There are many debates between supporters of the Atkins diet and the ones who are opposed to it. What follows is a summary of the benefits and drawbacks of the diet–information you should have before making the decision to try the diet yourself.
Let’s start by quickly examining the facts. The Atkins diet is a very popular diet that many Americans are choosing to try in order to lose weight. By releasing well over 500 products which include “low carb” , or “no carb” labels, marketers and companies have made huge profits and continue to make money by targeting people who chose this dietary change.
That just means it works, correct? Yes and no, the long-term health effects of low-carb diets have long been debated, and experts have concluded that such diets can be risky, especially for people over the age of 40.
The Atkins diet, is a low carb and sugar diet believing that these two combined is the leading cause of weight gain. Despite the confusion caused by much misinformation, it has been determined that a significant factor in the obesity problem in America is the mixing of saturated fats with sugary carbohydrates made with refined sugar.
The principle is that carbs raise blood sugar levels and then trigger insulin production, in which the insulin directed those refined sugars into your cells, preventing the burning of fat. So, the theory was that if we cut the carbs, the body would use these sugars as it’s primary source of fuel, and the body would start burning fat for energy instead.
Atkins also recommends against eating sugar, of which he does not approve. People following the Atkins diet are allowed to eat a lot of fat and protein, rather than consuming carbs and sugar. Animal proteins are specifically recommended in the Atkins diet, and those who do not eat meat or animal products will have difficulties following it.
The bad news, the body not only starts losing fat, but also lean muscle, which is needed for a higher metabolism, and water stores in the attempt to gather nutrients formally gained from carbs. When the body burn larger amounts of fats without sufficient carbs it produce something called ketones.
Ketones produce side effects such as head aches, dizzyness, dehydration, bad breath and nausea. Long term you can add bone loss, muscle breakdown and kidney disease to the picture, plus as the brain has lost it’s primary source of fuel from carb sugars, therefore brain damage and increased risk of a heart attack can result.
Despite all that, this diet does seem to be an effective way of losing fat weight. If you’re going to attempt this diet, do your homework, don’t follow any diet without proper research.
