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Article Series: Weight Loss & Dieting
How Do I Really Lose Weight?
The
Atkins Diet: What is it?
Nearly
everyone has heard of the Atkins Diet by now, even if not
necessarily clear on what it is. Some may
even know it as the source of “low-carb” diet craze in the
country, but don’t know much about it beyond that. Considered
as controversial as it is revolutionary, the Atkins Diet has
worked successfully for a tremendous number of people, and
not so successfully for a good amount of others. This article
aims to place a neutral and objective eye on this popular weight
loss program.
Re-introduced in the 1990’s (after an initial period of popularity
in the 1970’s), the Atkins Diet is the brainchild of Dr. Robert
Atkins.
The
diet works in several phases, the first – or the “induction
period” – lasting only 2 weeks. In this phase, dieters are
not to eat any more than 20 grams of carbohydrates of any form
each day. The bulk of a person’s diet during this period, then,
is fats and proteins. Usually, a dieter will reach their 20
gram limit on carbohydrates simply from the small amounts in
foods like salad dressing, cheese, sauces, condiments, and
vegetables.
Forbidden from a participant’s diet during this 2 week induction
period are fruits, grains, breads, cereal, milk, and vegetables
with a high-glycemic index (a measure of the effect a food
has on the body’s blood sugar).
During this period, the body enters a state called “ketosis”,
where it begins burning its own residual deposits of fat in
order to produce the energy for which it previously had been
relying on your regular consumption of carbohydrates.
Atkins also asserts that the source of most weight problems
people experience is an “insulin-resistance” that causes overweight
bodies to have difficulty converting carbohydrates into glucose
(or sugar) which becomes energy. In this state of ketosis induced
by the induction phase of the Atkins Diet, the insulin function
of the body is affected in such a way that impedes the production
of more fat.
After the two week induction period ends, dieters are then
permitted to increase their carbohydrate allowance by 5 grams
each week. In other words: they’re allowed 25 grams of carbs
per day throughout week 3, 30 grams of carbs per day throughout
week 4, 35 g in week 5, etc.
Depending on the person’s body type and weight objectives,
this gradual increase in carbs should level off somewhere between
40 g and 90 g per day. At this point, the dieter is considered
to have entered the “maintenance” phase of the diet, where
they ought to remain for the rest of their lives. Although
counting calories is not a part of the Atkins Diet, studies
by the North American Association for the Study of Obesity
found that adhering to the restrictions imposed by the Atkins
Diet led to a decrease of 1,000 calories from participant’s
daily caloric intake.
A quick perusal of the recommendations published by most traditional
health experts and health organizations will reveal that 40-90
grams of carbs per day is still a miniscule amount compared
to that of what they consider a “standard” healthy diet.
The Atkins Diet also contradicts authorities (US FDA and the
American Cancer Society included) that extol the virtues of
eating fruits, vegetables, and whole grain breads and cereals.
According to Atkins, even “healthy” carbohydrates are harmful
in large quantities.
Studies by the Annals of Internal Medicine and the New England
Journal of Medicine have actually found that participants on
the Atkins Diet experienced an improvement in heart disease
indicators.
Like the 80’s and 90’s were to “low-fat” and “fat-free”, Dr.
Atkins has helped make the early 21st century “low-carb”. Whether
that’s for better or worse is up to you. # # # # #
SolveYourProblem.com
: 2008
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