/low glycemic grains, fruits and veges so there really isn't any reason not to get all the nutrition you need from diet alone.
Also keep in mind that few Americans are getting a well-balanced diet and all their nutritional needs met by their diet, but this isn't a question of what "program" they are on, but rather what choices they make in what they eat.
Lot's of diets promote weight loss, but as others have attested to, if you revert to your original habits, those that made you fat in the first place, you will regain the weight.
Permanent weight loss requires permanent changes. However I think the best bet is to choose an "eating style" that you can live with permanently after you've managed to shed the extra lbs.
