Is The Atkins Diet the Answer?

The study results although interesting, still emphasis balanced diet and exercise.

A yearlong study of 311 women on 4 different diets came back with some interesting findings. The diets; The Atkins, the Zone, Ornish and The LEARN were used. The results indicated that the diet with the least amount of allowable carbohydrates, The Atkins, won out but there was some question as to whether the women on The Atkins Diet followed the guidelines.

Women assigned to the Atkins group lost an average of 10.4 pounds compared to 5.7 pounds for LEARN, 4.8 pounds for Ornish and 3.5 pounds for Zone, the study said. The study also indicated the women on the Atkins diet had the most improvements in terms of cholesterol and blood pressure.

The Atkins Diet, which allows for an abundance of meat, fats and some vegetables but severely limits carbohydrate intake, has been critcized for condoning large portions of meat and fats. Christopher Gardner, assistant professor of medicine at the Stanford Prevention Research Center in California and lead author of the study did say that originally it was believed diets very low in carbohydrates were not taken seriously as an option for weight loss. He did however agree that limiting refined carbohydrates and carbonated drinks could benefit dieters. And that maybe tweaking such diets might benefits some dieters as well.

The test subjects generally approached the diet enthusiastically and lost several pounds initially but after months of the high protein lost enthusiasm. Dr. Howard Eisenson, director of the Duke Diet and Fitness Center, who reminded people to eat a diet full of fruits and vegetables and to be physically active says ”diet messages can be confusing and there really is no easy answer when it comes to our weight control.”