It seems to me more and more lately that there are large numbers of people who seem fixated on low carb treats. In this forum and especially in the low carb products forum there are many threads about candies, heart cakes, sugar alcohols, breads, etc.

I thought that the point of the Atkins way of eating was to go back to the healthy eating patterns of our ancestors, not to see how many tasty kinds of low carb candy there is out there!

I have always had a sweet tooth and eating too much candy and ice cream is the reason I gained weight to begin with. I am following this WOE (for over a year and a half now) to break those bad eating habits and replace them with good ones, NOT to replace bad eating habits with low carb bad eating habits.

In my personal eating habits I limit low carb treats to special occasions -- birthdays and holidays -- like the regular candies and ice cream were when I was a kid. But it really bothers me to see so many people who are so fixated on low carb substututes for foods that should only be an OCCASIONAL treat.

Am I the only one out here that is bothered by seeing so many other low carbers so focused on treats?

Joan

I don't get "bothered" by it but I do see your point.I myself slowly slipped that way for a while there,lol.But all is ok now and I caught what I was doing before it got out of hand.
That's just me tho
Angel

Your point is valid. I am lucky as I never had issues with sweets at all. I simply enjoy food too much. As I got older, my portions got bigger, and bigger, and so did I. I notice alot of talk about low carb sweets, and I avoid the low carb hype at the grocery store, with the exception of salad dressing and I have some bake mix and hot cereal for my future eating. I hope those tools will allow me to create special treats. I'm not buying any of that "snack Bar" or Russell Stovers. My issues were never sweet related. I guess I'm lucky :-)

I think different things appeal to (and work for) different people. I LOVE the Russell Stover stuff, but since I end up eating it maybe once a month, I don't worry about it. I think it only becomes a problem if it triggers cravings, or if the sweets replace food (with nutrients) that you otherwise need. In other words, if I want a half cup of LC ice cream, I'm not going to cut back on my veggies for that day just so I won't go over my carb allowance.

I agree with your post entirely.

I was on a lc board a year or two back where they banned all talk about sweets as it was bothering alot of the people who try hard to avoid them. I guess it CAN really upset the people who struggle with it. I am no angel, now that I am on maintenance, I DO go out for a chinese buffet once a week, and have the occasional indulgence, but for the most part, I stay true to my low carb as thats how I feel the healthiest. Low carb has cured my acid reflux, released the brain fog I didn't know I was carrying all my life, helped my moms Fibromyalgia considerably and cured her irritible bowel disorders....the minute we eat something really bad...our previous conditions come front and center back to haunt us. It was through trial and error that I got to this point in my WOE. I used the low carb treats once a month when the PMS gripped me and MADE me....thats right I said MADE ME...eat chocolate lol

I guess the main thing regarding posts to do with chocolates, ice cream and other indulgences, is, to make it clear that these are not induction foods or even (if you were to go strictly by the book) OWL foods.

That way newbies and inductees would know you are unlikely to be able to eat in your old way but substitute lo carb and not pay for it somehow either by stalling or actually gaining weight.

I'm not against these products. I think for someone on maintanance or premaintainence to use them occasionally and thoughtfully with a solid knowledge of the Low carb behind them, they are great. But for someone who barely yet has control over craving that have plagued them since induction started, they can be dangerous.

I personally also count all sugar alcohol carbs. The case is strong to do so. One little chocolate bar could literally stop you being able to eat 3 or 4 cups of great vegetables a day....

Yes, it bothers me that some find it upsetting if I want an Atkins carmel nut chew after lunch. This wol is just that, a wol that can be very satisfying and healthy for many people. Food and thread police are not helpful to me. I don't mean to sound harsh, because much of what has been said is true and well meaning. I agree you are not supposed to be having lc chocolate treats in induction. Hopefully, someone in induction might read the book and follow the acceptable foods list. As far as owl foods and going by the book - in DANDR, Atkins says under acceptable foods is that you can "select from the variety of convenience foods (bars and shakes are the two most available)".
I also appreciate the new products part of the forum where members can post about things that they have found that are good or bad to help me be aware of other choices in the market.
Again, whatever works for you is great and I am happy for you, just please allow me that same freedom. I promise, I will not force you to eat any lc chocolate
Rant over.
Marie

what a great post Marieshops and all I have to add to it is: AMEN

I agree with everyone. Different things work with different people. I stuck to the book until I lost my weight. An occasional lc treat help me satisfy a craving that would have sabotaged all my hard work had I not had a few lc treats to fall back on. But than that's just me.

The low carb treats really got me into trouble for a while, I started eating them (candy, chips, desserts) and became obsessed with them! I stalled for months, until I went off of them "cold turkey"! The good part of that is that I learned a lesson about what I can handle on this woe. I do feel, however, that there will be a place for them when I am on maintainence, so it is good to know that they are available as an alternative to regular sweets.

Liz

It doesn't bother me, per se, but I find it disturbing when I see people who, right off the bat, want to simply replace their high carb foods with low carb fakes. If you're eating the healthy food that you're supposed to be eating on induction (or other LC plan), you shouldn't even have *room* for LC replacements, except maybe on the odd day.

I guess what really bothers me is if/when those people then complain that "Atkins doesn't work."

Yes, these products are useful as an occasional treat. But you're not supposed to start induction with one case each of Atkins bars and shakes and "Slim Fast" it.

[ /rant]

I don't think it's a matter of people recently becoming preoccupied by them, it's mroe a matter of they have recently become more widly available and pushed more.

For soem people the only exposure to low carb they have is maybe seeing a media story. Then they go to the store and see the low carb food items. They buy them thinking that is the way to get started. Some may get the book and read it, and many will do a search online for more information finding us before finding the book. Then there is a small percentage that will just give up without doing further research.

For the ones that make it here, they are often advised to give up the LC treats, or offered better homade alternatives for them.

For me, when I first started there wasn't much at all available locally (this was just a year ago). I did spend a ton of money through the local health food store and online shopping to stock up on LC products. Almost all were later thrown in trash. Some tasted so foul I didn't want to be near them, and others such as teh KETO potatoes, I found much healthier substatutes for, like the cauliflowerd potatoes. I still have some LC products around that I consider worth it, but they get used in moderation. My pocketbook and my scale both look better without the added foods

Well said, Kristine!