A typical breakfast
consists of 3 or 4 strips of bacon, two or more eggs and coffee.
A snack would maybe be chunks of cheese and a cup of coffee
with cream. Dinner might be a huge steak fried in butter.
Sounds really good right? It sounds so tempting but there
is a trade-off. You will have to give up carbs such as breads,
potatoes, pasta, rice, and other things like chocolate, cake,
some fruits, veggies, and milk at least in the beginning.
The theory is that when you cut out carbs your body are forced
into burning fat that your body has stored to give it energy.
Your body burns more calories when burning fat than when it
is burning carbohydrates and you will lose weight more quickly.
Your blood sugars stabilize which prevents overeating.
The first phase of the Atkins Diet Plan is the Introduction
Phase and must be followed for at least two weeks. You are
only allowed to consume 20 grams of carbs a day. You can load
up on as much red meat, chicken, fish, cheese, eggs, mayo,
cream, and butter. It is during this phase that your body
switches from the burning fat to burning carbs.
The second phase is the ongoing weight loss phase. During
this phase you increase your carb intake by about 5 grams
daily until you find your critical carbohydrate level for
losing weight. The most carbs that you can eat and still lose
between 1 and 3 pounds a week. Breads, pasta, potatoes, and
rice are still off limits.
The third phase is the pre-maintenance phase that you enter
when you have only five to ten pounds to go to meet your goal
weight. Your carb intake increases by ten grams each day for
a week in order to help your body adjust to the addition of
carbs and the final phase of maintenance.
The fourth phase is called lifetime maintenance and intended
to help you keep your motivation. Carbs are limited to less
than 90 grams a day. Get used to it though because you will
be on a low carb diet for the rest of your life.
There are some concerns about the long-term effects of the
Atkins Diet Plan and other low carb plans. There is such a
high consumption of fat, particularly saturated fats and this
can cause an increase risk of heart disease.
The Atkins diet eliminates some nutrients and this could
cause deficiencies and other health problems in the future.
Since there is a limited intake of bone building calcium you
could be at increased risk of Osteoporosis. A very limited
intake of antioxidant nutrients could cause problems such
as heart disease, cancer, and premature aging.
One drawback of the Atkins Diet is that it can become boring.
Vegetarians have difficulty with this diet because veggies,
seeds, and nuts are off limits in the first stages. The diet
does present a view of healthy eater, which keeps us healthy
and free from disease.
Other concerns are that the initial weight loss comes back
quickly when you go off the Atkins plan and a lot of people
drop out in the induction phase. The carbs are very low and
ketosis can result which is dangerous for a diabetic or anyone
else for that matter.
This diet is high in cholesterol and you can develop constipation
and/or heart disease because of the high fat content. Since
the diet is low in fruits and vegetables, it also lacks cancer-fighting
antioxidants. The most serious drawbacks to the Atkins plan
are that it is not intended for long term use and there are
unsafe if not downright dangerous side effects.
A few positive notes about the Atkins Plan are that it works!
You lose a lot of weight quickly and you can eat as much as
you want of certain foods especially protein and fat.
The Atkins Diet eliminates to a great degree carbs from rice,
pasta, potatoes, breads, some fruits and veggies. It also
eliminates cancer-fighting antioxidants. It is a high fat
and high protein diet that can increase the risk for certain
diseases like high cholesterol and heart disease.
On the upside, this is one diet that actually works but it
is not a diet that you can be on for an indefinite period
of time. Once you go off the program and resume more ‘normal’
eating the initial weight loss will come back. Also, as with
any diet plan check with your doctor to be sure you can safely
do it.
To conclude let me give you a reminder. The Atkins diet is
not for long term use and it has inherent health risks. If
you need to lose weight you may already be at risk for heart
disease and high cholesterol, the Atkins plan has the potential
of actually increasing those risks.
