Who has done Atkins?

[warch]

Dr. Miriam Nelson of Tufts weighs in (doh!) on Atkins. I tend to believe her.

Basically, the Atkins diet, and all the other very high protein diets (less than 20% of calories coming from carbohydrates), is not one that I would recommend. Yes, you do lose weight on these diets but you do so in an unhealthy way and it is very unclear whether you can keep the weight off. If you cut carbohydrates drastically and add a corresponding amount of protein, your body is forced to turn to an inferior fuel source: protein metabolites called ketones. Your kidneys go into overdrive to flush them and the excess nitrogen from the protein out of your system. In the process, you drain water from your body and you become dehydrated (and lose weight). There’s good news on the scales, perhaps, but bad news for your body. You’ve lost mainly water - along with calcium from your bones and protein from your muscle and not as much fat as you might think. Moreover, your kidneys and heart muscle are under stress. People often become light headed and weak when on very high protein diets, and they develop bad breath! In addition, you are missing out on all the health-promoting elements of fruits and vegetables, not to mention fiber from whole grains. Finally, all that saturated fat is not good for your heart or arteries!

The weight loss diet that I recommend (and outlined in Strong Women Stay Slim) is one that is comprised of about 55% of calories from carbohydrates, 15% from protein, and no more than 30% from fat. For the carbohydrates, focus on whole grains, fruits, and vegetables - with as few refined and processed grains as possible. Fat calories should ideally come mostly from unsaturated fats - from olive and canola oils, and especially cold-water fish, which contain health-promoting omega-3 fats. Foods such as poultry, fish, lean meat, and low-fat dairy should comprise the majority of calories from protein foods. This basic diet is safe, wholesome, and health promoting. If weight loss is necessary, the structure of the diet should stay essentially the same, with a decrease in the number of calories consumed from snack foods and refined grains, along with a focus on reducing portion sizes.