Talk:Atkins diet

Didn't Atkins Die with Clogged Arteries?

Isn't it true that Atkins himself died with (albeit not of) clogged arteries? If so, that should be included in the article. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.44.149.170 (talk) 15:11, 11 August 2010 (UTC)

No, he did not. That is a popular rumor that has absolutely no basis in fact. He slipped and fell on ice, hit his head, and died due to bleeding around the brain after spending over a week in a coma. --13² 17:01, 11 August 2010 (UTC)

Diabetes Category

I do not believe this article belongs in the Diabetes category in addition to the diabetes subcategory of Low-carb diets. The small two-week study on 10 hospitalized obeses Type 2 diabetic patients was falsely claimed to have been a study of the Atkins diet when it was simply a study of restricting carbohydrates. This is probably why a reference link to the article was not provided. I deleted the false claim and included a reference link to the abstract of the study. It's debatable whether this study should even be included as evidence on the Atkins diet, but I left it in.

The Diabetes category is for articles that are primarily or substantially about this serious disease (a check of whats listed there will reveal that). This article does not qualify. OccamzRazor 20:49, 7 November 2007 (UTC)

I've added a citation for Atkin's book Atkins Diabetes Revolution as well as a link to a The West Suffolk Diabetes Service, both of which strongly link to Atkins as a Diabetic diet. I can also supply references from Atkins books and websites, as well as other references linking the diet to treatment of diabetes. The Diabetes cat should stay. Dreadstar † 21:37, 7 November 2007 (UTC)

Net Carbs to Net Atkins Count

The material about how net carbs are calculated is outdated and partially incorrect, so I have removed it. Atkins Nutritionals never claimed that sugar alcohols are not absorbed; they said that they have a "minimal impact on blood-sugar levels." More importantly, Atkins is now well into transitioning to a different, and more scientific, method of counting net carbs. From their website:

Until recently, Atkins used the subtraction method on its package labeling. New science has shown that this old method provided accurate results in most, but not all, cases. Many other manufacturers started using similar net carb terminology while using different calculations and formulations with different types of carbohydrates and failed to validate their numbers, which led to speculation about the validity of net carbs in general. In order to evaluate the real-life effects of foods on blood-sugar levels, Atkins has pioneered a new clinical method to determine the Net Atkins Count. The new Atkins testing method has confirmed that the vast majority of Atkins products will carry the same carb count information as before.

Here’s how it works: A group of people who have fasted have their baseline blood-sugar levels measured. They all eat a certain food product and each subject’s response is tracked. The data reports actual measured increases in individuals’ blood sugar. An average blood-sugar response across the group of people is then obtained. This is the Net Atkins Count, which expresses this clinically validated number and distinguishes it from terms previously used, such as net carbs.

Atkins products are presently in the process of shifting to this new system; during the rollover, some labels may still show the old net carb icon.

Also, contrary to what the deleted text said, the nutritional information label on all Atkins snack bars consider the bar to be one serving, not multiple servings. — Walloon 23:21, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

What we should do..

Is to clearly list the foods that are allowed on the Atkins diet.. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 58.178.254.65 (talk) 02:49, 7 March 2007 (UTC).

The Atkins diet allows all foods. The amounts of certain types of foods are restricted, but no food is forbidden with Atkins.Webgrunt (talk) 20:51, 22 May 2008 (UTC)

Expert opinions

Here's a list of expert opinions critical of Atkins: [1] Given the controversy over this lucrative diet marketing, the criticism section really should have more links.--Shtove 12:06, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Shtove. The link you provided is to atkinsexposed.org. This is a site created by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) the PCRM are a group of vegetarian doctors, funded by PETA to dismiss the Atkins diet due to the false idea that Atkins is all red meat. These are the kind of biased anti-Atkins edits that have made this article incorrect in the past. If people who know about the Atkins diet and are Pro-Atkins can't really edit this article so that it remains neutral, then groups like this should be treated the same. I don't care how many links you find that are anti-Atkins, I can find the same, if not more, that are Pro-Atkins. Should we include them all? No, it would make this article ridiculous. I'm not yelling at you, just setting you straight. Not many people are aware of the PETA fronted organization called PCRM and the fact that the justice department has a file on them due to their tactics of posting their agenda in a medical fashion so as to make people believe they are legit. BrianZ^(talk) 14:10, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Here's a link of my own [2] Do yourself a favor and look at about us on atkinsexposed and you'll the head of PCRM runs the site. These bastards are tricky. Here's a link to Wikipedia's entry for PCRM Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. "PCRM features on the Quackwatch list of questionable organisations." hmmm :) Do we really want their opinion included? BrianZ^(talk) 14:19, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Fair enough. I've sourced Eckel's comment and given it proper prominence. Since I'm a believer in balanced diet and exercise, I won't get into this article. My view is that this diet is simply a marketing trick of telling people what they want to hear: assure them the food they love is healthy, the food they hate is harmful. Music to the ears of everyone who grew up hating vegetables. Not so funky though when that person suffers from diabetes, weak heart and damaged kidney and liver.--Shtove 16:21, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

I can tell by your statements that you've not done your research on the diet, That's okay really, as I used to be a guy against the diet completely too until I did my research and realized that 3/4 of the myths are completely untrue. Like most people, you are unaware of many ideas of the diet including the fact that most of your carbs each day should be from vegetables, and when done properly, the Atkins diet includes exercise at the minimum of 4 days a week, etc. But I digress. I've been following the lifestyle for 4 years and my health numbers and blood tests do not lie. I'm a staunch supporter of the diet and quite possibly a danger to sway the article away from neutral, which is why I refuse to add my slant to it. But I do try to ensure that the opposite view does not damage it's encyclopedic nature. Forgive me for being so abrasive. I don't mean to sound attacking, really. I just can't stand when misconceptions created by PCRM and PETA among others turn an unknowing public into people against this diet. I apologize ahead of time for any offense you have taken. I just figure that if I can motivate one more person to read the book to actually read for themselves and not really on items taken out of context by PCRM and baking indutries, then I'm doing a good thing.BrianZ^(talk)

04:09, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

No offence taken, and you're not abrasive at all. WP is good for getting opponents together. In fact, I understand your enthusiasm, since I've had a diet revelation myself and have become a fan of Sandra Cabot.--Shtove 23:14, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

NPOV - August 2007

The article, and the tagged sections in particular, have NPOV problems in both directions (which is a good thing by comparison to the alternative!). The statement, "An analysis conducted by Forbes magazine found that the Atkins Nutritional Approach (the boxed retail food product created by Atkins to facilitate the Atkins diet) is one of the five most expensive diet plans of the ten plans Forbes analyzed," is only saying that Atkins is in the top 50%, in terms of expense, of diets looked at, yet it does so in a very-harsh tone. Similarly, "In fact it should be seen as evidence that a diet high in vegetables, and not meats or dairy, will actually improve heart health," is some bizarre combination of OR, NPOV, and weasel, all wrapped up in one sentence.

My main beef with the "Misconceptions" section is probably the sentence, "Many people who try Atkins have reported eating more vegetables while on the plan than they ever did before." Jouster  (whisper) 22:17, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

Definitely needs some work from a POV persepctive. I've made a start, and will try to do more. Dreadstar † 07:38, 28 August 2007 (UTC)

I think I've taken care of the pov concerns, and removed the tag. Feel free to replace it if not. Dreadstar † 22:44, 29 August 2007 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:AtkinsLogo.jpg

Image:AtkinsLogo.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Wikipedia:Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images uploaded after 4 May, 2006, and lacking such an explanation will be deleted one week after they have been uploaded, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.

BetacommandBot 12:13, 26 October 2007 (UTC)

removed link to Dukan Diet

I removed the link:

• [http:// The Dukan Diet]

Based on a lack of clear relevance to this article. If the anonymous editor who placed this link wants to establish that it is proper here -- or anyone else -- , please respond here. The Dukan Diet, from a superficial examination of the web site, does not seem related to the Atkins diet, which is a high-fat, low carb diet, and the fat is very important to it, as is the low carb. Atkins is a moderately elevated protein diet as well, and that is about the only connection I could see.

This is an article on the Atkins Nutritional Approach, not every diet system that exists is relevant to it, nor, even all low-carb high-fat diets. If the Dukan Diet is "notable," it's possible it could have an article of its own.

--Abd 16:02, 4 November 2007 (UTC)

Side Effects of diet section?

maybe this article needs a side effects section? i've often heard reports of bad breath, decreased energy and increased flatulence, but this is not really mentioned in the article... i'd do it myself but wikipedia is the only site i can access from work.

let Dr Atkins rest in peace- he helped me once....going on twice

I first went on Atkins when I was a very obese 225 lbs in 2000 - months later, I weighed in at 175! My triglycerides were normal, and my cholesterol was down {BAD NEWS for a certain cardiologist who put me on Lipitor with a 204 count at the age of 35 that did not reduce the count and a better DR. that I had warned me off it before I tore my liver up (Kingston, NY).

I faded from the diet and started enjoying the usual fast food slop, and wound up celebrating the new year of 2008 at 212 pounds.

Enough was enough, and I commited to Atkins again- on 1/23 I was at 208 Lbs. Now, I am still overweight, but down to 196 - an 11 pound drop!

I will continue until I get back to my "fighting weight" of 175........ and I am a 47 year old man.... feeling better every day!

GBU DR.A!!!!!

Vito —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.161.25.138 (talk) 15:56, 8 February 2008 (UTC)

I think the atkins diet definetely needs a side effects page, It also needs to speak to younger people about the dangers of dieting and the best way for them to loose weight, and also the safest so as not to cause younger people putting their health in danger and risking it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 90.204.77.159 (talk) 19:44, 16 December 2009 (UTC)

10,000 patients

I don't have it with me, but the "helped 10000 patients" statement is definitely in "Atkins New Diet Revolution." Subsolar (talk) 06:28, 13 February 2008 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:AtkinsDietBook.jpg

Image:AtkinsDietBook.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Wikipedia:Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images lacking such an explanation can be deleted one week after being tagged, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.

BetacommandBot (talk) 18:49, 13 February 2008 (UTC)

Inuit diet?

Perhaps some reference to the inuit diet should be made here? It was shown to have no adverse effects and to be nutritionally sound. Much seems to be made of scientific research into the atkins diet or low carb diets specifically, yet the inuit diet has also been researched and shown to be healthy. As generations of inuit attest. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.241.66.20 (talk) 02:16, 19 May 2008 (UTC)

I disagree. There has never been any scientific study which encompassed an entire people, most take an extremely tiny fratcion of the population and extrapolate. In order to find out what type of diet is healthy, why not look at lifespans? The Inuit people have one of the shortest lifespans on earth, and their traditional diet is extremely low in carbs and high in protein and healthy fats. The Japanese have the longest lifespan on earth, and they consume lots of high-glycemic carbs, such as the staples of rice and noodles. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Webgrunt (talk • contribs) 20:49, 22 May 2008 (UTC)

Do all Inuit lead short lives? Do all Japanese lead long lives? Unsubstantiated nonsense. Furthermore, are there any studies comparing Inuit populations that subsist on traditional foods like seal and whale, and Westernized populations who eat foods made from sugar and flour? The current state of knowledge of diet and metabolism is rudimentary. The current state of nutrition and diet research is not much better. Therefore it is impossible to make definitive, reliable, and objective statements about any dietary approach. The best we can do in an encyclopedia is to report the existing approaches and claims. David Spector (talk) 20:43, 11 October 2011 (UTC)

The date of the first book is wrong.

Hello,

The intro section lists the publishing date of Dr. Atkins Diet Revolution as 1998. The book was first published in 1972.

Sincerely, OgreJ (talk) 06:37, 21 May 2008 (UTC) OgreJ

Suggestion: Partial merger with Low-carbohydrate diet

There is a fair degree of redundancy between this article and the Low-carbohydrate diet. Since this article is a sub-topic of that one might I suggest

• Issues that are related to low-carb diets in general be discussed in the general article.
• Mainly focus this article on things that are unique to the Atkins diet. This is not to say that the broader issues should not be touched on but the details can be merged into the general article.

Granted the word Atkins gets used as a proxy for low-carb diets in general but to the extent that a given issue relates to most or all of these diet plans it seems the need to hash them out here instead of just moving them to the main article is questionable.

In particular I'm thinking

• Nature of the Diet: Cut most of this since it can be considered common to Low-carbohydrate diets in general. Focus mostly on the Atkins-specific details.
• Scientific Studies: Chop most of the details out of this section and list the Medical research related to low-carbohydrate diets article as the main article. This section should quickly summarize the breadth of research that's out there without detail on any particular study.
• Controversies: Merge any missing content into the Low-carbohydrate diet article and remove almost all of this save perhaps a few nuggets about Atkins specifically (e.g. maybe talking about the controversy as to whether he died of his own diet).
• Misconceptions about the diet: The misconceptions regarding how the phases work are, of course, appropriate but the rest can be linked to the general article.

Comments?

--Mcorazao (talk) 19:57, 25 July 2008 (UTC)

Books?

Are there more books than what are mentioned? If so, what are their ISBN.143.216.49.250 (talk) 02:50, 18 September 2008 (UTC)Marc.s

I added The New Atkins for a New You, but the ISBN link doesn't keep the final digit ("-2"). Not sure why. When I remove the dash (-) the whole link goes away. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.30.112.226 (talk) 05:46, 5 April 2011 (UTC)

Only add books created by Atkins. Nasnema  Chat  05:51, 5 April 2011 (UTC)

Why do you say that? There are books on the Atkins Diet which were not actually by Atkins himself. ACEOREVIVED (talk) 19:38, 11 October 2011 (UTC)

Atkins good - my bad -my MD's ????

Yo, Y'all. Weighed 227 on 68" frame. Big bones they use to say. Jumped on Atkins bandwagon in 2002, and got down to my Airborne weight of 180 in 4 weeks. Felt like a million bucks. Cholesterol 160, donates blood to up to like 10 gallons then and upwards of 13 by now, and all's good. MD say, Atkins "no good". So, off the Atkins, and in 2007, hadda have a stent stuck into my otherwise good body. Heart doc says Atkins is what caused it. OK, that would be fully 5 years almost to the date of "going normal". Now, with all kinds blood thinners and other kinds of pills, I'm 227 again, even though I walk 6 miles a week, work hard, don' smoke- don' drink. Weekends I ride my bicycle 10 miles or so. Don't watch TV very much, eat small protions 4-5 times a dsy. No junk. I ask MD for help, and the stock answer is, get more excercise. Hell, I'm 64. Whaddaya want ? Now, I'm scared to death to try it again. My former MD told me to quit smoking back in '80 and I gained 30 lbs in 53 weeks. He says that the weight won't hurt. He died at 56 from a coronary. He was like 300 pounds ! There you go.

My question is, what in the world does one do? I work circles around 20-30 year olds in the oilfields of California, and I just keep getting "bigger boned". Geez.

Who, out there, has some simplistic answers, should there be any?

Perfesser@aol.com —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.15.226.151 (talk) 03:13, 26 August 2009 (UTC)

At one time, I would have said you were simply lying. And that your calorific intake was actually more than you were expending. I would have said this at a time that I weighed about 7-8 stone, as a teenager and into my mid 20s. In about 2005, I went up to 16 stone, at one point. And have been between 13-16 stone since. In 2006, I had to quit my self employed part time window cleaning round, because of my weight. But in early 2009, I got a window cleaning job working for someone else, full time, no bottom windows, running up and down ladders, 8 hours a day, 6 days a week. After 6 months of this, and having not lost a single pound, I was absolutely lost for words. No longer could people say to me that I wasn't getting enough excercise. And my calorific intake was less than it had been in many years. Being so heavy, it got to the point where the heavy work was actually doing me harm. Carrying that much weight around all the time, while doing a job like this, means your whole body is having to work 2 or 3 times as hard than if you were a normal wieght. rather than the physical excercise helping me lose wieght, I had to quit the job, because of fears over the damage it was doing to my body (heart, joints etc). 80.47.136.96 (talk) 11:32, 9 February 2010 (UTC)

Atkins Nutritionals, Inc.

My name is Andrea Davidoff and I work for RF|Binder Partners, the PR agency of record for Atkins Nutritionals, Inc.

I am fully aware of Wikipedia's policies and guidelines and will strictly adhere to these standards. All the information I publish will be credibly referenced and readily verifiable. I will restrict the proposed edits to the Atkins Diet talk page and will refrain from editing any main-page content directly as per Wikipedia’s guidelines. I will only volunteer information through the talk page and subsequently ask Wikipedians for their assistance.

If you wish to contact me, please leave a message for me on my talk page or email me at Andrea.Davidoff@rfbinder.com.

Suggestions for the Atkins Wikipedia entry:

1. We suggest a new section in the main entry “Alternative Scientific Studies” as a foil to the “Controversies” section as several prominent scientists have used the Atkins Diet for a wide variety of illnesses. Some examples include:

a. Low-Carbohydrate Diets and the Brain - Eric H. W. Kossoff, M.D., Assistant Professor, Neurology and Pediatrics Medical Director, Ketogenic Diet Center Director, Pediatric Neurology Residency Program Johns Hopkins Hospital.

i. Kossoff, E. H., Krauss, G. L., and McGrogan, J. R., Freeman, J. M., "Efficacy of the Atkins diet as therapy for intractable epilepsy," From the Department of Neurology, The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, 61, 2003, pages 1789–1791.

b. An Updated Perspective on the Role of Dietary Saturated Fat on Cardiovascular Risk - Jeff S. Volek, Ph.D., R.D., Assistant Professor, University of Connecticut, Neag School of Education.

i. Volek, J.S., Sharman, M.J., and Gomez A.L., et al., "An Isoenergetic Very Low Carbohydrate Diet Improves Serum HDL Cholesterol and Triacylglycerol Concentrations, the Total Cholesterol to HDL Cholesterol Ratio and Postprandial Lipemic Responses Compared with a Low Fat Diet in Normal Weight, Normolipidemic Women," The Journal of Nutrition, 133(9), 2003, pages 2756-2761.

ii. Volek, J.S., Westman, E.C., "Very-Low-Carbohydrate Weight-Loss Diets Revisited," Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine, 69(11), 2002, pages 849-862.

2. We suggest the addition of new scientific, peer-reviewed studies for the “Scientific Studies” section. These studies have been funded and researched by outside third parties and are backed by scientific facts.

a. Shai, I., Schwarzfuchs, D., Henkin, Y., et al., “Weight Loss with a Low-Carbohydrate, Mediterranean, or Low-Fat Diet,” New England Journal of Medicine, 359(3), 2008, pages 229-241.

b. Foster, G.D., Wyatt, H.R., Hill, J.O., et al., ”A Randomized Trial of Low-Carbohydrate Diet for Obesity,” New England Journal of Medicine, 348(21), 2003, pages 2082-2090.

c. Brehm, B.J., Seeley, R.J., Daniels, S.R., D’Alessio, D.A., “A Randomized Trial Comparing a Very Low Carbohydrate Diet and a Calorie-Restricted Low Fat Diet on Body Weight and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Healthy Women,” Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 88(4), 2003, pages 1617-1623.

d. Brehm, B.J., Spang, S.E., Lattin, B.L., et al., “The Role of Energy Expenditure in the Differential Weight Loss in Obese Women on Low-Fat and Low-Carbohydrate Diets,” Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 90(3), 2005, pages 1475-1482.

e. Samaha, F.F., Iqbal, N., Seshadri, P., et al., “A Low-Carbohydrate as Compared with a Low-Fat Diet in Severe Obesity,” New England Journal of Medicine, 348(21), 2003, pages 2074-2081.

f. Seshadri, P., Iqbal, N., Stern, L., et al., “A Randomized Study Comparing the Effects of a Low-Carbohydrate Diet and a Conventional Diet on Lipoprotein Subfractions and C-reactive Protein Levels in Patients with Severe Obesity,” American Journal of Medicine, 117(6), 2004, pages 398-405.

g. Greene, P., Willett, W., Devecis, J., et al., "Pilot 12-Week Feeding Weight-Loss Comparison: Low-Fat Vs. Low-Carbohydrate (Ketogenic) Diets,” abstract presented at The North American Association for the Study of Obesity Annual Meeting 2003, Obesity Research, 11S, 2003, page 95OR.

h. Westman, E.C., Yancy, W.S., Edman, J.S., et al., “Effect of 6-Month Adherence to a Very Low Carbohydrate Diet Program,” American Journal of Medicine, 113(1), 2002, pages 30-36.

3. Please elevate the Atkins Diet article from Start-Class to a higher quality rating. Related to this, we request an assessment of the article’s importance on Wikipedia’s Importance Scale.

I look forward to working with you.

ADavidoff (talk) 23:45, 12 November 2009 (UTC)

Welcome to Wikipedia. Thanks for all the information. You've obviously put a great deal of work into this already.

To get started, I think it would be helpful to list some of the most relevant policies and guidelines so they're not accidentally overlooked: WP:COI is applicable given your employer. WP:MEDRS applies to medical claims.

Looking over the article, it needs a great deal of work. The introduction needs a rewrite per WP:LEDE. The Controversies and Misconceptions... sections are problematic per WP:NPOV. There's too much description, especially in the The Four Phases section, in violation of WP:NOTGUIDE.

Great job providing all the references in advance!

As with the Controversies and Misconceptions... sections, a new "Alternative Scientific Studies" section would be problematic as well, for the same reasons. --Ronz (talk) 21:19, 16 December 2009 (UTC)

On a related note, some time ago I had created a list article containing various research on the general topic of low-carb diets. Since the topic is still so controversial my perspective was that providing a list of third-party publications linked from Low carb diet and other articles like this one was a useful way to provide readers with factual information since there is no consensus among the experts (and whatever little bit of consensus there is keeps shifting). However, a group of editors with their own agenda fought and had the list removed, something I felt was a disgrace (though I got sick of fighting it at the time).

I still believe that providing information on studies that have been performed would be quite valuable. Providing a long list in this article is, obviously, not appropriate. But having a short summary here and linking to a list article IMHO would be a valuable thing to do.

--Mcorazao (talk) 22:54, 16 December 2009 (UTC)

My name is Andrea Davidoff and I work for RF|Binder Partners, the PR agency of record for Atkins Nutritionals, Inc.

As I’ve previously mentioned, I am fully aware of Wikipedia's policies and guidelines and will strictly adhere to these standards. All the information I publish will be credibly referenced and readily verifiable. I will restrict the proposed edits to the Atkins Diet talk page and will refrain from editing any main-page content directly as per Wikipedia’s guidelines. I will only volunteer information through the talk page and subsequently ask Wikipedians for their assistance.

If you wish to contact me, please leave a message for me on my talk page or email me at andrea.davidoff @ rfbinder-dot-com.

Per suggestions from a Wikipedia editor, Atkins would like to offer additional information on scientific, peer-reviewed studies in support of low-carb eating and the Atkins Nutritional Approach. These studies have been funded and researched by outside third parties and are backed by scientific facts.

We suggest the addition of these studies for the “Scientific Studies” section.

1. The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), July 17, 2008

The study compared three diets – Low Carbohydrate, Low Fat and Mediterranean – and followed more than 300 obese patients for two years. All the study participants consumed a similar number of calories.

FINDINGS: Low-carbohydrate diets are more effective in achieving weight loss than other diets, and low-carbohydrate diets support cardiovascular health with favorable cholesterol profiles.

REFERENCE: Shai, I., Schwarzfuchs, D., Henkin, Y., et al., “Weight Loss with a Low-Carbohydrate, Mediterranean, or Low-Fat Diet,” New England Journal of Medicine, 359(3), 2008, pages 229-241.

2. The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), 2003

The study, from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and Washington University School of Medicine, randomly assigned participants to either a low-carbohydrate, high-protein, high-fat diet or to a low-calorie, high-carbohydrate, low-fat diet.

FINDINGS: The low-carbohydrate diet produced greater weight loss and was associated with a greater improvement in some risk factors for heart disease.

REFERENCE: Foster, G.D., Wyatt, H.R., Hill, J.O., et al., “A Randomized Trial of Low-Carbohydrate Diet for Obesity,” New England Journal of Medicine, 348(21), 2003, pages 2082-2090.

3. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 2003

This study from the University of Cincinnati instructed obese, healthy women to follow either a low-fat, calorie-restricted diet or a low-carbohydrate diet for six months.

FINDINGS: Women assigned to the low-carbohydrate diet lost significantly more weight and body fat than women assigned to the low-fat diet at both the three and six month marks. Blood pressure, triglycerides, cholesterol, fasting blood sugar, and insulin improved in both groups.

REFERENCE: Brehm, B.J., Seeley, R.J., Daniels, S.R., D’Alessio, D.A., “A Randomized Trial Comparing a Very Low Carbohydrate Diet and a Calorie-Restricted Low Fat Diet on Body Weight and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Healthy Women,” Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 88(4), 2003, pages 1617-1623.

4. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 2005

This study, also from the University of Cincinnati, assigned obese, healthy women to follow either a low-carbohydrate or low-fat diet for four months. Both groups were given nutritional counseling and were instructed to record energy expenditure, using a pedometer.

FINDINGS: The women assigned to the low-carbohydrate diet lost significantly more weight than those assigned to the low-fat diet, even though there was no difference in calorie intake or energy expenditure.

REFERENCE: Brehm, B.J., Spang, S.E., Lattin, B.L., et al., “The Role of Energy Expenditure in the Differential Weight Loss in Obese Women on Low-Fat and Low-Carbohydrate Diets,” Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 90(3), 2005, pages 1475-1482.

5. The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), 2003

This study assigned 79 obese men and women to either a low-carbohydrate diet or a low-fat diet for six months and focused on the effects a carbohydrate-restricted diet has on weight loss and risk factors for atherosclerosis. There was a high prevalence of diabetes among study participants.

FINDINGS: Severely obese subjects with a high prevalence of diabetes or the metabolic syndrome lost more weight during six months on a carbohydrate-restricted diet than on a calorie- and fat-restricted diet, with a relative improvement in insulin sensitivity and triglyceride levels.

REFERENCE: Samaha, F.F., Iqbal, N., Seshadri, P., et al., “A Low-Carbohydrate as Compared with a Low-Fat Diet in Severe Obesity,” New England Journal of Medicine, 348(21), 2003, pages 2074-2081.

6. American Journal of Medicine, 2004

The study from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Drexel University College of Medicine, compared the effects of a low-carbohydrate diet and a low-fat diet on lipoprotein subfractions and inflammation in severely obese subjects.

FINDINGS: Severely obese individuals, especially those with other conditions associated with obesity, who followed a low-carbohydrate diet experienced greater beneficial effects on insulin resistance, blood lipids and markers of inflammation than did those in the low-fat group.

REFERENCE: Seshadri, P., Iqbal, N., Stern, L., et al., “A Randomized Study Comparing the Effects of a Low-Carbohydrate Diet and a Conventional Diet on Lipoprotein Subfractions and C-reactive Protein Levels in Patients with Severe Obesity,” American Journal of Medicine, 117(6), 2004, pages 398-405.

7. Obesity Research, 2003

The study from Harvard University randomly assigned participants to separate diets, including a low-fat diet and two different low-carbohydrate diets, one allowing 300 more calories a day, for a period of 12 weeks.

FINDINGS: Participants consuming more calories on the very low-carbohydrate diet were able to lose more weight than those on either the lower calorie low-carb or the low-fat diet. Additionally, participants on both of the low-carbohydrate diets showed greater improvement in several risk factors for heart disease than did participants in the low-fat diet.

REFERENCE: Greene, P., Willett, W., Devecis, J., et al., “Pilot 12-Week Feeding Weight-Loss Comparison: Low-fat Vs. Low-Carbohydrate (Ketogenic) Diets,” abstract presented at The North American Association for the Study of Obesity Annual Meeting 2003, Obesity Research, 11S, 2003, page 95OR.

8. The American Journal of Medicine, 2002

A Duke University Division of General Internal Medicine study determined the effect of a six-month very low-carbohydrate diet program on body weight and other metabolic parameters.

FINDINGS: Participants, including overweight and obese healthy men and women, lost up to 20 percent of their body weight on a very low-carbohydrate diet, which was not calorie restricted. Participants also experienced significant improvements in total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and triglycerides. The results suggest that a short-term, low-carbohydrate diet produces weight loss with improvements in the blood lipid profile.

REFERENCE: Westman, E.C., Yancy, W.S., Edman, J.S., et al., “Effect of 6-Month Adherence to a Very Low Carbohydrate Diet Program,” American Journal of Medicine, 113(1), 2002, pages 30-36.

I look forward to working with you.

ADavidoff (talk) 21:34, 25 January 2010 (UTC)

Although I don't have the time to work on this article, I did look up one of the studies (2b above). A quick read showed that it basically compared a ketogenic (Atkins-like) diet to a typical 'standard' diet (the control group). No blinding was done (blinding is difficult in a study like this).

The conclusion was that subjects dropped out of the standard diet group more quickly, that weight loss was greater with the ketogenic diet, but that at one year both diets produced about the same weight loss. The following did not appear clear to me:

• Was ketosis achieved by the studied diet?
• What was the amount of ingested carbohydrate per day for each group?
• Did the study group receive supplements to assure availability of all necessary nutrients (vitamins, etc.)?
• Did the researchers understand that exercise must accompany both the studied and control diets?
• Did both groups receive coaching and supervision for complying with an appropriate program of exercise?

Again, I did not have time to read the whole article, so answers may have been provided. I believe that questions like these are important when understanding research on low-carbohydrate diets.

David Spector (talk) 03:05, 25 July 2010 (UTC)