The theory behind what is now the Atkins diet was first described in 1863 by an undertaker named William Banting, who suffered from obesity. After his initial success on the diet, he published the results in "Letter on Corpulence." In 1997, Dr. Robert C. Atkins adopted the diet and named it the Atkins diet. Atkins' first book on the diet was on "The New York Times" bestseller list from 1997 to 2004. The Atkins diet is one of the most popular low-carbohydrate diets.
Features
The Atkins diet identifies carbohydrates as fattening and limits carbohydrates to allow the body to burn more fats. During certain phases of the diet, carbohydrates are limited to less than 20 g a day. To put that in perspective, a piece of bread generally has more than 20 g of carbohydrates. The small amount of carbohydrates in the Atkins diet mostly come from vegetables. Other carbohydrate sources, such as bread, pasta, rice, potato, juice, fruit, dairy, soda, alcohol and snack foods, are not allowed.
A typical Atkins diet menu might include bacon and eggs for breakfast, a bacon cheeseburger and a small salad without dressing for lunch, and steak, sugar-free Jell-O and a salad with Russian dressing for dinner. Water and broth are used as drinks. Fat contributes more than 60 percent of the total calories in the Atkins diet.
The Positives
The Atkins diet limits simple carbohydrates such as white flour, white rice and high-fructose corn syrup. This can be beneficial because these products are usually lower in fiber, vitamins and minerals than complex carbohydrates. Too many simple carbohydrates in the diet also can contribute to high blood triglycerides.
More Weight Loss for Certain Groups
A much-anticipated study published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association" in 2005 found no difference in weight loss at one year among the groups that followed the Atkins diet, Weight Watchers, the Zone diet, or the Ornish diet. However, the Atkins diet did lead to significantly more weight loss in the first six months. Studies led by Dr. M.J. Stampfer at Stanford found that for people who are obese, a low-carb diet modeled after the Atkins worked significantly better for weight loss than a low-fat diet. In addition, Dr. Christopher Gardner's group, also at Stanford, found that the Atkins diet led to more weight loss and better insulin response in obese premenopausal women with insulin resistance.
Potential Cardiovascular Benefits
In the same study led by Dr. Gardner, the Atkins diet improved four out of five risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, including blood triglyceride, HDL, systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure. By comparison, the Zone diet, the LEARN diet and the Ornish Diet improved only one or two of these risk factors. Another study published in "The New England Journal of Medicine" in 2005 found that the Atkins diet significantly improved triglyceride and HDL in the blood.
The Negatives
The Atkins diet might be low in calcium, vitamin C and fibers, especially during the induction phase when carbohydrates are severely restricted. Long-term adherence to the diet might increase the risk of kidney stones and reduce the body's ability to absorb calcium. And as with any other diet, long-term adherence is difficult to achieve. A 2009 study published in the "Journal of American College of Nutrition" showed that adherence to the low-carbohydrate diet dropped from 81 percent in the first month to 57 percent at two years.
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