Dr Atkins Diet

Can you say HYPE? Unless you've been living under a rock for the last few years then you’ve probably heard of the famous Atkins diet. Whether this is the most successful diet ever or not is debatable, but it certainly is the more publicized one. The Atkins diet has been the most hyped eating plan around in recent years and millions of people have tried it at some point or another. This is no exaggeration. At the peak of the hype in 2003, it was estimated that more than 3 million people in the UK alone had tried the Atkins diet.

The basic principle of this diet is that cutting down on carbohydrates, while allowing you to eat high-fat food is going to trigger your dramatic weight loss. One of the best things in favor of the Atkins diet is the fact that it allows you to enjoy eggs, cheese and steaks etc. It sounds like a dream diet! Who’d pass up the chance of losing weight while still enjoying a good egg and bacon breakfast? But on the downside - you aren't allowed any bread or salad with that steak. None whatsoever. Which becomes a serious problem after a week or two. How much meat can you eat without touching any vegetables at all?

The science behind the theory is that cutting out the carbohydrates will force your body to use its stored fat in order to obtain the energy needed. This means that you are forbidden to eat bread and pastries, potatoes, pasta, milk, rice, fruit, vegetables (well, there are a couple you can still eat) and, obviously, definitely no junk food or soft drinks. On the other hand, you are allowed to eat red meat, fish, chicken, cheese, mayonnaise, cream, butter and eggs. This is going to be your only food for the first two weeks, which is called the Induction Phase.

Phase two of the diet is called Ongoing Weight Loss which lets you increase the intake of carbohydrates by 5g each day, starting from the basic 20 grams per day stated by the initial Induction Phase. Your challenge is to find how much the amount of carbs you're eating can be increased before the body is unable to lose between 1 and 3 pounds per week. This is called the Critical Carbohydrate Level for Losing Weight and this is where the amount of carbs stops growing. This phase has to last until you almost reach your desired weight.

You enter the 3rd stage of the diet, called Pre-Maintenance, with 5 to 10 pounds left to drop. In this stage you're supposed to increase the carbohydrate intake by 10g a day. This slows down the weight loss process.

Lifetime Maintenance is the title of the final phase and a lifetime of eating around 90 grams of carbs per day...yes, for the rest of your life is required. Moving from an average of 250 grams or more to less than 100 grams for the rest of your life could be quite a challenge for many people.

The Atkins Diet has various side effects depending on the individual. Some people experienced no problems what-so-ever on this diet, yet some got dangerous infections of the kidneys from the high-protein content or major heart problems from all the fat food the diet consists of. Dizziness and general weakness are reported to be expected when the body goes into starvation mode from being denied carbohydrates. Constipation is a big problem with such a low fibre diet plan. Also, the lack of many dairy products can lead to a large decrease in the intake of calcium absorbed by the body and may contribute to osteoporosis or other bone conditions later on in life.

With all the serious health risks of the Atkins Diet, is it really worth it?

Why not consider a healthy exercise regime along with balanced meal plans to aid your weight loss? If you're having trouble cutting fatty food out of your diet, you should take a look at Proactol - the all natural weight loss pill that eliminates up to 30% of fat from your diet.