Atkins and Independent Experts Concerned Over Erroneous News Coverage of 2001 Death of Teen Girl

NEW YORK, Nov. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Recent media coverage concerning a case report in the Southern Medical Journal linking the 2001 death of a 16-year-old girl to a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet has been seriously inaccurate and misleading. Despite the lack of a clear cause of death, the attending physicians suggest that one possibility is that the girl may have died as a result of having spent one or two weeks on some kind of high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet. They make this suggestion based on certain chemical imbalances noted in the girl after death.

The physicians themselves note the possibility that these chemical imbalances could have resulted from a number of factors including bulimia, anorexia and diuretic or laxative abuse. The case study even goes so far as to conclude, " ... it is possible that the patient's dietary regime had nothing to do with her sudden cardiovascular collapse ... " Furthermore, the resuscitative drugs used in an attempt to save this girl's life are also known to cause the chemical imbalances noted during her post mortem.

"While there is no link made by the authors of this case report between this young girl's death and the Atkins Nutritional Approach(TM), and the authors are not at all certain what type of diet she was following. Before anything else, we must express our condolences to the family of this teenage girl," said Paul Wolff, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Atkins Nutritionals Inc. Mr. Wolff continued, "All of our information explaining how to do Atkins properly advises people to consult their physician before
beginning any weight-loss program. We believe the health of all people is of paramount concern and we remain committed to spreading the message that it is always advisable to seek a doctor's care and supervision before embarking on a weight-loss program."

Mary C. Vernon, M.D., a well-respected expert in bariatric medicine [the treatment of obesity] has, like many nutrition experts, been following this story since the first media report 12 days ago. Dr. Vernon has familiarized herself with the case and emphasizes, "As a bariatrician, I frequently use a restricted carbohydrate approach such as the Atkins Diet to treat patients. I
have followed approximately 500 such patients without finding the type of outcome described in this case. My patients are prescribed supplements (as also recommended by the Atkins Diet) and medications such as diuretics are monitored or stopped. I have not seen this type of problem in patients
following my recommendations.

"In my clinical experience, the outcome described in the SMJ case report is similar to side effects of dietary programs called VLCD's (very low-calorie liquid diets). In these types of programs both calories and carbohydrates are restricted and electrolyte imbalances can result. Physicians who supervise these programs monitor for such problems."

This unfortunate association between a young girl's tragic death and some kind of low-carbohydrate diet is also based on a number of erroneous and scientifically unfounded misconceptions on the part of the attending physicians. These include concerns about ketosis, and elevated levels of serum triglycerides and LDL (often referred to as bad cholesterol). It is essential that important scientific studies relevant to this case be well understood. In fact, a recent study out of the University of Connecticut demonstrated that ketosis is not only healthful, but actually may be beneficial to heart health.(1) Other recent studies out of the University of Cincinnati(2), the Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center of Duke University(3), the Philadelphia Veterans Administration Medical Center(4) and the University of Pennsylvania(5) have consistently shown that the Atkins Nutritional Approach (ANA(TM)) fosters consistent improvement in risk factors associated with heart disease. Triglycerides are lowered and HDL (good cholesterol) is elevated, significantly improving the critical LDL/HDL ratio that is one of the key risk factors associated with heart disease. One of these studies (University of Cincinnati) was funded by the American Heart Association. Two of these studies (Philadelphia VA and University of Pennsylvania) were funded by the government. No studies on the ANA(TM) exist showing anything to the contrary.

One of the leading researchers in this field, Eric C. Westman, M.D., M.H.S., Associate Professor of Medicine, Duke University Health System, emphasized that he and his staff have been personally monitoring clinical studies over the past few years conducted at Duke and at other research institutions around the nation; he has looked at safety results both in publication and at presentations and, he unequivocally stresses, "There have been no serious adverse events."

And while all of these studies were conducted on adults, Marc S. Jacobson, M.D., Center for Atherosclerosis Prevention, Schneider Children's Hospital and Professor of Pediatrics and Social Medicine and Epidemiology, North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System(6), who has been studying and reporting for the past few years on the role and use of the ANA(TM) in adolescents confirms that his work is consistent with the positive results thus far demonstrated by his peers. His own study specifically focused on the fact that low-carbohydrate dieting increases weight loss but not cardiovascular risk in obese adolescents. Dr. Jacobson is widely considered to be one of the country's leading experts on adolescent medicine, including the treatment of obesity.

Dr. Jacobson stresses, "In our study of 30 adolescents randomly assigned to a low-carbohydrate vs. low-fat diet approach, the low-carb group lost more weight and had an improvement in their non-HDL cholesterol, a reliable measure of reduced long-term cardiovascular risk. There were no adverse effects on the lipid profiles in participants in either group therefore we feel the low-carbohydrate diet appears to be an effective method for short-term weight loss in overweight adolescents and does not harm the lipid profile."

Atkins has been widely misrepresented over the past years, however the millions of Americans who have been and are now enjoying the health benefits of the Atkins Nutritional Approach(TM) are done a grave disservice by media reports of this kind. There are no scientific studies on the ANA(TM) that would or should have led these physicians to suggest that a low- carbohydrate diet was in any way responsible for this terrible event.

Adds, Dr. Vernon, reflecting the opinion of many experts who have rallied to the support of the ANA(TM), "As a physician who cares about health problems related to obesity, I am deeply distressed by the media's response to the tragic death of a teenage girl. The cultural pressures facing teenage females
are destructive and pervasive, especially relating to body image. The immediate assumption by the media that this outcome was linked to the Atkins Diet does a great disservice, by decreasing attention to all the possible contributing issues. This kind of conclusion driven by media sensationalism rather than science prevents an analysis of all contributing factors. We have a huge problem with teenage eating patterns and a multifactoral analysis of this case could contribute to possible solutions. In the setting of the current media blitz, the scientific process is at risk."

References
1. Volek JS et al.: A Ketogenic Diet Favorably Affects Serum Biomarkers for Cardiovascular Disease in Normal-Weight Men. Journal of Nutrition, July 2002.

2. Brehm, BJ et al.: Effects of a Low Carbohydrate Diet on Body Weight and Cardiovascular Risk Factors, University of Cincinnati, Abstract presented at 85th Annual Meeting of the American Dietetic Association (ADA).

3. Westman, E, et. al.: Effect of 6-Month Adherence to a Very Low Carbohydrate Diet Program. American Journal of Medicine, July 2002.

4. Stern, L et al.: A Pilot Study Comparing a Low Carbohydrate and Low Fat Diet on Weight and Glycemic Control in Obese Diabetics. The Philadelphia Veterans Administration Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA. Abstract presented at 62nd Scientific Sessions of the American Dietetic Association (ADA).

5. Foster, GD: Evaluation of the Atkins Diet a Randomized Controlled Trial, University of Pennsylvania. Publication pending.

6. Sondike S et al.: The ketogenic diet increases weight loss but not cardiovascular risk: A randomized controlled trial. J Adol Health, 26: 91, 2000

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