The Pros And Cons Of The Atkins Diet

Women and men are frantically searching in aisles of products for the next miracle weight reduction method. Nutrition plays a fundamental role in our lives, with the potential to extend or diminish life span, as well as define enjoyment of life as we progress in age. There has become an urgent need in today’s society to monitor calories, food intake, and the types of nutrients and supplements we are inputting by the hour into our bodies. In 1972, Dr. Robert C. Atkins, MD became a figure in the weight loss industry after creating a high protein, high fat, low carbohydrate diet, labeled, “The Atkins Diet”. His theory claimed that the culprit to obesity: a high sugar diet forcing the pancreas to manufacture or produce the hormone insulin, prompting

There is a correlation between heart disease and atherosclerosis with foods containing a high fat content. A high content of saturated fats found in animal products and trans fats raise cholesterol levels leading to atherosclerosis. Saturated fats should be no more than 10% of an individual’s energy, and for those with diabetes, that decreases to no more than 7% of total energy. The Atkins diet although placing little regulation on fat; they do regulate the types of fats being consumed. Many of the fats recommended are unsaturated, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats present in fish, nuts, olive oil and seeds, lowering LDL, bad cholesterol in the blood. However, it is important to keep in mind, “in a healthy diet, about 30% of total daily calories should come from fat” (Hanson, 2014). If it exceeds 37% of total calories, the risk of cardiovascular disease increases even with unsaturated fats. The Atkins Company released an article stating, “It is the position of the Atkins Nutritional Approach that all three types of fats (saturated, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated) are necessary and important to human health and should be incorporated into the diet in a balanced proportion” (Atkins, 2016). The idea behind a high protein diet is that in general high protein foods cause a feeling of fullness more than eating foods containing fats and carbohydrates. This ultimately leads to a

This was the only study I could find that showed results exceeding 3-6 months. The objective behind this study was to compare the effects on weight loss with subjects utilizing a low carbohydrate diet between those utilizing a low fat diet. Progress was recorded at 3, 6, and 12 months. Within the first 3 months weight loss and blood sugar had a greater reduction with those utilizing the low carbohydrate diet. However, after a year both dietary groups showed a similar weight loss reduction of 3.4%, with no notable change in A1C. An increase in HDL was observed in the low carbohydrate test group. Low Carbohydrate diets are comparable in weight loss to other diets. The American Diabetes Association recommends low carbohydrate and low fat diets for those seeking short-term weight loss strategies (American Diabetes Association,