Atkins

[phillip888]

Don't forget kidney stones... mmmmm crunchy.

Of course all of this talk of the negative impact atkins fad has on health and taxpayers pales to the animal rights issues. Atkins promotes the consumption of animals. Why someone would promote cruelty to animals and excuse it by the supposedly positive effects it has on someone, well I can understand that point of view, I just can't sympathise with it. I don't believe might makes right.

So are there any alternatives to the atkins diet? Say one or two that are vastly superior and don't involve killing animals or people?

[ConsciousCuisine]

[QUOTE=phillip888]Don't forget kidney stones... mmmmm crunchy.[QUOTE=phillip888]

So are there any alternatives to the atkins diet? Say one or two that are vastly superior and don't involve killing animals or people?

I didn't forget, Phillip; I consider "Kidney Stones" to be a precursor towards developing and therefore a part of "Kidney Disease"...

Here's the "Trinity" of healthy balancing Nutrition Plans for Reducing Wieght and risk of dis-ease:

Raw, Macrobiotic and Dr. Bernard's Plan (all Vegan, naturally... )

[~*Blue*~]

This idea that "maybe calories, not carbohydrates, are to blame for our obesity epidemic," and that low-carb diets work solely by lowering calories, is unfounded. In fact, in studies where people ate the same number of calories where one group ate calories from carbs and the other ate calories from fats, the latter group lost the most weight. That's simply not all there is to it. I'm looking around and trying to find where I saw this study.

I think the main problem with low carb diets is that people ONLY get the "low carb" message, and get excited about eating high fats, and the wrong fats. I think if they put a little more effort into studying what the idea is behind low-carb diets, and what the idea is not, they'd manage to eat healthy, including enough vegetables and the right kind of meats, and maintain health while losing more weight than they've been able to in the past. But people, perhaps especially Americans, are notorious for not wanting to learn/research about decisions.

I think I have seen that study that you're speaking about. The thing is that people on a low-carb diet WILL lose more weight because carbohydrates hold more water molecules (or something like that). There was also a study after that, finding out what the THINNEST people in the WORLD eat (uhm...not counting poverty stricken countries of course)---and they eat a very high carb diet. Go figure. 20 grams of carbs is very low for the initiation phase because the human brain needs more carbs than that. What Americans are notorious for are looking for the easy solution. Exercise is the key and as an american, "we" would rather take a pill or eat a low-carb diet for easy weight loss rather than exercise. My professor, who deals with nutrition in the health care field has had clients DIE from eating the atkins way for years. Many complications have risen from people who stay on this diet for a long time. Cholesterol levels may become better and there seems to be benefits when people first start doing the atkins diet but that is because they are losing weight. I can do any fad diet and if I lose weight, I will appear to have health benefits (if I'm already overweight/obese)---if I continue with the fad diet, I will start to have complications. I will say that at one point, I tried the atkins diet. The way they describe how it all works is very convincing! Anyway, I became bloated and started to fear fruit! A person can try and eat 10 candy bars, eat them and still want more food. I challenge that person to try and eat 10 large apples. It most likely will not happen. They apple will provide more nutrition than the candy bar and it's silly that we have so many people in this country that will not eat fruit b/c it's too high in carbs. Oh, and speaking of studies. It just came out that diets based on the GI system like south beach (diet) do not really have an effect on people unless they have a disease like diabetes. Well, that's enough rambling for today

[PinkFluffyCloud]

I tried it when I was ovo-lacto veggie.
I lived off 'fake meats', eggs and cheese, cream, and rich sauces.
At first I loved it, and was losing weight fast.
After a few weeks I got heart palpitations and was unable to sleep, I was so hyper!!
A friend of mine took me aside and told me how ill I looked, and I suddenly realised what I was doing and stopped.
Ah, the relief when I could eat fruit and potatoes again!
I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, how can you beat a diet of fresh foods?

[julieruble]

What Americans are notorious for are looking for the easy solution. Exercise is the key and as an american, "we" would rather take a pill or eat a low-carb diet for easy weight loss rather than exercise.

Atkins and exercise are not mutually exclusive, and I hardly think my parents' complete revamping of their lifestyle was the easy way out. They needed to change something, especially my mother who has symptoms of insulin resistance.

Cholesterol levels may become better and there seems to be benefits when people first start doing the atkins diet but that is because they are losing weight. I can do any fad diet and if I lose weight, I will appear to have health benefits (if I'm already overweight/obese)---if I continue with the fad diet, I will start to have complications.

Actually, it's supposed to be the other way around. For the first six months or so you see an increase in cholesterol, whereas then the increase in good cholesterol levels out the ratio. I'd also like a definition of a "fad diet." The fact that obesity was so closely linked to diabetes in some people made people think--hm, maybe carbohydrates have something to do with this, and maybe the high carb, low fat diet we've decided is "healthy" is actually contributing to the obesity epidemic. Now, they've actually figured out some things about how the body uses carbs and fat that can help people manage the balance to lose weight.

They apple will provide more nutrition than the candy bar and it's silly that we have so many people in this country that will not eat fruit b/c it's too high in carbs.

My parents eat some fruit. A lot more vegetables than fruit, though. By the way, I don't think people on the Atkins diet do too much candybar chomping either. My parents eat extremely healthy meals.

Oh, and speaking of studies. It just came out that diets based on the GI system like south beach (diet) do not really have an effect on people unless they have a disease like diabetes. Well, that's enough rambling for today

Right, I think it's most effective for those with insulin resistance problems. Not necessarily diabetes, as I understand it.

And again, I'm not advocating the Atkins diet. I am advocating an understanding of the Atkins diet if you want to rant about it.

[ConsciousCuisine]

[QUOTE=julieruble] My parents eat extremely healthy meals.QUOTE]

I am so happy to hear that your family has went vegan! Hopefully you will follow suit, Julieruble.

Only Vegan meals are truly "extremely healthy" meals- healthy spiritually, physically, environmentally and ethically. Yay for Veganism and Health!

[julieruble]

My family has not gone vegan, and they still eat healthily. I'm happy for them as well.

[PinkFluffyCloud]

Oh, I forgot that this was on the 'not a vegan.............yet' part of the forum.

[Artichoke47]

Julie, that's awesome that your parents are eating healthier than they used to! I hope it works out for them. I think a lot of people's comments are based on the typical lazy Atkins person who eats nothing but flesh 'n pus, but I think it is possible to do the Atkins thing while still consuming many vegetables, which is very good!

[veganblue]

This is an amusing flash animation I was sent on a rant about the Atkins diet called FATKINS . I does use mild/strong language (depending on your sensitivity) but I laughed my guts out so you may find it amusing too.

The Foamy Vault

[ConsciousCuisine]

I have seen that one, Veganblue! It is hillarious!

[julieruble]

Julie, that's awesome that your parents are eating healthier than they used to! I hope it works out for them. I think a lot of people's comments are based on the typical lazy Atkins person who eats nothing but flesh 'n pus, but I think it is possible to do the Atkins thing while still consuming many vegetables, which is very good!

Thanks, Artichoke, how sweet of you. I'm very glad they're eating healthier too. It's allowing them to do things they couldn't do before.

I gotcha on the typical Atkins person (although I think that's probably the typical person in general), but I wish people wouldn't generalize. My mom's ventures into this new lifestyle have heightened her awareness about nutrition and meal ingredients, and I feel so much more comfortable with their diet choices now.

[gertvegan]

Judge Lubitz ruled that a Delray Beach businessman’s suit against Atkins Nutritionals, Inc., has legal merit and ordered the case to proceed towards trial. Atkins’ request for dismissal was denied.

[phillip888]

Good news. I was afraid their corporate dominance would get them off immediately. Maybe this case will open peoples eyes.

[VeganChick]

Ketosis Info

This link is about ketosis. It was on the main aol diet page today. Tell your Atkins following friends and family members to check it out if you want. Or just read up for your own knowledge. ENJOY! TAKE THAT ATKINS!

"I'm not gonna follow some diet that tells me I can have2 cheeseburgers and a pound of bacon, but i can't have an apple because AN APPLE HAS CARBS" - Foamy the squirell in "Fatkins Diet" on illwillpress.com

[jumpinglegacy]

Atkin's Diet equals bad. The father of it died early. Variety is key... carbohydrates are my friend... and are crucial to brain function. And everything else function for that matter.

[superfly]

hmmmm, humans have been eating carbs for a looooong time.
suddenly they're bad for you?
maybe it's the quality of the food rather than the quantity.

FWIW-dietary ketosis is not life threatening. it is simply the body burning fat in the absence of enough carbs.


i've lost about 125 lbs, and my cholesteral has dropped from 267 to 140.
i eat alot of carbs; fresh organic fruit mostly, with leafy greens, veggies.
i avoid high carb low fiber (read: processed to death) foods, and never eat a portion larger than my fist.
i eat frequently, 5-6 times a day.
so far all i've read study-wise about Atkins, are short term studies.
it'll be interesting to see how these people do long teerm. i know a few people who lost a tremendous amount of weight (50+ pounds), only to put it all back and then some when they stop the diet.

IMO-a lifestyle change is in order, not a diet.

[MzNatural]

[Trendygirl]

If you want to know more about Atkins check out this link!

http://www.AtkinsExposed.org

[gertvegan]

And look out for Carbophobia: The Scary Truth about America's Low-Carb Craze by vegan MD Michael Greger.

Theres more about Atkins and that the UK Atkins diet company is to close, in the Atkins thread.

[Spiral]

Tee hee. Another fad bites the dust

[Love]

RE making a joke about people who are overweight,please stop because there are a lot of people on this forum who are struggling with eating disorders and they could take it to heart. Thank you.
With love from Love.XXX.

[eve]

Nobody is laughing at overweight people, but at the stupid Fatkins fad.

[Love]

I continue to have the above concern because however you dress it up,it still amounts to being flippant about eating-related problems and the term fat bastards is unambiguously deragoatory. I have no inclination to participate in a cheap joke at the expense of the people on this board who struggle with hellish eating disorders,of whom there are many.
With love from Love.XXX.

[Peas'nHominy]

A very dear friend of mine has HIV. One of the difficulties for him is keeping his cholesterol down. The doctor he goes to has put him on the Atkins diet to help lower his cholesterol. I've tried to warn him, but he said that the diet works, that his cholesterol has lowered. I warned him about the studies that show his cholesterol can go down at first but then rockets up later. His response is that the doctor keeps an eye on it.

I love this friend of mine dearly, and I'm so ... frustrated, ticked, worried, mad...

Anyway, do y'all have any advice? Do y'all know about alternatives out there for folks with HIV? Or do you think I need to just not say anything more? (But it's just so hard to not say something when you really love someone, you know?)

Thanks for any advice/feed-back.

[tails4wagging]

What an irresponsible doctor!!!.

If he eats the right kind of 'good fat' polunsaturated (I think its called) he will be ok. He should demand to see a dietition which the doctor could arrange.

[tails4wagging]

Ps , by the way, I love your username, very clever.

[Mystic]

I don't have any advice, I am afraid - but maybe you could inform your friend that Dr Atkins died of heart disease!

[gertvegan]

Former Dieter Will Have His Day in Court, January 5, 2005, PCRM

WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA—A Florida judge has just denied Atkins Nutritionals’ second attempt to have a groundbreaking lawsuit against it dismissed. The lawsuit was filed last May by Jody Gorran, a former dieter who developed a life-threatening artery blockage after following the high-fat fad diet for two-and-half years. Palm Beach County judge Susan Lubitz also ruled that Atkins must comply with Gorran’s requests for documents, answers to written questions, and depositions of senior Atkins officials. The rulings mean that the lawsuit will move forward towards trial and the discovery phase will commence, during which Gorran, 53, will seek support for his contention that the privately-held corporation knowingly misled the public about the high-fat diet’s potential dangers.

“The judge’s ruling is good news for the little guy and bad news for unscrupulous companies cashing in on people’s weight problems,” says former dieter Jody Gorran. “This case could be the final nail in the low-carb coffin.” Recent news reports have focused on the decreasing popularity of the diet and the financial troubles of Atkins Nutritionals.

Judge Lubitz denied Atkins Nutritionals’ first motion to dismiss in November soon after hearing oral arguments presented by Dan Kinburn, representing Jody Gorran, and Martin Reeder for Atkins Nutritionals. Kinburn is senior counsel for Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.

In both attempts to have Gorran’s case thrown out of court, Atkins Nutritionals had argued that the company was protected under the first amendment. But case law strongly supports Gorran’s lawsuit. For example, in U.S. v. Schiff, the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, ruled against the publishers of The Federal Mafia, a book promoting a tax evasion scheme, finding that commercial speech can be enjoined if it is fraudulent. In another well known case, Braun v. Soldier of Fortune Magazine, the court found that advertising murder-for-hire is not accorded free-speech protection.

Gorran argues that the Atkins diet caused him to develop severe coronary disease, including dramatically elevated cholesterol levels, crushing chest pains, and a potentially fatal arterial blockage requiring an angioplasty and a stent. A heart scan done prior to Gorran beginning the diet showed no signs of heart disease. He is asking that all Atkins products and books be required to carry warning labels. He is seeking less than $15,000 in damages.

Previously poste in wrong thread, doh!

[gertvegan]

British dieters' fascination with the Atkins diet could be over, with the company appointing an administrator for the UK arm of its business.

Read all about it, read all about it.

So was this, doh! doh!

[feline01]

Garlic lowers cholesterol as does a.....vegan diet!. His doctor is completely irresponsible. Most of the HIV medications have as a side-effect elevated cholesterol and many people with HIV die from massive heart attacks due to elevated cholesterol. His doctor should be advising him to avoid saturated fats, animal proteins and trans-fats. There are loads of books out now dealing with diets and auto-immune deficiency issues. Maybe you could buy your friend one of these books? Maybe something like this: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...glance&s=books

[Geoff]

From todays Brisbane Sunday Mail:
'A waiter at a Californian Sizzler was arrested last year following a fight with some Atkins-diet customers over whether vegetables could substitute for potatoes.
Participants in web-based forums sympathised with the young man's saga, although all agreed he took it too far in following the customers home and covering their house in flour, maple syrup and instant mashed potato.'

[Peas'nHominy]

Thanks y'all!! I feel better knowing that I'm not just being...weird, in my being upset over this. ..... sigh


I WILL check out those books. Maybe I can get some data together on this subject to pass on to him, and then maybe he might be willing to do some reading on it for himself. Unfortunately, he's very hard headed but so am I !

[spo]

Garlic lowers cholesterol as does a.....vegan diet!. His doctor is completely irresponsible. Most of the HIV medications have as a side-effect elevated cholesterol and many people with HIV die from massive heart attacks due to elevated cholesterol. His doctor should be advising him to avoid saturated fats, animal proteins and trans-fats. There are loads of books out now dealing with diets and auto-immune deficiency issues. Maybe you could buy your friend one of these books? Maybe something like this: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...glance&s=books

Yes P&H, Feline01 has it right. This is the best advice and boy, let me add that I am shocked, too, by the terrible advice your friend's doctor gave him. BTW, the garlic will help raise his non-specific immunity, too.
I think we can say, with assurance, that the HIV meds are the cause of this troubling elevation in cholesterol. Feline01's book suggestion is good, and eating right, will, not only, help lower cholesterol, but also keep him stronger and healthy.
One more thing, I do think he does probably need a vegan protein supplement to augment the attack on his immune cells. He needs the amino acid building blocks to replace his cells.
spo

[gertvegan]

March 21, 2005, www.pcrm.org

Lawyers for Diet Giant Concede in Court that Diet May Be Dangerous; Attorneys Attempt to Quash Release of Potentially Damaging Documents, Studies on Atkins Diet Safety

PALM BEACH, FLORIDA—Seeking to quash the release of what are sure to be damaging and embarrassing documents on the safety and efficacy of the famed Atkins diet, lawyers for Atkins Nutritionals, Inc., admitted last Monday in court that they are willing to “assume the diet is dangerous”—the first public admission of any kind that dieters following the Atkins Diet may face real and severe health risks.

In a hearing before Palm Beach County Judge Susan Lubitz on March 14, Atkins’ lawyers argued that discovery—the pretrial exchange of information between parties under court supervision—on matters relating to the diet’s safety was unnecessary because they were prepared to concede that the regimen does pose health risks for purposes of an upcoming motion. Atkins’ attorneys sought to avoid discovery, asking the court instead to move directly to arguments as to why the case should be dismissed.

Judge Lubitz rejected Atkins’ argument, ruling that she needed to hear the plaintiff’s discovery requests first. She ordered discovery to proceed as part of the lawsuit filed last year by Jody Gorran, a Florida businessman who developed near-fatal heart disease after two years on the high-fat, low-carbohydrate Atkins Diet.

Attorneys for Atkins now face a March 29 court-ordered deadline to respond to Mr. Gorran’s motion to require Atkins to produce relevant documents and information dealing with the diet’s safety and on the marketing of the Atkins Diet books and food products as safe.

“Atkins’ conspiracy of silence is about to crack wide open,” said Dan Kinburn, Gorran’s lead attorney and senior counsel for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. “We contend that Atkins has known for years, if not decades, that the regimen poses a real danger to significant numbers of dieters and has suppressed that information for commercial gain.”

Among the information requested in discovery, said Kinburn, are the complete medical records of the late Dr. Robert Atkins, inventor of the Atkins Diet. Atkins died in April 2003 in a fall outside his New York offices. Medical records taken by the NY medical examiners office show that Atkins was overweight at the time of his death, tipping the scales at nearly 260 pounds, and may have had cardiovascular disease.

There has long been speculation that Atkins suffered from coronary artery disease. A year before his death, he suffered a cardiac arrest while waiting for breakfast. Atkins and his private physician issued statements claiming that the episode was caused by cardiomyopathy, an inflammation of the heart muscle, and not the result of arterial blockage.

[Seaside]

Yay!

[Roxy]

Well - perhaps the craze is over!

[tails4wagging]

Thank goodness for that!!!!

[Tofu Monster]

excellent. stupid unnatural diet.

[Kiran]

Hah!! Perhaps we should all bombard them with e-mails embarrasing them and their stupid diet. Atkins was pathetic...

[Mystic]

You know, I kind of like the thought of clogging my arteries with butter, cheese and animal fat, being constipated from lack of fibre and the bad breath that accompanies this diet. No f**king wonder they went broke.

[Kiran]

There were on a mission to make money and kill people.

[veganator]

Read it and cheer:

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=stor...ins_bankruptcy

[Kiran]

High time

[librahi]

There were on a mission to make money and kill people.

suits me fine, kill off the meat-eaters, then the vegans take over the new friendly world!

[Kiran]

suits me fine, kill off the meat-eaters, then the vegans take over the new friendly world!

I don't mind the meat eaters dying because they eat animals. It is the animals killed that I am worried about.

[coconut]

That's a surprise. The Atkins diet is virtually a household name. Odd that they've lost all their money. Still I'm glad to see them go. Anyone who takes advantage of peoples low self-esteem deserves all they get. Next I hope they file for super-duper bankruptcy

[rainbow]

Good bloody riddance. I think the Atkins diet is an exemplary example of how badly some people understand nutrition. (The same people that then turn round and ask me if I'm anaemic/undernourished/at death's door for eating my healthy, well-balanced vegan diet). Not to mention the fact that it's absolutely disgusting!

[mophoto]

i heard on npr that the adkins company is filing for bankruptcy (i can't spell)


i was so excited to hear that. i flipped through an adkins book and it said that if you are a vegetarian that you may want to rethink it, to loose weight.

hate that bastard.

i had to go out and buy new jeans today because i lost a whole size!!! only being vegan for a month.

i should write an anti adkins vegan diet book once i loose all my cheese and egg weight.

[Kim[ba]]

Well, I don't really disagree with that statement. If your vegetarian to loose weight then maybe you should re-think it. We should all think and re-think about what and why we eat the foods we choose. We live in the 21st century and have access to foods from all over the world. Also that statement has some merit, vegetarians eat cheese and eggs, so if someone becomes vegetarian to loose weight and starts going nuts on eggs, cheese and milk then chances are they will gain weight. It's also possible, but I think more difficult to become overweight on a vegan diet. There are multiple factors and mind sets that effect our eating, not just the elimination of certain foods.

Wow, that was a mouthful wasn't it lol. That being said, I'm not really surprised the whole using a calculator to see if you could eat a cheese bagel thing died out. I knew it eventually would but I'm surprised it's come this early. People are becoming more aware of what they eat, and I pray that they let their hearts, and not their calculators guide them.