Is a Atkins Diet Dangerous?

[CarbsRok]

Here's a copy of Atkins death certificate if it helps in the debate
http://www.diseaseproof.com/archives/di ... dated.html

 

[vanessabc]

there is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate - read Dr Bernstein's 'Diabetes Solutions' - if you've always low carbed then it's a validation if you've not then it's a revelation

I've low carbed all my life (except for a disasterous few months following the DAFNE programme), I've had type 1 for 39 years, complication free, my BMI is around 20.

 

[catherinecherub]

there is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate - read Dr Bernstein's 'Diabetes Solutions' - if you've always low carbed then it's a validation if you've not then it's a revelation

I've low carbed all my life (except for a disastrous few months following the DAFNE programme), I've had type 1 for 39 years, complication free, my BMI is around 20.

:roll: :roll: It sure was a revelation for me after three weeks thinking I would give it a go. Silliest thing I ever did as I have good control but I thought I would try it and see what all the fuss was about. (All in the name of science :lol: ) I ended up as an emergency in A@E with acute pains in my abdomen. I was diagnosed with cancer after two ultrasounds and an MRI scan but after a biopsy it was reduced to ulcerative colitis. I am now symptom free after three intervals of steroid treatment and the Consultant telling me that the high fats in the cheese, butter, cream and red meat had damaged my stomach and intestines. Lucky for me it was only on a temporary basis. I had great difficulty eating the fats as it is something I have never really wanted to do.

Even Bernstein and Atkins say that it is not for everyone.

 

[Ardbeg]

I did the Atkins diet back in the early 2000's and got my weight down from circa 18 1/2 stone to 16 stone...........which, spookily enough, is exactly where I am now having been diagnosed with T2 just over 3 months ago and altered my eating to low carb ever since!!!

I came off Atkins for a few reasons:

1. It became boring. I don't cook so was living off bacon and eggs for breakfast and steak or chicken dinners every night. Daytime I was munching on Peperami's, Baby Bell cheeses and gallons of diet coke. :shock:

2. My weight bottomed out at 16 stone and try as I could, I couldn't loose any more

The trouble with it is it's a strict regime. Deviate from it and the weight comes piling back on......then some. :cry:

I don't see my low carb regime now as a "diet" - just a lifestyle change.

Note to self - I really MUST join the gym to get my weight loss kick started again and get below 16 stone.

 

[lovinglife]

It sure was a revelation for me after three weeks thinking I would give it a go. Silliest thing I ever did as I have good control but I thought I would try it and see what all the fuss was about. (All in the name of science ) I ended up as an emergency in A@E with acute pains in my abdomen. I was diagnosed with cancer after two ultrasounds and an MRI scan but after a biopsy it was reduced to ulcerative colitis. I am now symptom free after three intervals of steroid treatment and the Consultant telling me that the high fats in the cheese, butter, cream and red meat had damaged my stomach and intestines. Lucky for me it was only on a temporary basis. I had great difficulty eating the fats as it is something I have never really wanted to do.

Me too Catherine - I have just gotten over another nasty bout of diverticulitis with an infection that I had to have antibiotics for - and a threat of a big operation if it didn't sort itself out- Looking back on my food diary it seems to have come about after a couple of days of unintentional very low carb - My consultant went crazy - I usually have about 30 - 40 g carbs a meal and he agreed this is fine but MUST have complex carbs to keep my gut healthy - not just carbs in veggies which actually makes it worse!- I did go lower carbs for a while when I was first Diagnosed with diabetes - my BS came down but my cholesterol shot up from 4.6 to 5.5 and I had traces of protein in my water AND a painful tummy most of the time that I tried to ignore because I thought I was doing the right thing :roll: - I go for bloods next week and hopefully things will be back to normal after adjusting my diet

I have yet to be convinced of the low carb way for life - I feel I did damage in a small space of time - but each to their own and we all have free will and I wish everyone luck however they manage their diabetes - however I do wish that SOME of those that do low carb would keep a civil tongue in their heads and not resort to petty arguments that get personal (not referring to anyone or any post in particular just things I have come across from time to time on other forums as well as here). I find it totally counterproductive and in fact weakens the argument for low carbing IMHO. To be berated for needing meds makes me cross - some of us because of health reasons cannot manage our diabetes without meds and should not be made to feel failures becuase of this - going now because I am actually winding myself up into a rant and don't want to do that :evil:

 

[graham64]

there is no such thing as an essential carbohydrate - read Dr Bernstein's 'Diabetes Solutions' - if you've always low carbed then it's a validation if you've not then it's a revelation

I've low carbed all my life (except for a disasterous few months following the DAFNE programme), I've had type 1 for 39 years, complication free, my BMI is around 20.

Hi vanessa, think we can safely say Low Carb works for you, we also have an 85 year old T2 who has done LC for 40 years admittedly he is having problems now but that is probably more down to the ageing process.

I had to laugh :lol: at the quote below;

Strange that a 12 months study that expresses concerns over the long term effects aren't long enough etc etc, but a Atkins et el, low carb diet is the bee's knees' greatest thing ever carried out over 6 weeks period, will be waved and promoted as conclusive proof...

After seeing the conclusions from a 6 week study on LDL, this was accepted by non low carbers as proof that LC was bad for lipids when exactly the opposite has been to be observed by low carbers'
Then we had the Bees Knees an 8 week study on mice that proved conclusively :roll: that low carbing was the cause of many CVD problems.

Graham

 

[catherinecherub]

I did notice that there was a lack of replies for the gentleman that Graham is referring to. He is often held up as a shining light to low carbers but his post about his health problems and concerns seems to have been ignored by the very same people. :roll: :roll:

 

[jopar]

Graham twisted words and statements, if I remember rightly the two studies, concluded that with the limited time spam and the data collected no definite conclusion to decide either way, but data so far suggested that there was concern for the long term, and more in-depth studies needed to be carried out to provide a clearer answer, it this lack of clarity which causes the problem and one that any sensible person would want a clearer conclusion and validation before making a final decision.
I also remember the pro-low carbers slamming the initial findings of the Exeter Study (which as yet the full conclusion hasn’t been finalised as far as I am aware of) because the primary findings/conclusion wasn’t saying what the low carbers wanted it to say, so any excuse to attempt to trash its validity...

Going back to Dr Atkins, the link shows that a full autopsy wasn’t carried out (a google search will show that Dr Atkins wife apparently refused permission for this) if you further google research to how the coronary report and death certificate was released into general public/media view it brings up even more questions about Dr Atkins general health, and two versions of this, one based on the findings of the coronary’s report, the other based on what his wife and his personal doctor’s suggestions... Even mentions of His wife intention to sue New York, but there again, to sue over suggesting that the claims etc were false etc then Dr Atkins full medical history would have to be put before a court of law, and if I’m right in a civil case of this type, the court proceedings are available under the American Freedom of Information...

I to have read and researched Dr Bernstein methods, and frankly I did a runner from his ideas apart from if I was to follow his advice in attempting to control my diabetes; it would cause a lot of problems, putting me in very serious danger of suffering a serve hypo, creating a very stifling regime, where I would require 3 types of insulin and lose a lot of the flexibility within my eating habits, and that was before I even considered, the total restrictions of food content, or the fact that with a BMI of 19, I’m actually borderline for being underweight, so can little afford to lose weight which in theory is what Atkins and Bernstein’s method are all about...

Anecdotal Evidence given on this and many other forums, I don’t buy into at all, remaining to look at probably carried out and validated research be it low carb, high carb whether it’s carried out on a mouse or rat.. As at the end of the day to dismiss research due to a mouse, one got to remember most of our pharmaceutical medications started out as a theory, and the theory being tested on the humble mouse or rat before it ever got even considered for the first phases of starting considering a human clinical trial...

 

[graham64]

Jopar

I also remember the pro-low carbers slamming the initial findings of the Exeter Study (which as yet the full conclusion hasn’t been finalised as far as I am aware of) because the primary findings/conclusion wasn’t saying what the low carbers wanted it to say, so any excuse to attempt to trash its validity...

What initial findings, no initial findings of the long term study have been released, so how can we slam the unpublished initial results :roll: . The study conclusions were supposed to be presented to the DUK conference in March 09, a year still no publication I doubt that we will ever see them.

The following is from the initial shot term Exeter DUK LC study, this was only 12 weeks but they reported no adverse effects on lipids unlike the 6 week study on LDL.

The results of an initial study of a low carbohydrate diet has surprised many experts who thought that the relative increase in fat content would result in a worsening of glycaemic control and a worsening of lipid profiles rather than completely the opposite. Whilst this work has not changed national guidelines it has made it clear that further work is needed in this area such as the long-term study funded by Diabetes UK in Exeter. This has also led to the idea that a low carbohydrate diet may indeed be the logical extension of a low glycaemic index diet that has been favoured by many dietitians.

http://66.102.9.132/search?q=cache:lOXe ... clnk&gl=uk

Graham

 

[Lucozade]

I did the Atkins diet back in 2002 and stuck with it for 2 years. I lost approx 3.5 stone (49lbs)
I felt really good and had lots of energy.
I gave up the diet because of starting a new job that made it difficult to follow the food choices I used, i.e. a cooked dinner at lunchtime.

I ate more fruit & vegetables on the maintenance diet than I ever did before the diet.
I also drank only water, making sure I drank at least 8 large glasses a day. This helped to keep my kidneys flushed out.

I do regret not being able to continue with the diet, but the water at work tasted foul and they did not have water coolers. There was a small fridge for milk etc, but not big enough for everyone to keep a meal cool ready for dinner. Also we had no means of heating up our meals.
So I went back to sandwiches..... which became my downfall.

Hi, just a suggestion, but have you ever considred buying a tub of protein powder, for example Optimum Nutrition chocolate flavour has 3g of carbs per entire shake (32g of powder) and you can mix it in water or low fat milk, it gives all the nutrients of a meal plus a nice level of protein to keep you full up, this would get around the lunch time issue and it is less than one pound for 5l of water from the supermarket in a 5l drum, which you could buy a few of per week and decant them into smaller bottles for work. If the diet works so well for you it seems such a shame that these few small barriers cannot be overcome, as sandwiches do tend to be a downfall of mine too. Or you could try to take low carb foods to work in a tub, i.e. cooked chicken breast with salad for example.

Otherwise, it may be that you could ask your employer to improve upon kitchen equipment as under the Disability Discrimination Act, you may be entitled to "reasonable adjustments" in line with your medical condition and the inherent need for weight control and bg management. So, this might include a water filter (if you don't want to buy bottled water), a filter only costs a few pounds, and/or more fridges and cooking equipment.

Just a few suggestions, hope it helps.

 

[ally5555]

mmm A protein shake will generaly not supply you with more than protein and a few carbs. Some have a few vitamins and minerals but are not a meal replacement - they have no fibre and that is an issue seeing as so many comments on low carbing realte to constipation!

they have a use in sport but not for diabetics as a meal!

 

[Lucozade]

Hi - actually there ARE protein shakes that are a full meal..they've come on a long way in recent years.

Also, the bog standard protein shake can be blended with a banana and a spoon of peanut butter which gives essential fats and they can (depending on brand) have all the nutrients and micro and macro nutrients recommended in a full meal. Fibre powder can be used as well, in the event that a protein doesn't have fibre inbuilt.

This is surely a better alternative for one meal during the working day rather than ditching low carbing altogether and going back to devil bread death sandwiches! :twisted:

 

[Patch]

devil bread death sandwiches

:lol:

I'm gonna remember that everytime I fall off!

 

[Sid Bonkers]

devil bread death sandwiches! :twisted:

Strange, I eat a sandwich most days for lunch and ive not died yet :lol:

You make a stupid comment like that and then wonder why the carb wars start :roll:

 

[noblehead]

devil bread death sandwiches! :twisted:

Strange, I eat a sandwich most days for lunch and ive not died yet :lol:

You make a stupid comment like that and then wonder why the carb wars start :roll:

I like that one even better Sid, I've heard of 'Star Wars' now we have 'Carb Wars' on the forum! :lol:

You crack me up sometimes, always good to read your posts!

Nigel

 

[catherinecherub]

What is even stranger Sid is this comment was from a person who posted that he ate,
.....a mini chocolate cheesecake
.....several packets of crisps
.....half a bottle of lucozade
.....a piece of swiss roll
in an evening :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:
Some people can eat sandwiches, some eat an open sandwich, some don't eat sandwiches and all have different metabolisms and insulin resistance so let's get away from the idea that bread is not to be eaten by all diabetics.

 

[Patch]

I envy any diabetic (T1 or T2) that can eat bread without a major spike. White bread sends me to sleep. brown bread/granary bread just saps me of all energy.

Peace, Love and Crispy Bacon.

 

[Synonym]

I have to agree Patch, it would be nice to be normal and able to eat a little bread occasionally. Can't handle it at all at present!

 

[ally5555]

TBH there is a difference - if it is a complete shake then it has to be labelled as a meal replacement such as slimfast etc.

Protein powders are aimed as protein replacements usually as a sports supplements - if they are only 3g carb they are not a meal replacement - can you specify which protein powder you are using ?

allyx

 

[jopar]

Graham
Short memory me thinks, but here’s the link to the thread that you and several others took part in viewtopic.php?f=1&t=7656&hilit=exeter
Getting back to Atkins, I wonder why they’ve revamped it... Now the protein has been restricted to around 6oz a day... And they’ve upped the carbs encouraging dieters to slowly increase looking for a target of 95gs a min and the inclusion of things like legumes wonder why such a turnaround happened?????

Proteins and replacement meals I can’t get my head around this at all..

Why would anybody want to put into them a chemical compound, after all, we’ve heard the tell’ s of we must avoid the carbs, because items such a wheat is indigestible without being heat treated, and facing some wired and wonderful manufacturing process and how on the earth does corn syrup get processed, these are totally evil killing the human race... It seems that these same people are more than willing to turn around, and swig fluids that contain, process and manufactured protein, vitamins and minerals with no concerns what the manufacturing process is involved creating these little concoctions as they fit their personal remits on what should be in a diet...