Pros And Cons Of The Atkins Diet
Posted: Friday, March 05, 2010
by Olufemi Ladeinde
Rencare Limited
The Atkins Diet is probably one of the most successful diets of the last few years. The diet is based on four general principles of weight loss, weight maintenance, good health and disease prevention. Its popularity has sparked dozens of similar diets which use the same principles of high-protein, low-carbohydrate meals. The body uses glucose derived from carbohydrates as its preferred energy source and when these are removed, the body starts to use fats and protein instead; a process called gluconeogenesis.
Anecdotal reports show many common benefits reported by people who have followed the Atkins diet or a variant of it. These include an increase in energy, a reduced craving for sweets, better concentration, improved mood and a reduction of depression type symptoms. However, there are some benefits that are specific to the Atkins diet. If you have ever been a follower of the low fat diet, you would enjoy eating all of those “forbidden foods" that you once had to go without. Steak, butter and cream form a regular part of Atkins diet. There is a certain pleasure derived from eating foods that were once off limits. Atkins diet encourages meals containing rich meats, cheeses and fats and oils.
Atkins is simple to use, compared with some other low-carbohydrate diets on the market. You may need to learn about which types of carbohydrate are acceptable, but after that you are free to eat from the acceptable food lists.
Dr. Atkins believed that too many carbohydrates in your diet encourage your body to retain fat. When the body absorbs simple carbohydrates quickly, it generates an insulin response that increases the conversion of calories to fat. The diet focuses on consuming nutrient-dense, unprocessed foods. Dr. Atkins also emphasised finding your own personal carbohydrate level. Different people have different levels of carbohydrate tolerance. While some gain weight on just 90 carbohydrate grams a day, others can live comfortably at 120 carbohydrate grams. During the ongoing weight loss and pre-maintenance phase of the diet, you will learn your personal carbohydrate count that will help determine your carbohydrate goal for life.
There is a lot of information available on the Atkins diet, which makes it easy to find resources and support. There have been many books written on it with an endless stream of websites that offer tips and group support. However, while almost everyone has heard of Atkins and probably has an opinion on it, there are some big misconceptions out there about the nature of the diet. The most popular of these is that you eat mostly red meat and can never eat carbohydrates. Many people view the diet as a steak, burger and butter diet; however one of the real benefits of the Atkins diet is that it gets you away from eating too much sugar and processed foods. It reduces rather than excludes your carbohydrate intake. Another misconception says that you can eat all you want while following the Atkins diet. This is not strictly true. The diet follows the philosophy of moderation. Eating a well-portioned and satisfying meal is an important part of the Atkins diet. It teaches you to control your portion sizes.
There are some disadvantages to using the Atkins diet. The metabolic processes involved in using fat for energy instead of carbohydrates can lead to increase in uric acid and ketones which may cause kidney problems, gout and headaches. This however can be overcome by increasing your water intake and understanding that the physiological ketosis which occurs happens during the induction stage and by the time you reach you maintenance level the problem would have disappeared. There can also be low amounts of dietary fibre on the Atkins Diet leading to constipation and chronic bowel disease if you do not choose the right type of complex carbohydrates.
Induction can be difficult to get through if you’ve had a diet that centred on processed carbohydrates and sugar. Also, many people try Induction and mistakenly believe that this is the way that the whole diet is going to be. They then give up before they get into the actual Atkins plan. Sometimes, although this is not common, people will experience a carbohydrate crash on the 3rd to 5th day of the diet. This reaction is a result of their body experiencing ketosis which comes from burning fat instead of glucose for energy. The effects are transient, but many people have gone off low-carbohydrate diets entirely because of this occurrence.
Overall, Atkins is one of the most popular low-carbohydrate diets for a reason. It works. Thousands of people have had success with the approach. Generally, critics are sceptical about how a high-protein, high-fat diet can result in weight loss. What they forget is that the Atkins approach advices a change in lifestyle and not only in the diet. The success you get still depends on you not returning to the way of life that got you to the problem point in the first place.
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