Weight Loss Atkins Diet

To be or Not to be an Atkins Dieter, That is the Question

If we are to make a list of the latest diets, believe me, it would be a long one. Whether they are effective or just one of those fads, we would never know. So, you might ask, is the Atkins diet any different? Read on and you’ll find out.

Atkins was named after its creator Dr. Atkins and became famous when the bestselling book took the market by storm. This gave birth to follow up books which became as popular as their predecessor.

The promise of this diet is a good figure (without being famished), supreme health and sharper memory. By theory, people who have a high carbohydrate diet are prone to be overweight. The body is said to burn both carbohydrates and fat but the carbs are first to go. So, with your body low of carbohydrates, the stored fat is then used up.

With this restriction on carbs, the body undergoes ketosis. This is the state where the body turns ‘ketones’ (carbon found in the human body) into energy. When the body is under ketosis, the dieter is less likely to feel hunger, thus, it will not ask for food. And no food means no added weight!

So, with this is mind, we can say that foods rich in protein and fat can still be consumed. Yup, while most dieters would deprive themselves of ‘heavenly food’, the Atkins diet allows red meat, seafood, fish, steak, anything fried, cheese, milk, even butter. What’s not allowed is anything white like refined sugar, a well-milled rice and flour. Regarding the ‘no-to-white-products’, Oprah Winfrey herself is a strong advocate. The keyword there is, anything that’s white is unhealthy.

The How-to: The dieter begins by consuming 20 grams of allowed carbohydrates daily (this being total carbs less the fiber content of the food). This will go on for two weeks. A sample menu:

2 cups of salad (no fruits)
2/3 cup of cooked veggies

As opposed to the usual diet programs, Atkins diet does not count the calories. You could go ahead and forget counting those calories and concentrate on carbohydrates instead. After the two-week start, the carb-intake could be increased and fruits could then be added but the ‘whites’ remain forbidden…forever.

The main goal of Atkins is to lessen the weight and then to maintain it. If the body has stabilized its weight and has already adjusted to the low carbohydrate menu, then one could gradually add more carbohydrates. One might ask, why add carbohydrate intake when the body has already adjusted?

This could be a few reasons:
The known side effects of lesser carbs and more protein and fat in the diet are halitosis and constipation. Since the body is now bent on burning the fatty areas, some parts of the body that you might otherwise want to be a bit voluptuous will be targeted as well. What are these? The hips, butt and thighs. So, if you are one who wants to look like JLo, this might not be the right diet.


If there are advocates, there would always be skeptics or worse, critics. Most critics reason out that the body needs carbohydrates and deprivation could lead to disaster. Aside from this, suggesting that you one could eat innumerable eggs, meat or butter is tantamount to putting someone’s health, or worse, life, in jeopardy.


One health advocate made a sound analogy. He stated that anybody who would encourage anyone to eat more of bacon or eggs while snubbing fruits is a nightmare for any dietician. Still others say that Dr. Atkins should be sued for medical malpractice because of his extraordinary theory. In support of most of these critics, it seems no government, medical, or nutritional organization would support the Atkins diet.

With the pro’s and con’s laid down, it would be wise to conclude that if one is looking for a diet that would lower cholesterol and promote drastic weight loss, Atkins IS the perfect diet. But this person must also be prepared to take whatever consequence is on its way—diseases of the heart, stroke, even cancer. The stakes are high when someone wants to look good. We could discuss this topic on and on and debates might arise but at the end of the day, the decision still lies with…You.