Uncovering the Atkins Diet secret...

If you live in England, you might have seen a program on TV (Horizon: The Atkins Diet) about the Atkins Diet on BBC2 last Thursday.

The Atkins Diet is supposed to allow "overweight individuals to eat as many or more calories as they were eating before starting the diet yet still lose pounds and inches."

Horizon teamed up with the University of Kansas and commissioned a study to test this theory.

Atkins Diet

In Horizon's investigation, identical twins were put on different diets. One followed the Atkins Diet and one ate a conventional low-fat diet. Each was fed the same number of calories for two weeks.

The twins were then locked inside a sealed chamber so that Professor Joseph Donnelly could calculate how quickly their bodies were burning calories. Over 24 hours the twin on the Atkins Diet did burn more calories than the twin on the low-fat diet, but only 22.

Instead, the program claims that the Atkins Diet works to suppress hunger. According to Horizon, this finding is a "breakthrough".

But it's nothing of the sort.

The work by Professor Arne Astrup, which was featured on the program, was actually published five years ago. Research showing that foods differ in their ability to keep you feeling fuller for longer was published almost 10 years ago!

Dr. Atkins even covered it in his book, Dr Atkins’ New Diet Revolution.

"Most everyone has eaten thirty cookies at one sitting at some time in their life, and many carbohydrate addicts have done it hundreds of times," he writes. "But how many people have eaten ten hard-boiled eggs at one sitting? Protein and fat foods satiate appetite quite quickly."

Results from research conducted on the popular BBC series Diet Trials shows similar results. The study examined the Atkins diet and three low-fat, low-calorie diets.

All four diets worked. But Dr. Joe Millward at the University of Surrey, who led the research, discovered that the Atkins dieters were eating fewer calories, in exactly the same way as those going to the slimming clubs on their low-fat diets.

Without trying, people on the Atkins Diet were eating less than they would normally.

Low-carbohydrate diets

Many nutrition experts argue that the Atkins Diet runs contrary to the advice of most major health organizations, which advocate a diet relatively low in saturated fat and high in complex carbohydrates.

According to the Food Standards Agency, low-carbohydrate diets such as the Atkins Diet are unsafe. They claim that low-carbohydrate diets tend to be low in vegetables and fruit, which deprive the body of vital nutrients.

Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that anyone from the Food Standards Agency has bothered to read the book.

Contrary to popular belief, the Atkins Diet actually consists of four diets, rather than just one. It starts with The Induction Phase, which lasts for two weeks. The daily intake of carbohydrate is restricted to 20 grams or less.

After the first two weeks, you move on to phase two — Ongoing Weight Loss. During this second phase, you're able to eat more carbohydrate.

Some people might be able to eat more carbohydrate (50-75 grams daily), while others will need slightly less. Dr. Atkins recommends that you stick with this plan until you reach your target weight.

Several trials show a reduced risk of heart disease with 400-650 grams of fruit and vegetables daily [1, 2, 3]. This provides only 50-60 grams of carbohydrate, much of it in the form of fiber (which is not actually counted as carbohydrate on the Atkins Diet).

It's also a myth that people on the Atkins Diet eat no vegetables.

"Let us sing a song of veggies. Such beautiful, health-enhancing, varied foods," writes Dr. Atkins. "Vegetables, if you choose the right ones, are very high-powered nutrient packages. These advantages come — once again if you choose your vegetables carefully — at a relatively low metabolic cost. That means you are getting high fiber and phytochemicals with relatively low numbers of calories and carbohydrates."

A daily intake of 550 grams of fruit and vegetables might consist of 200 grams (7 ounces) of cooked vegetables (white onion, red onion, courgette, cherry tomato, red pepper, and yellow pepper), 250 grams (8.8 ounces) of berries (dark sweet cherries, grapes, blueberries, blackberries, blackcurrants) and a small apple weighing 100 grams (3.5 ounces). All this food provides a total of just 52 grams of carbohydrate (a lot of which is fiber).

The bottom line is that the Atkins Diet, like any way of eating, will not work for everyone. It has strengths and weaknesses. Before passing judgment on the Atkins Diet, make sure to learn a little more about it.

More information about the Atkins Diet is available here (The Atkins Diet made healthy) and here (Is the Atkins Diet bad for your bones?).

Remember that the scare headlines and "breakthrough" findings in the newspapers or on TV are designed to attract your attention, not always to inform or educate.

References
1. Bazzano, L.A., He, J., Ogden, L.G., Loria, C.M., Vupputuri, S., Myers, L., & Whelton, P.K. (2002). Fruit and vegetable intake and risk of cardiovascular disease in US adults: the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Epidemiologic Follow-up Study. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 76, 93-99
2. Johnsen, S.P., Overvad, K., Stripp, C., Tjonneland, A., Husted, S.E., & Sorensen, H.T. (2003). Intake of fruit and vegetables and the risk of ischemic stroke in a cohort of Danish men and women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 78, 57-64
3. van't Veer, P., Jansen, M.C.J.F., Klerk, M., & Kok, F.J. (2000). Fruits and vegetables in the prevention of cancer and cardiovascular disease. Public Health Nutrition, 3, 103–107