Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Demi
Meanwhile. Let's take a closer look at those two studies supporting Atkins. As a discerning consumer of health information, you need to adopt a slight (if not downright overt) scepticism for any new research. That's not to say that you should dismiss every piece of health news with a contemptuous sneer. What it means is that you need to ask yourself some important questions:
Is the information reliable? - who produced it and why?
Is it unbiased?
Is it relevant to me?
|
I'll refer back to this later...
Quote:
|
In one of the studies, during the first three months, those assigned to the Atkins diet lost an average of 6.8% of their body weight, compared with a 2.7% loss in the low-fat diet group. Similar results were seen after 6 months. But, and this is very important, after 12 months participants in both groups had regained a portion of the weight they had lost, and while the total amount of weight loss was marginally greater in the Atkins group, the difference was no longer statistically significant.
|
I am sick of hearing that "no longer statistically significant" crap...Granted, the pound difference was very little...But, because both groups lost so little, the percentage difference in weight was about 60% [if I remember correctly.] Hardly insignificant.
Quote:
|
In the other study, which lasted only 6 months, the average amount of weight loss was significantly greater in the low-carbohydrate group than in the low-fat group (12.8 vs. 4.2 pounds). In other words, Atkins may outperform in the very short-term, most probably due to depletion of body glucose stores, water and muscle protein, but it is not a diet to live on for the rest of your life - it has no long-term advantages over other weight loss programmes.
|
Let me give a personal comparison. I've done numerous Low-Fat/Low-Calorie diets over the years...Every time, I would lose for a short while (a few weeks/months) and then lose nothing for weeks or even months. Worse, I might even start gaining the weight back, despite not changing my Caloric or Fat intake. I have been on Atkins for over 9 months now. I have lost weight the whole time. My weight loss has not stopped [for more than a week] and sure as hell has not gone back up.
Quote:
|
But are these results reliable any way? Not entirely it would seem. Especially when you consider that they are weakened by the high dropout rate (over 40%) and by the fact that some participants adhered poorly to the dietary recommendations.
|
Yet, he uses this self-admitted unreliable data to conclude that Atkins is no more effective than a LF Diet ???
Quote:
|
And now there’s even more bad news for the Atkins aficionados. Despite the apparent, albeit small, benefits of a low-carbohydrate diet for people who have difficulty losing weight, it is not at all without risk. An earlier study has already highlighted the fact that long-term carbohydrate restriction can increase the risk of osteoporosis, with attendant risks of bone fractures, spinal collapse and nerve damage.
|
BULLSHIT !!! As long as they are getting enough Calcium, that should not be a problem.
Quote:
|
What-is-more, although in a few studies it has been shown to improve certain cardiac risk factors, a low-carbohydrate diet limits the intake of a wide range of plant-derived chemicals, such as flavonoids, carotenoids, and antioxidants, that may help prevent heart disease, cancer, and other disorders. Rather cancelling out any claimed benefits, wouldn't you say?
|
Again, he does not know what he's talking about... because Atkins focuses on the most antioxidant-rich carb sources such as berries, persons on Atkins Maintainance should be getting an excess of antioxidants, etc...
Most-Effective Fruit-Vegetable Sources of Antioxidants:
1) Blueberries*
2) Blackberries*
3) Tomatoes*
4) Prunes***
5) Oranges*
6) Red Grapes**
7) Cherries*
8) Kiwifruit**
Most Potent LDL-Reducing Fruits-Vegetables:
1) Blackberries*
2) Raspberries*
3) Sweet Cherries*
4) Blueberries*
5) Strawberries*
1/2 cup of Blueberries has 1,600 ORACs of Antioxidants, about the same as 5 servings/day of most other fruits and vegetables. To recap, 5 of the 8 most potent sources of Antioxidants are listed as "Eat Regularly" in
AFL...including the Top 3 most potent sources of Antioxidants: Blueberries, Blackberries, and Tomatoes. AFL lists all 5 of the Top 5 most potent LDL-Inhibitory/Reducing Fruits and Vegetables...as "Eat Regularly."
Quote:
|
What is far more important is that any changes in your eating habits for weight loss must be agreeable with long-term health, and that the loss in body weight and the subsequent maintenance at a healthier weight are sustainable for life. The growing evidence is that the Atkins diet is unable to support either of these aims.
|
That is an outright lie. Which would you rather be for the rest of your life: On a LF/HC diet and Hungry all the time or on a HF/LC diet and never hungry ??? I know my answer.
Quote:
|
Therefore, you need to ask yourself, in all honesty, which would I rather be? Crippled by the physical side-effects of the Atkins diet in five, ten, twenty years time, for the sake of a few more pounds weight loss in the short-term. Or slim, vibrant and physically fit in future life - the results you can expect from well-balanced and healthy lifestyle changes - the sort that don't restrict fruit and veg for instance.
|
I think the more appropriate question would be:
Therefore, you need to ask yourself, in all honesty, which would I rather be? A 400/500 pound Diabetic w. Hi-Blood Pressure and Hi-Cholesterol/Triglycerides, because I followed a "balanced" LF diet in five, ten, twenty years time, for the sake of eating "normal." Or slim, vibrant and physically fit in future life - the results you can expect from Atkins - the sort that don't restrict healthy fats and for instance.
Despite what he claims about LF Diets not restricting fruits...it's not true. Avocados are fruits...yet, they have 72% of your daily limit of Fat [on a LF Diet]...despite the fact it is healthy Monounsaturated Fat. Fresh Coconut fares even worse. One medium Coconut has 205% of your daily limit of Fat and 590% of your daily limit of Saturated Fat. That, in effect makes Coconut [a fruit] a forbidden fruit on a LF Diet. Even 1 cup of Coconut exceeds the daily limit of Saturated Fat on a LF Diet.