Atkins Diet - Is It For Me?

You cannot walk into a grocery store without seeing products labeled for the Atkins diet. What is the Atkins diet? How can you prepare a proper Atkins diet menu plan? Are there any health risks involved with Atkins diet food?

What Is The Atkins Diet

The Atkins diet plan was designed by Dr. Robert Atkins. He based the diet on a diet plan he read about in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Being overweight himself and understanding the health risks associated with the condition, Dr. Atkins found the diet to successfully work for his weight issue. He wrote a book in the 1970s, but the diet really became popular around the turn of the new millennium.

The Atkins diet is a low carb diet. This means that carbohydrates are avoided whenever possible. The diet consists of plenty of protein in the form of meat, egg whites, nuts, as well as vegetables and fruit to fulfill the body's need for carbohydrates. Dr. Atkins felt that the reason that western cultures were so overweight was because of the high prevalence of refined carbohydrates in the diets. Sugar, corn syrup, and flower were particularly bad for the body, he said.

He also taught that saturated fats were not the dietary problem that the world seems to think they are. While trans fats are harmful, he felt that other forms of fat did not harm the body. By reducing the intake of net carbs, which are the carbs from sugar that affect the blood glucose levels, he taught that the body would quickly and healthily loose weight.

Special Aspects of the Atkins Diet

Atkins diet food is particularly high in fat, which is usually shunned by dieters. But with the removal of carbohydrates from the body, this fat is used for energy, and not stored in the body. On the Atkins diet menu, a large t-bone steak is perfectly acceptable, provided it is not accompanied by a huge pile of carb-filled French fries or a baked potato.

Continue to: Benefits of Atkins Diet