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| Fact
file |
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 Atkins
dieters must first follow a 14 day Induction phase with
a limit of 20g of carbohydrate each day (a banana contains
22g), and basically consists of meat, chicken, fish,
eggs or cheese with some green and salad vegetables,
butter and oil.
All
carbohydrate-containing foods such as fruit, many vegetables,
bread, cereals, rice, potatoes, pasta, biscuits, sugar
and so on must be avoided, as must milk and yogurt.
The
next phase allows slightly more carbohydrate - about
40g a day on average – to enable ongoing weight loss
of 1 to 2 pounds a week.
Once
dieters reach their goal weight they are advised to
slightly increase their carbohydrate intake until their
weight stabilises – but it should not go over 90g a
day.
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It's
always been controversial, but the Atkins diet has been in the headlines
almost constantly this summer.
First
the diet favoured by celebs including Jennifer Aniston and Minnie
Driver was condemned by UK dieticians who said it gave "bad dietary
advice".
A
small dollop of mayonnaise or blue cheese dressing makes a salad
much more palatable - and the 'treat' element of being allowed
luxuries like that has certainly reduced the temptation to binge
that I have had on other diets.
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| Atkins
diet fan Denise Walters |
Then
US researchers who studied 63 obese men and women who weighed, on
average, 216 pounds. claimed the low carbohydrate Atkins diet may
be as safe and effective as low-calorie weight-loss plans.
Now
there's been yet another warning about the dangers.
Dr
Susan Jebb, from the Medical Research Council's Human Nutrition
Research Centre said it would be "negligent" to recommend the diet
to anyone overweight and said many of its claims were based on "pseudo
science".
Confused?
Who wouldn't be!
Atkins
works for us
But
despite the controversy, the message from the Gloucestershire dieters
BBC Gloucestershire spoke to is still unanimous - Atkins works for
us!
Here
Atkins fan and mum of two Denise Walters, from Stroud, tells her
story - and dispels some common myths about the Atkins diet. She
says:
'I
was 5ft 2 and just under 11 stone before starting the Atkins diet
in June. I looked like a roly-poly pudding and was determined to
lose weight before my summer holiday.
'I
am now down to nine stone and would ideally like to lose another
half a stone to get back to what I weighed on my wedding day 12
years ago.
There
ARE Atkins alternatives to steak, chops and joints. Smoked
mackerel pate made with low-fat cream cheese has been my favourite
diet food. |
| Atkins
diet fan Denise Walters |
'The
problem is that in the last few weeks everybody I know seems to
be telling me the diet is dangerous - it really annoys me when they
haven't even read the book.
'The
last straw was when my husband - who has been really encouraging
me all the way along and is delighted at my new look - came in brandishing
the Daily Mail with its scaremongering front page headline 'Atkins
Diet Dangerous' and said, 'right, you've got to stop right now.'
Here,
for everybody who hasn't read the Atkins Diet book, are some facts.
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Vegetables
and fruit are NOT banned
In
fact the Atkins diet actively encourages eating salads (but
not sugar-rich tomatoes) and leafy green vegetables.
Fruit
is banned during the two-week induction phase but low carb
fruits like berries can be included in the diet after that.
You
DON'T have to eat lots of fat
It's
nice to have a diet where fat isn't banned but you don't HAVE
to consume huge amounts of butter, cream and oil.
A
small dollop of mayonnaise or blue cheese dressing makes a
salad much more palatable - and the 'treat' element of being
allowed luxuries like that has certainly reduced the temptation
to binge that I have had on other diets.
You
DON'T have to eat lots of meat
There
ARE Atkins alternatives to steak, chops and joints. Fish,
especially the oily fish that health experts are always telling
us we should have more of, is allowed on the Atkins diet.
And
so is cheese - not just the high fat just but Feta and low-fat
cream cheese (just check the carb count). Smoked mackerel
pate made with low-fat cream cheese has been my favourite
diet food.
Constipation?
What constipation?
The
doom-mongers issue dire warnings about the diet causing severe
constipation as a result of the lack of fibre in the Atkins
diet.
But
if you read the book thoroughly you'll see that the diet recommends
taking psyllium husks to combat constipation - these are available
in tablet form from health food stores, just take them with
water twice a day. They do the job for me!
Sugar
is the REAL health baddie
Sugar
consumption has increased hugely in the Western diet over
the past 100 years - and is just as much a contributary factor
to obesity as eating fat.
Part
of the reason the Atkins Diet works for me is that I know
sugar is an absolute no-no - and a lot of high-carbohydrate
foods are high in sugar.
No
cakes and biscuits means NOT ONE BITE - the 'just one won't
matter as long as it's in my calorie allowance' rule has been
my downfall in the past and now my sweet tooth has been well
and truly tamed.
What
could be wrong with that?
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The
Atkins Diet - your comments:
Diane
Simpson
I am 60 and 5ft 2ins tall and weighed almost 14 stone.... I have yo-yo
dieted most of my life but since going on Atkins that has all changed.
I have lost 3 stone [another stone and a half to go] and now have
blood pressure of 120/70 and have never felt better! When I complete
the Atkins programme I will be at a comfortable weight and have a
balanced eating regime recommended by everyone i.e. lots of veg and
no sugar, and very little [if any!] cakes, potatoes, biscuits etc.
The fallacies that Atkins requires living on a diet comprising mainly
of fried or fatty food is simply untrue. The Atkins web site is an
excellent [and constantly updated] resource. Atkins works - OK!
Mark
Anthony Smith
I lost 55 pounds on the Atkins diet and while doing so have felt
half my age. I'm 67 years old and Atkins was a blessing for me.
I feel 40 and have a sex drive of a 20 year old.
Liz
Beer
I am a type 2 diabetic with high blood pressure. Low-fat dieting
has not worked for me leaving me tired and hungry with no weight
loss at all. Since doing Atkins my blood sugar readings have become
normal, blood pressure is now normal, I am off all medication, feel
fitter and healthier than I have for the last few years and now
have the energy to exercise regularly. In 13 weeks I have lost 15lb
and dropped two dress sizes. Even my doctor was impressed with my
results. Her only concern was a potential rise in cholesterol (which
is ok at the moment) and we have agreed to check this 6 monthly.
Would I have developed diabetes if I had not been trying to lose
weight following the low-fat high-carbohydrate approach. I will
eventually be able to work out exactly how many carbohydrates I
need for maintain weight loss and to keep blood sugar under control.
I see nothing dangerous whatsoever about following Atkins - being
an out of control diabetic is lethal.
Frances
Wheatley
I've just started the Akins Died. My apetite decreased straight
away, I like the way it fits in well with my skinny husbands meals,
he eats the same except he has chips or bread etc. Of course you
don't need to eat loads of fat or too much meat, also we are allowed
veg and salad, so what's the problem? Mind you I'm being careful
this time as when I went on the beach diet a while ago, I had a
kidney infection, it may be a coincidence of course, or I may of
overdone it on the 'salt' as well as too much protein, as I ate
rather a lot of bacon. Plus drank at a party! dehydrated? Best wishes.
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After
renewed warnings about possible health risks Atkins diet fan Denise
Walters defies the doom-mongers to tell BBC Gloucestershire why she
won't give it up - and dispels some myths about low-carb dieting.
