Hi! I have been on the Atkins plan for 10 months now. I have lost 67 pounds and I only have 18 more to go before I reach my goal. I love this new WOL, but for the last 10 months I didn't take one vitamin, like a total fool! My tongue turned pure black (sorry, to sound gross), so I went to my doctor. He was one of those doctors that is against the Atkins plan. He told me that it was a lack of vitamins that had turned my tongue black and basically I was just killing myself from the inside out. I'm one of those people that when I get nervous I tend to smile, he told me to go ahead and smile, that the next time I wouldn't be smiling, if I stayed on the diet....blah blah blah. Which I knew I was wrong by not taking my vitamins. He also said that the Atkins "Diet" is making my enzymes, metabolism and heart so messed up and that he didn't go to school for 14 years to know that to lose weight is to eat less and excursus. So, I went to Walmart and bought the Dr. Atkins starter kit deal with the million vitamins in it. I'm not a pill person anyway, that's why I didn't take them in the first place, but I know now how important it is to take them. So..after all that... here is my question: Has anyone here tried the Dr. Atkins starter kit or buy all the vitamins in the kit? Because I took the recommended doses:

One hour before breakfast I took:
2 Dieters Advantage
1 Accel

One hour later at breakfast I took:
1 Basic #3
1 Essential oils
1 L-Carnitine (which I bought separately)

One hour before lunch I took:
1 Accel

One hour later at Lunch I took:
1 Basic #3

One hour before dinner I took:
1 Accel
2 Diters' Advantage

One hour later at dinner I took:
1 Basic #3
1 Essential Oils

I started them today and have taken all of them and feel like I'm in another world. I feel like I'm high as a kite and that I could run a marathon. I really don't like this feeling. Will it go away or is there one certain vitamin that this is doing this to me? Or...did I not read the dosages right or something? If you did feel this way ...will it go away after my body gets used to them? Are all of these vitamins really necessary, like could I cut the dosages down or anything? Sorry for so many questions...... Thanks for any help!

wow your tonge turned black? Thats terrible. As far as feeling high as a kite thats great if u ask me, i would love to have that kind of energy. Guess ill go buy that starter kit now LOL. I just take one multi-vitamin a day now.

I did a quick Google search for black tongue and vitamin deficiency was not listed as a cause. Try http://www.ivillagehealth.com/exper..._174979,00.html for an answer. Does the answer apply to you?

First, I have to say: What a jerk your dr is! He should be congratulating you on your weight loss and the health benefits I'm sure it's brought you, and then if he has concerns about the way you acheived it, kindly expressing those concerns. He could have done that and then stressed how important the vitamins are. Also, this makes me mad, because what so many people against low carb don't understand is that we probalby get MORE vitamins in our daily dose of veggies than the average person who consumes nothing but white bread, rice, french fries and sugar all day gets. I realize that we may get less than some one who eats a well rounded meal of good WHOLE foods, fruits, veggies, whole grains, etc. and this is why it's important to take vitamins, but I KNOW that the average person does not eat this way. And I'd be willing to bet that they don't get chewed out by their drs. I don't know what your daily menu is like, but I know I eat tons more veggies and even the occasional fruit than I ever did before. Whew! Thanks! Okay, now that I've had my vent...

As far as the vitamins go, this is only MHO, but I think if you were to take a good quality multi vitamin you would be fine. Again, this is just my opinion, but I think the Atkins pills are just another way for the company to make money. I don't think they are any better than a good quality multi vitamin would be. Unless you are having a specific problem that a specific vitamin would help with, then you could look up the problem in the book and see what he recommends. I also don't know what the ingredients are in each of the pills that come with the starter kit, so it's hard to say what could be causing you to feel the way you do. I know that vitamins can help you feel better and have more energy, but I don't think you should be feeling the way you described. I personally would not take them if you don't like the way they make you feel. REad up in Atkins book to see what he says each vitamin will do for you and then try to determine if you are really needing everything that is in the starter kit. I know there are certain vitamins he recommends to help control specific problems, that you may not need.

I didn't mean that to sound negative against his vitamins, I'm sure they are fine. But I just think you should be aware of all of what you are taking and also, that you may not need everything that is in the starter kit. If you do decide to take a regular multi vitamin instead, there is one thing I would recommend doing to what ever one you buy to make sure it is a good one. (You could try this with Atkins also) Put it in a glass of water. It should dissolve within 30 mins. You'd be suprised at how many vitamins out there will not ever dissolve. Just imagine what it does in your stomach and how many of those nutrients you'll actually be getting if it doesn't.

Sorry to go on and on. Hope this helps! And congrats on the 67 lbs! That is now small feat, and regardless of what your dr. says, you should be proud.

yeah...um, i don't think it was the Atkins diet that turned your tongue black--that's crazy! people have been doing this diet for much longer. And hello, before vitamins were discovered in the 1920's, no one took supplements/ate fortified foods....i'm sure its not a vitamin deficiency

that said, there could be lots of other explanations for why your tongue turned black--i would see another doctor! even some medicines/foods can have this effect ie. did u know taking the pepto bismol tablets turns your tongue black? there are also some conditions-- i once went to the doctors the day after i took those pepto bismol, and forgot to mention it to her...she started explaining some diseases to me until i broke it and told her what had happened best of luck! =) and congrats on the weight loss thus far!

While doing Atkins and keeping track I was having 100% or better of all my RDA values without vitamins. I ate enough veggies, adn the occasional fruits, to get there.

As for vitamins, paying for the Atkins brand can sometimes be expencive. Taking a good multi that is starch and sugar free is enough for many. Some people also take extra potassium and magnesium because all the water we drink can flush electrolytes. Calcium is also a commonly taken one.

If you have already bought all those vitamins, then no problem. It just comes down to can you take that many pills a day without getting sick of it fast? The high as a kite could be from the accell as it has caffine added.

You might also look into changing doctors if it is allowed. I know some insurances can make that a real pain. If you can't change doctors just have a serious talk with him. Bring in a list of all the veggies you eat and ask him how that is unhealthy. Also ask him if he has read the book, and if not if he wouldn't mind having an actual discussion about it with you. If he refuses that is a very bad sign. A doctor who doesn't listen to his patients misses alot of health related information until it's to late at times.

Beckii- I take pre-natal (pregnancy) vitamins from Walmart and I'm NOT pregnant! They have 100% of almost everything. I also take one calcium in the afternoon.

I don't know about your tongue (I don't think its the diet), but wrt feeling high, well you went from taken nothing to taking everything, and that overnight. I don't know whether you need all these pills or not, I'm not a doctor. But if you do, perhaps introducing a new pill every couple of days would seem to be a good thing to do.

Personally, I take a good multi vitamin (without iron) and a calcium, potassium supplement.

Hey everyone,

I heard that the 100% of the dailey requirement was created as a MINIMUM by the military as the what someone would need to survive. Atkins (the DR., not the company) recommends much more than minimum daily requirements.

My only piece of advice to you is to find another doctor. Doctors are human, just like everyone else, and they can be unreasonable and pigheaded. Medical school is not a cure for obstinacy.

And tell your husband that LOTS of doctors are doing Atkins themselves.

Is he a big man himself? I think that he may be insecure about his wife becoming more skinnier and more attractive (not trying to be shallow, but our world looks at the size of our tummies as a factor to gauge how attractive we are). He probably takes solace in that you'll just plump right back up.

My wife gives me crap about Atkins sometimes...but she's pregnant and has gestational diabetes, thus she is self-conscious about her belly getting bigger. Which she has only gained 10 lbs. and she's 35 weeks along. I think that she is genuinely happy for me that I am losing the weight, though. The crazy thing is, I've lost weight both times that she has been pregnant.