[.ca] Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution (ISBN 0060081597)

From Amazon.com:
Designed to catapult your body into a state of fat meltdown, Dr. Atkins's diet has taken America by storm. It targets insulin, the hormone that regulates blood sugar levels. The bodies of most overeaters are continually in a state of hyperinsulinism; their bodies are so adept at releasing insulin to help convert excess carbohydrates to fat that there's always too much of the hormone circulating through the body. This puts the body into a bind; it always wants to store fat. Even when people with hyperinsulinism try to lose weight--especially when they cut fat but increase carbohydrate consumption--their efforts will fail. This is why Dr. Atkins refers to insulin as "the fat-producing hormone." Dr. Atkins's diet is extremely low in carbohydrates, which helps to regulate insulin production and decrease circulating insulin; less insulin soon results in less fat storage and fewer food cravings. The diet is far from torturous, though--those who've tried it attest that hunger is not a part of this plan. Ninety percent of Dr. Atkins's patients--more than 25,000 of them--have experienced dramatic weight loss. The book includes recipes for such luscious, low-carb dishes as lobster soup, zabaglione, sea bass, and blueberry ice cream, and even includes a carbohydrate gram counter and menus.

We are paying for a decade of high-carb/low-fat & HFCS...:
(I used Atkins for a while but have since switched to the Carbohydrate Addict's Diet, which is like 2 meals induction, 1 meal "whatever you want to eat", and is working better for me as a vegetarian and carb-lover) I agree that Atkins & the low-carb diets are "liberating". I, like most people in this country (if you believe the statistics), *gained* weight during the low-fat craze of the 90s, despite incessant exercise and obsessive attention to fat grams. I found out about the Atkins diet a few years ago, and gave it a try. I wasn't worried about the "meat & eggs" thing because I'm vegetarian, so I didn't think anything except my balance of carbs-to-protein would change. I was right...at least with respect to the diet. Over the first month, I lost 20 lbs. Despite a few days of lightheadedness & fatigue (they pass, trust me) that made me wonder if I had made the right decision, I felt *great* on the diet. What I cut out were starchy/sugary vegetables and fruit, and of course my favorite junk foods, and just increased my consumption of meat-substitutes and cheese, and fibrous veggies. Over the next couple of months, I lost another 25 lbs. I then switched to the CAD, because I began to miss my favorite carbs and social dinners were beginning to be difficult. Plus, I don't like the idea of counting anything, including carb grams. But the principles are right, and by following the program you do get lighter and healthier. I think for some of the people that this didn't work out it was because: 1) they cheated a bit...eating an Atkins/low-carb meal, with "just a little" carbs transforms a very healthy meal to a disastrous one 2) some sweet but not necessarily caloric substances (sugar alcohols, Splenda, etc) can still make you release insulin because the body interprets the sweet taste as sugar (we evolved before noncaloric sweeteners were developed!!) I've found eliminating any sweetness from my two "induction-like" meals leaves me feeling great I hope this helps some people...at the very least, get OFF the low-fat bandwagon (unless you're trying to gain weight) and stop bashing us vegetarians! For many of us, it's a *personal* choice alone and we don't have a political agenda!!

This diet works!:
Many people say that this diet can work for everyone, but I don't believe it can. I know a few people who tried it and it didn't work. If you don't really like protein foods, you won't be able to do it. Also, my mom and grandma have irritable bowel syndrome and it was worse on Atkins. For people like me, however, it is perfect. I love meat and cheese. It was hard to get started, but once my blood sugar leveled out, I didn't have any more cravings. It was easy. I could be sitting right next to a cake and not want it at all. I have, so far, lost 30 pounds. I have starting excercising on a regular basis and I can lose up to about 4-6 pounds a week with excercising and Atkins.

Buy this book if you seriously need and want to lose weight:
My Doctor asked me if I had tried Atkins when I complained about the incredible frustration I had trying to lose weight while I just got bigger and bigger. I bought it. I read it (4 times now). I've lost 54lbs and have kept it off for over a year so far. I will lose another 20-30. No I don't "hope" I can. No I'm not "trying" to. I will. I now have control of my eating for the first time in my living memory. I eat healthier than I ever have in my life. Your choice but for me this has been the most beneficial book for my health physically and mentally that I have ever read plain and simple.

Only diet I have been able to stick to:
I am always hearing people say that any diet works if you stick to it. Considering that many scientists, not just Dr. Atkins, have come to consider overeating as analogous to a drug addiction, how much sense would it make for someone to say "this drug rehab program works as long as people don't use drugs"? I think that part of saying that a diet works is how likely people are to stick to it. If a treatment, whatever it is, has a very high drop-out rate, is it really any good? No, because it suggests that the side effects are too awful. This has been my experience with every other diet I have tried - I starved! I even felt depressed. I gained about 30 lbs. during college and all along I tried to lose them (even as they piled up). I tried lean cuisine, slimfast, and all other sorts of low-fat diets and only gained weight, not to mention I couldn't stick to them because I craved food all day. Anyone who saw the movie "Supersize Me" will remember that the guy developed an addiction to McDonald's and also got depressed. I'm convinced this has more to do with the carbs than with the fat. I felt the same way on a low-fat diet. Furthermore, I'm eating healthier than ever. All my calories are coming from foods rich in nutrients: meat, zucchini, eggplant, peppers, berries, nuts, etc. I have even developed a taste for some of these vegetables and even tofu. Three months ago (when I started the diet), I couldn't conceive of not eating rice or potatoes with every meal. Now I just see them as empty calories. I have never eaten nor felt this great in my life. My food is delicious (even my fiance who is not technically on the diet loves it), and I no longer snack 10 times a day. How much weight have I lost? About 10 lbs, meaning I have reached my healthy weight (I was very skinny when I started college). Most importantly, I lost this weight early on and have not put it back.

yet another diet book:
America, when are you going to stop spending money on fad diet books and magazines? The same simple way to stay healthy has been with us since the paleolithic era, and always will be: eat all things in moderation and get some excercise. That has been the only proven formula to stay at a reasonable weight since time began. Atkins, the current flavor of the year, is popular because some people believe, fairly or not, that you can lose weight simply by cutting carbs and they forget that we all need a bit of excercise. (Have you ever noticed how a lot of these health gurus drop dead at age 50?) So, stop reading stupid books and go take a walk around the block. You know enough not to stuff yourself at McDonald's, just eat less and exercise more, for heaven's sake. Surprise! You'll lose weight!