I just got this e-mail from my cousin - I'm really disappointed as she really needs to lose weight and was doing well on Atkins. Would anyone who is knowledgable in these matters like to address these issues and I'll copy'n'paste and send your info to her.

Dear Rob
Well there has been so much bad press about the Atkins Diet lately - saying
that it can give you kidney failure and internal organ failure that I have
given it up and gone on to the Slimming World diet - at least I can eat
fruit and veg now instead of all the fat and cream!!

Thanks in advance.

The problem with the field of nutrition is that it's like black magic. However, one thing I do know is that Dr. A was NOT a nutritionist, he was a CARDIOLOGIST. And I am way more inclined to listen to a guy with a medical degree than one with a bachelors in sports medicine (no offense to any of you nutritionists out there, but that's just how I feel.)

Internal organs, like what, the liver? My doc told me that it was fine to go on Atkins, because I did not have any preexisting liver/kidney conditions, and that all the water you drink will do a fine job of flushing your system.

As for other organs such as the heart, well, small studies are actually coming back that Atkins actually balances out your blood lipid levels in a healthy way as opposed to low fat, high carb diets.

i holeheartedly agree with desertboy.
i,ve been on atkins for 3 years now, as a diabetic, my blood lipids are checked every 6 months and they are better than they were on a standard diet. my liver function and kidney function is fine. i have NO WORRIES AT ALL ABOUT LOW CARB EATING.it,s the best thing i ever did. i,ve yo-yo dieted all my adult life, losing the same stone over and over again but not any more. my weight has been stable for over 2 years without any effort at all.
at the moment the british press has a real downer on atkins. we get 3 daily newspapers a day and every day for the last week there has been a report on how bad the atkins diet is. these reporters have obviously never read the book. they prefer to tell us that we will get kidney stones,kidney failure and many other problems.i think they are just terrified to admit atkins works. after all, what would happen to ww, slimmimg world etc if the british public knew how effective and healthy this way of eating really is.
just one more thing, i eat more veggies than i ever did.i also eat fruit-berries.

christine

All I can add is that there really is NO scientific evidence that eating this way is harmful. Just tell your cousin that he is sabotoging himself by believing the bad press.

Or do some Dr. Phil on him. For example: So you like eating all the bad/ junk carbs??? How's that working for you??? You choose the behavior, you choose the consequence. etc.

my $.02

I understand your frustration. I have htis argument with my mother all the time. She can plainly see how healthy I have been on this WOE, but she keeps bringing up all the negative press she hears. Meanwhile she has been on a low fat diet and is gaining weight! Right now I get to hear how I am hurting my baby with all the meat I am eating. My rebuttal that I have a lot of fruits and veggies as well gets brushed over. I am at a point where I may just tell her we agree to disagree!

The best advice I know how to give to anyone who even considers doing Atkins or any other diet is to READ THE BOOK!

If your cousin isn't eating vegetables and is concerned about internal organ damage, she obviously didn't read the book. If she's not serious enough to crack the book to learn WHY she's eating a certain way, she's setting herself up for failure, be it Atkins, Weight Watchers, Slimming World, or whatever.

This isn't like getting a new VCR, where it doesn't matter whether we read the book to learn how to stop that darned blinking "12:00," this is our life and our health we're talking about.

It's amazing to me that the answers are covered right in the book, but so few take the time to read it. And it's not like it's a dull read. Dr. Atkins' writing style is comfortable and easy to read, and the information covering the problems that we've all lived through and their underlying causes is fascinating.

Tell her to READ THE BOOK and then think for herself!

Sorry, just had to vent. (The crazy man will now leave the room).

Jeff

you CAN eat fruit and veggies on Atkins! grrr....

Gosh darn it... i think that is the misconception about Atkins that cheeses me off the most... people who are on this WOL are usually consuming MORE than the recommended daily servings (3 cups = 6 servings) of vegetables... and way more than the average American (or Canadian) eats! Even in Induction!

And once we get past induction we get to eat berries (!) and gradually re-introduce other fruits and veggies.

In DANDR, the good Doc says straight out that no one with pre-existing kindey disease should do this diet. But doing the diet won't give you kidney disease.

See if you can get her to read the book... tell her to cruise the website... heck, tell her to come here and we will bombard her with good reasons, examples, and lots and lots of support!

I hope your cousin comes "back into the fold". In the long run, she's sacrificing her health, not just her waist line.

Well, she's obviously made up her mind but at LEAST she's gone to Slimming World not WW. SW is actually a very good weight loss program. I did it for years but never lost my cravings.

It's a shame but she's got all her facts wrong.

For Reference...I'm in OWL right now and at 35g.

USDA:

Whole Grains -- 6-11 Servings
Vegetables -- 3-5 Servings
Fruit -- 2-4 Servings
Dairy -- 2-3 Servings

My Diet:

Whole Grains -- ZERO !!! They lower HDL (Good Cholesterol) and contain compounds that block Nutrient Absorption. Grains (Whole and Refined) are VERY bad for you. They should only be eaten on rare occassions...and preferably NEVER eaten.

Vegetables -- 8-12 Servings (Exceeds USDA by 100-300%)
Fruit -- 2-3 Servings (Within USDA Recomendations)
Dairy -- 2-3 Servings (Within USDA Recomendations)

Rob...

It sounds like she has her mind made up, but you might want to ask her if she honestly believes everything that she reads and hears in the media without question. If the answer is "no" then why is this any different and to be believed without question or any research on her part as to whether or not it's actually documented to be true (documented actual problems directly attributable to low carbing, not "might cause" or "could possibly cause" or "we think it may cause")?
Sure, the media says a lot of negative things about low carbing (most of it based on very poor research, if any at all), but the fact is that the medical profession has been challenged to, and has yet to produce, one person who has developed kidney disease as a direct result of following a low carb lifestyle. Of all the negative stuff I have read regarding a low carb WOE, all of it has been based on opinion instead of fact or by quoting a study that was based on a high carb diet, not a low carb one. The actual studies that have been done on low carb have failed to prove the dire health predictions as outcome to be so, much to the surprise of some of the researchers. Quite the opposite in fact. Weight loss comparisons aside, the blood studies of the low carbers looked better than the control diet participants' in every study so far at the completion of the study. As a matter of fact, I work with someone who is prone to kidney stones and has had them several times. He's been low carbing for about 18 months now, has reached and maintained his goal weight and has yet to develop a kidney stone. I myself have been following a low carb WOE for 2+ years and as a diabetic have blood studies done every 6 months (which include kidney and liver function) and so far none of my organs have failed, exploded or othewise shown any sign of problems. This is significant since diabetics are prone to such problems (kidney disease) just by having the disease, let alone by adding low carbing to the mix. If it in fact does cause such problems, I'd think they would have begun to show themselves in my blood studies by now if they were going to. Not long term enough? Dr. Atkins followed his own WOE for many years without health issues and Dr. Richard Bernstein is now 40+ years into a low carb lifestyle without ill effect (just the opposite in fact) and he is a type 1 diabetic...even more prone to heart and kidney problems just by being diabetic. Not only has he not developed any of these problems, he reversed his already existing kidney disease by low carbing along with several other diabetic complications that he had already developed before he began low carbing.

This article got a lot of attention:

http://www.frontpagemag.com/Article...cle.asp?ID=1726

Could it be that...Atkins was...gasp!...right??

badgoat

I do not try to convince anyone to join me on Atkins. I read the book and made the decision for myself. After losing my cravings for carbs (my downfalls were popcorn, chips, candy, and ice cream) I decided this is a WOL for me. I feel like a smoker who finally stops wanting a smoke. I don't ever want to go back.

I am not a big meat eat and find that I don't really each a lot of meat on Atkins. I do eat lots more vegetables. I eat all the cheese I am permitter and some days a bit more. I get nuts full of good oil. I make some goodies like muffins, crackers, pancakes with low carb products. I know that I am eating healthier than I did before.

I watch my carbs closely for a time and then I up them and relax and enjoy for a while; then I watch the carbs closely again. I am now at 8 weeks on Atkins and have lost 13 pounds. Not the most; not the least; but definately something that makes me happy.

When I tell folks about my results and Atkins, I lend them the book and tell them to decide for themselves. We may want better for those we care about, but we cannot force them to do what we think will make things better for them.

Accept your relative's decision and support it.

I've always had a lousy diet. Fast food , icecream and cake were my mainstays.

I've tried many low fat diets and I alsways feel like crap.

I've found that low carbing has actually made my diet healthier. I eat far more veg than I'm used to. I' carb sensitive so I cant mess with fruits, but I eat lots of nuts and drink tons of water.
Also, LC has helped me to get into the habit of taking my supplements.

Ive hopped off the wagon many times, but when I'm on within two weeks my energy level goes up, my skin clears, my nails start growing and depressions (which has been my constant companion for years) goes away.

I dont know what the scientists say, but my body tells me that this WOE is healthy.

well this has been my experience, my husbands family was always telling me this was not a good way of life, and i just let them talk. then my husbands uncle was in for a check up with his doctor and overheard the doctor call him an obese male on his transcription. he was so upset he asked if he could borrow my book, and he is now hooked. he has lost 60 pounds and his wife has lost 35. they both said they feel alot better and really look better. so now the whole family is wanting this book, i should charge rent on it. his doctor has told him his blood pressure is so much better because of the weight he has lost, and to keep up the good work.

i have discovered myself that you may not lose as many pounds as you would like, but the inches are what matter. i am probably the only 136 pound size 4 i know and feel great. so to all of you i practice what my dad used to tell me i did all the time, let it go in one ear and out the other. have a great day

I think your relative may just be looking for a way out of the diet. My mother lasted 2 days on Atkins before she started whining about missing her Hershey bars, so I just let it go. I know, for myself, that I eat MUCH better now than ever before either on or off a diet. I eat salads at least once a day, actually feel like it's a treat to eat berries, and LOVE my nuts for a snack. I also enjoy my bacon and cheese, but I don't go crazy with them. If your relative wants to find something to help her go back to her high carb lifestyle, let her go. Especially, if all this diet has taught her is to eat all "fat and cream".