Wednesday, January 21, 2009

What Is Atkins Diet? The Common Staggering Amount You Can Gain

By Chris. A Stopher

I would like to thank you for visiting and reading this Atkins diet article. The topic has been carefully researched and documented for your benefit.

Many people have heard of the Atkins diet, the short name for Atkins nutritional approach. It was the brainchild of the doctor named Robert Atkins. He had gained a lot of weight in medical school. He read about this diet in the medical journal. He perfected it and released it to the public. [V:1]

Atkins, in his Atkins Diet, believed prevailing theories about weight gain were all wrong. He held that saturated fats weren't as bad as people claim. Carbohydrates, found in potatoes, and breads, were the real problem. In fact Atkins thought that the focus on fats had made a problem much worse. Many low-fat foods are packed with carbohydrates. Eating a low-fat version of foods was actually less healthy.

This all changes in the Atkins diet. By cutting out carbohydrates people would burn stored body fats. Lose the fat lose the weight. It's not just a matter of eating less. Now it was all about what your diet can help you burn. In fact Atkins cited a study that claimed the body would burn an extra 950 calories on his diet. But later reviews of his studies found that his claims were false.

In addition to claims of weight loss, Dr. Atkins said his Atkins diet could help people with type 2 diabetes. Being overweight is generally considered the major cause for type 2 diabetes. Weight loss associated with the Atkins diet, as with any diet, would therefore help people manage type 2 diabetes. Dr. Atkins also said that his Atkins diet would remove the need for medications such as insulin, because it severely cut down on carbohydrates which Atkins claimed were the major cause of type 2 diabetes. But that's counter to the prevailing medical theories regarding type 2 diabetes which, although recommending that lowered intake of carbohydrates and weight loss help manage diabetes, ascribe no causal relationship between carbohydrates and type 2 diabetes.

What steps does one take to follow the Atkins diet? It consists of four steps or phases which are induction, ongoing weight loss, pre-maintenance and lifetime maintenance. The details of the induction phase is as follows.

As the first phase, Induction is the most crucial and most restrictive portion of the Atkins diet. This phase should be followed for a period of two weeks. During this phase carbohydrates are severely limited - only up to 20 grams per day. The result of this phase should be ketosis, a metabolic reaction by which the body converts stored fat into fatty acids, generally prompted by a lack of glucose. Weight loss of 20 pounds over this period isn't uncommon - that's a staggering amount.

The next three phases of the Atkins diet help establish the levels of carbs people can consume in order to lose weight and to maintain a desired weight. Millions of people are still losing weight on this diet - but beware the dangers of taking in too much fat.

Find what you were looking for? I hope this article provided good information about Atkins diet. - 20896

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