Biosophilia

Run screaming from Atkins and other fad diets. Balanced meals, exercise, and discipline are the only healthy ways to lose weight.

Among the "benefits" of the Atkins diet (according to my wife, degree in Nutrition, works at Erlanger counseling patients on nutrition):
1. Constipation
2. High Blood Pressure
3. Calcium Loss
4. Vitamin A and C, mineral, calcium, zinc, fibre, bioflavonoid deficiency
5. Increased risk of cancer, heart disease, stroke, and kidney/liver failure.

Just though I'd mention it.
Sure, you feel good...NOW....

hey --
i lost 100 pounds in 3 months on the atkins diet. my blood pressure dropped from 140/90 to 117/80. i felt better than i ever had in my entire life. why? because i was getting healthy. the nay-sayers don't believe that this diet can work. yes, if you go on the diet and all you eat are fried cheeseburgers, you will have problems eventually. but on atkins, you can have tons and tons of yummy things that are healthy, too. and now that splenda (c) has evolved, you can replace yucky aspartame with it and avoid those side-effects. i highly recommend lasagne, made with homemade tomato sauce, eggplant slices, and portabello mushrooms in place of ragu and pasta. also, try spagetti made with a spaghetti squash instead of noodles. it tastes better, i promise! (and no white runny water to sop through!) bell peppers (really most peppers -- and further proof is that people in new mexico, who eat a diet high in peppers, have LOWER amounts heart disease, choleterol, etc. than the rest of the american population) have tons of essential vitamins and nutrients, as does cabbage, escarole, endives, and squash. i love experimenting with green salads and tuna/chicken salads. to me, the atkins has been liberating. i cook more, and being an experimental cook, i'm having a great time, and i eat better food. i find that when i switch back to "normal" foods, i have worse fatigue, less energy, trouble breathing, and to be really gross, skin issues. i also sweat more when i'm off diet. and no one can tell me that being 100 pounds lighter due to a "fad diet" is unhealthy.
oh - one more recipe. hot chocolate made with unsweetened cocoa powder, real whipping cream, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. you feel really naughty, but it is soooo good and sooo atkins friendly.
good luck to you both. :)

oh yes, and i have maintained that weight loss for nine months. (something impossible to do on a fad diet). good luck.

Your diet doesn't sound like the Atkins diet to me. It sounds like you have become a vegetarian. :)

I like the SugarBuster's approach. It makes the most sense to me. It's similar to Adkins, but you get to eat whole grain foods, and veggies too. Just no refined sugar or white flour. And rarely pototoes.

I'd stick to it, too, if it weren't for peanut m&ms. Grr.

be careful with splenda. there seems to be conflicting reports on that stuff. anything molecularly modified sounds scary to me. plus it justs tastes bad.

we're on something of a protein diet at our house b/c my wife is severly hypoglycemic. I agree that balanced meals are the thing, but I think the protein diets are attempting to do just that: counter-balance the sugar addiction. sure it starts out hard-core, but then it evens out as you go along.

here's a diet tip for ya: use small plates. most folks in our culture simply eat too much.

Bill-
Jennifer's rendition is the real Atkin's diet. We eat steamed broccoli almost every day as well as Salad with tomato, spinach leaves, onions, mushrooms, peppers and all kinds of other great veggies- also we have cauliflower, and could have cabbage if we liked it among other countless veggies. We too are a little nervous about Splenda- so we went to the local health food store and got some natural sweetener called Stevia. It is completely natural and much better for you than Splenda and also doesn't have the after taste.
This is all so helpful y'all- I don't know most of you- but I really appreciate you just the same!

Some research indicates that Atkins' diet may lead to sterility, fwiw.

stevia? sounds great. i had no idea another alternative existed. i've been weaning myself off of equal/aspartame...it's good to know there is a healthier route...thanks!

Rick-I'm a little stumped- how could Atkin's lead to sterility? You're eating meat, vegetables, dairy (cream, cheese, sour cream, butter)- everything pretty much but refined sugar and flour - things that are very bad for you. Do you have an article that I could look at or a link? I'm interested in looking at all sides of it.

Jennifer- I haven't seen Stevia at any place other than the health food store. It is 300 times stronger than sugar. It is amazing stuff and will last you forever. We love our decaff sweet tea with is and we are going to try to make some ice cream with it too. By the way- what is spaghetti squash? I hadn't heard of it until I started this diet. Is it a vegetable? What does it look like? Where do you buy it?

Lisa,

Spaghetti squash is a vegetable - yellow and oval. (Kinda like Jimmy and Jerry from VeggieTales, if that helps). Anyway, you cut it in half (lengthwise) and remove the seeds (w/o cutting into the actual squash part). Turn the halves upside-down in a baking pan and cook at 375 for about 45 minutes (until the inside is somewhat soft). Then, when you scoop out the insides of the squash, it will come out in threads that look like spaghetti. You can do whatever you want with it then. I'm sure some people dump marinara sauce on it and use it as a pasta substitute.

Rick,

Atkins will lead to sterility...because the people on the diet live so long, they eventually become sterile
LOL

I am actually considering doing Atkins simply to make things easier on my wife. She is on Atkins and it has helped her a great deal. As for studies one way or the other, I'd be careful basing my behavior on the outcome of a study. Anyone remember when the study said that eggs were bad for you? What about the side mounted gas-tanks on the Chevrolet trucks?

Lisa,
I'm not sure. I've just heard a few doctors say that. I'm sure there is something on it. I'd at least be interested in hearing the case.

Courtney said it is because too much iron, in men, leads to sterility. Because you're eating a lot of meat, you're getting a lot of iron. So, Dr. Atkin's tells you to take mult-vitamins that do not contain iron in them. If you're doing the diet the right way, then you shouldn't have those problems. Thanks for the tip.

I've been on Atkin's for about a week and I feel fine and enjoy what I'm eating for the most part. I honestly don't have any cravings and if it weren't for the rule of not skipping meals I probably would.

There's only one problem with this first part that I'm in, called Induction. You can't drink Alcohol. Alcohol isn't bad for you according to Atkins, but the sugars and yaests and such are,I believe. I'll tell you man, beer and wine have never look so good. Its really a good thing I guess because when I am able to drink I will appreciate and enjoy it more.