Uncovering the Atkins diet secret

[Guest guest]

My randon thoughts.

 

This makes sense to me from the point of some who have a need for high

tryptophan intake. If it wasn't needed for Niacin production, that would produce

more seratonin and less hunger.

 

I also think that a lot of people are overweight because their bodies are

deficient in some nutrient and their body is trying to obtain it so, there is

hunger, but usually the person just fills up with empty calories instead of

something with the needed nutrient so it becomes a vicious circle of eating and

no nutrients and eating again. And obesity results.

 

Some people have a high need for amino acids, they will usually do well on a

high protien diet. Others have become additicted to sugar. Others eat because of

a desire ofthe body to aquire needed vitamins, minerals, etc. There isn't one

diet for all. You have to learn about you and your body and your own nutritional

needs whether you are overweight or not to achieve health.

 

For a lot of people, the Atkins diet could spell disaster. If someone had

vitamin deficiencies and needed more fresh vegetables and fruits to get them an

Atkins type diet might make the situation worse.

 

Most of the foods in the average home are nutrient deficient anyway. Even the

supposedly healthy options, so it usually requires that a person supplement

their diet with good nutritional supplements.

 

Frank

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3416637.stm

 

Uncovering the Atkins diet secret

The controversial and popular Atkins diet works for reasons that Dr Atkins may

not have fully understood, the BBC 2 programme Horizon has discovered.

Through a series of scientific experiments the programme shows that although the

diet allows people all the fat and protein they want, they actually eat as few

calories as people on low fat diets.

And the reason for this, according to recent research is because the quantity of

protein the regime encourages, acts like an appetite suppressant.

The meat, fish and eggs in the Atkins diet control hunger and stop people eating

their usual quantity of calories.

The theory behind Dr Atkins' diet is that by cutting down on starchy foods like

potatoes, bread and pasta and eating mainly protein and fats like meat, eggs and

cheese you can eat as much as you want and still lose weight.

Dr Atkins even said there was no need to worry about calories.

Heresy

The idea that people could gorge on as many calories as they desire and still

lose the pounds brought Dr Atkins much criticism and even prompted some

scientists to call his diet " scientific heresy " .

 

 

Horizon teamed up with the University of Kansas and commissioned a scientific

investigation to test Dr Atkins' most controversial theory.

This states that on his diet you actually burn more calories than usual -

allowing you to lose more weight.

Dr Atkins had two ideas about where the extra calories were going. Firstly, he

believed you burn more calories when your body uses fats and proteins as fuel.

If this is true, says Dr Mary Vernon, of the Atkins Physician Council, it makes

exercise less important than usual.

" You wouldn't have to increase your exercise at all because your body would be

working harder, so that you could literally sit in your armchair and lose

weight. "

Dr Atkins also believed that on his diet you lose unused calories by peeing them

away, as part of a process known as ketosis, which happens when you stop eating

starchy foods and sugar.

Twins' study

In Horizon's investigation identical twins were put on different diets, one on

the Atkins diet and one on a conventional low fat diet. Each was fed identical

amounts of calories for two weeks.

 

 

The twins were then locked inside a sealed chamber so that Professor Joseph

Donnelly could calculate how quickly their bodies were burning calories.

Over 24 hours the twin on the Atkins diet did lose more calories than the twin

on low fat, but only 22.

Professor Donnelly even checked the twins' urine for calories and found that the

Atkins dieter had lost less than a single calorie more than his brother on low

fat.

Donnelly concluded that: " the differences were too small to suggest there's

anything significant going on " .

Even though this research is at an early stage, there is little evidence for Dr

Atkins' wasted calorie theories.

Real reason

Horizon examines other studies that reveal the real reason scientists believe

the Atkins diet is effective.

New results from research conducted on the popular BBC series 'Diet Trials'

offer the first clue.

The study examined the Atkins diet and three low fat, low calorie diets.

All four diets worked, but Dr Joe Millward at the University of Surrey who

headed up the research, discovered the secret to why Atkins dieters were losing

weight.

" The Atkins dieters were eating less calories, in exactly the same way as those

going to the slimming clubs on their low fat diets. "

Without apparently trying, people on the Atkins diet were eating less than they

would normally.

Controlling hunger

Scientists are now more interested than ever in what makes us eat less. They

have concluded that there is something about the Atkins diet that controls

hunger.

Research has shown that fat is the least filling food. But new work in Denmark

is showing exactly what kinds of food may control hunger.

Professor Arne Astrup, from the Royal Veterinary & Agricultural University in

Copenhagen, built a supermarket for a special study to find the secret of

appetite control.

Professor Astrup's study focused on being able to eat as much as you want.

He put one group of shoppers on a high protein diet and one on a high

carbohydrate diet.

He was surprised to find that the people eating more protein lost significantly

more weight.

" The reason they lost more weight was because they consumed fewer calories,

despite the fact they had free access to all the food they wanted. "

Increasing the amount of meat, fish and eggs in the diet may not only be the

answer to our hunger pangs, but the secret to how the Atkins diet works.

Perhaps without realising it, Dr Atkins stumbled across the secret of appetite

control, by discovering a high protein diet.

The programme also investigates whether or not the Atkins diet is dangerous.

With no long term studies on the diet, any possible health risks of the diet

are, so far, unproven.

Horizon: The Atkins Diet will be shown Thursday January 22nd at 9pm on BBC2.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

I was not writing about Atkins, but about bioindividuality.

Biologically we are as individual as snowflakes. That there is no one

size fits all in health and eating. When you take a very small item

out of context it then sounds quite different.

 

Diets are used in our society usually for weight loss (weight

control) and miss the main point of eating for health and the weight

will automatically adjust to what is right for the person. That also

is unique to each individual person. When a person focuses so

strongly on that aspect they usually are somewhat blind to the more

important aspect of health. Health gets subverted to image.

 

This list is about health and not about losing weight. And yes, I now

Atkins is not just about losing weight but that is the main focus in

our society. I would be considered a person who eats a mostly Atkins

type diet although I would never consider myself an Atkins diet type

person. (because I have found out for myself what I seem to do well

on and what I do not do well on individually accourding to my own

unique nutritional needs) But in the same vein I would like to be

considered as someone who follows the precepts laid down by Price,

Davis, etc. and in partcular Williams who showed the importance of

bioindividuality in the 1930's or there abouts, I believe. Thats over

seventy years ago and the data still stands to this day, but how many

times is it ever mentioned when it comes to eating, health, diets,

nutrients, etc?

 

I would much rather people were so focused on Adele Davis, Price,

Williams or the ones who came after. Their followers were focusing on

health and not weight loss. One is what is healthy and the other is

focused on what a person should look like to conform to what society

says they should look like to be acceptable. One is not the same as

the other.

 

We have 18,000 messages and most are about health and very few about

diets for weight loss or diets period, so you can tell how important

that is for us as a focus.

 

What I think is much more is the idea of eating for health and our

own bioindividuality. Bioindividuality says that I may need 10 times

the amount of a certain nutrient than another paeson might need. If I

only receive 9 times normal in my diet, I will suffer from a

deficiency. If the other person receives the same 9 times the

nutrient he would have an oversupply and probably have a resulting

imbalance which also would probably cause problems in the future if

it were to be continued. That fact is usually lost in most approaches

to eating for health. It is not a concept that lends itself to being

compatible to points of view when one is trying to garner a large

audience to a particular point of view, whether that is the

governments point of view because they want the person to eat what

some special interest group has a financial interst in or someone has

a book to sell, or some vitamin manufacturer, or whoever. There are

some independent nonbiased sources, but they are very rare. Does that

mean everyone else is without worth. Of course not, but it does mean

that so, far I have not read anyone with all of the answers whether

by having a commercial bindspot or because the amount of knowledge

needed is so large and pure scietific thought gets put on the back

burner in place of commercialism.

 

Or a certain food may be beneficial for me and not so for another.

Our bodies all need things in amounts unique to our own selves. That

fact is usually lost completly on anyone who follows someoone else's

diet. The difference is a one size fits all to a one size that only

fits me. This is the difference betwen learning about what is right

for our own bioindividuality or following some formula laid down for

all.

 

The focus here is on self education of nutrition and health and

not " getting " or " doing " any diet of itself, to the exclusion of more

important points. That is way to simplistic.

 

Frank

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the early stages of Atkins

 

 

 

, " Sara Mandal-Joy "

<sarajoy@m...> wrote:

> >. If someone had vitamin deficiencies and needed more fresh

vegetables and fruits to get them an Atkins type diet might make the

situation worse.

>

> I have to disagree with you here, Frank. People do not " get "

Atkins. If you do Atkins " wrong " - which I must agree many people

do, deciding they can just eat all the meat they want, and NOT eating

their fresh vegetables, then of course I would agree. However,

people who do that have not actually read, or are not following, the

guidelines as written by Atkins. EVEN during the two week induction

period he insists on 3 cups of fresh raw greens. After induction, he

insists on a balanced diet, increasing fresh veggies and low glycemic

fruits. You add things back to the diet slowly, incresing by 5 carb

increments per week, going from low glycemic to higher, seeing what

your body can handle along the way and still lose weight. Many

people are able to get up to 40 or so carbs, some up to 80, and still

lose weight. Some are able to include most green and colored

veggies, and even some whole grain products, as well as berries and

small portions of low glycemic fruits.

>

> It is all laid out very specifically to maximize a balanced way of

eating. Atkins is not high protein diet, it is a low carb diet,

particularly low in processed carbs. All the recent reportings

about " changes " in Atkins are a media frenzy that has nothing to do

with Atkins. The Atkins center has reestablished that nothing has

changed with Atkins - they have always said that saturated fats

should be used with care, have always said to eat red meats only in

moderation, balanced by poultry and fish and other sources of

protein. They have always said eating too much protein is a

problematic for weight loss, as it can convert to glucose. They

have always stressed eating a balnced diet, with an abundance of

fresh vegetables and a variety of low glycemic fruits. I've read

the books - all of them by Atkins, and can testify to this fact.

People who say they are doing " atkins " but are just substitutinn

protein for carbs are not doing atkins. That is not what atkins is

about. Joy

>

>

[Guest guest]

, " califpacific "

<califpacific> wrote:

 

> Diets are used in our society usually for weight loss (weight

> control) and miss the main point of eating for health and the

weight will automatically adjust to what is right for the person.

That also is unique to each individual person. When a person focuses

so strongly on that aspect they usually are somewhat blind to the

more important aspect of health. Health gets subverted to image.>>

 

And this is not said enough - thankyou!

 

I've lurked in a few low-carb forums and have been a bit shocked how

little health is addressed. I haven't read Atkins nor any of the

other low-carb diet books - but my sense from forums and internet

sites is that there is a real lack of health politics in the diet

theories. There seems to be no sense that sugar and wheat products

are bad for your health because of processing etc..., but rather,

stay away from sugar, wheat (and fruit!) because they cause weight

gain. And here - eat all these other toxic foods because you won't

gain weight. Hello?.

 

Your right - it's all about weight and not about health.

 

I've watched my favorite gluten-free bakery change to a low carb

bakery and the product ingredients quickly changed too - everything

now is made with splenda and soy. I've watched my local grocery

store covert shelves to rows and rows of splenda, toxic " low-carb "

diet drinks and low carb bars, low-carb fast foods etc...Does anyone

read the ingredient lists in these products??

 

I'm stunned by this raging obsession towards Atkins. It's taking

over everywhere, including my coffee shop converstions!. What's

going on?.

 

Mary