Is The Atkins Low Carbohydrate Diet Safe?

Yes.

How’s that for a definitive answer.

The low carbohydrate approach advocated by Dr. Atkins is nothing new.  It was the accepted medical approach to high blood pressure, diabetes, gout, heart disease and obesity for approximately 100 years prior to the low fat dietary recommendations put forward by the United States in the 1980’s.

FAQ About Low Carbohydrate Diets:

• Your body does not require you to eat carbohydrates in order to function properly.
• Low carbohydrate diets most closely resemble the diet that our stone age ancestors ate than do other weight loss approaches.
• The increased fat intake of low carbohydrate diets  is not harmful.
• Low carbohydrate diet has consistently shown superior weight loss effects in clinical studies than low fat diets
• The ‘ketones’ that are formed in extreme carbohydrate restricted diets (less than 20-30 grams per day) are not harmful.  They are a healthy fuel source for the brain and other cells in the body.
• Your doctor’s concerns about low carbohydrate diets are most often ill informed.  Most have not studied the topic and are simply find it ‘unnatural’.
• Most patients with heart burn, erectile dysfunction, frequent urination and occasional fatigue and lightheadedness will notice these conditions greatly improve with carbohydrate restriction within just a few weeks.
• On a practical level, brown rice and whole wheat bread are not healthier than their lower fiber counterparts.  The overall amount of carbohydrates (not fiber content or glycemic index) is the most important factor when it comes to triggering (or reversing) diabetes, obesity, fatty liver disease, high blood pressure and heart disease.
• The low carbohydrate approach to disease prevention and reversal is not publicized much because no drug company is going to make billions of dollar a year teaching you or your doctor how to cut your carbohydrate intake.
• Most people with greatly benefit from a reduction in carbohydrates to less than 100 grams per day.
• The fatigue some feel after starting a low carbohydrate diet is a result of the neurological damage to a persons blood pressure regulation system from their prior high carbohydrate diet, not from ‘sugar withdrawal’.
• You don’t need to eat fruit to be healthy.  You can get all the vitamins and minerals you need from low carbohydrate vegetables and meat.  In fact there is too much sugar in common hybridized fruit.
• There is no scientific basis for the claim that an individual with normal kidneys will have kidney damage from eating lots of protein.  This is an archaic thought that has been refuted by modern research.

Words of Caution
If your are simply over weight or worried about your future health, there is no reason to not start cutting your carbohydrates today without delay.

If you have had a stroke or heart attack, are on blood pressure or diabetes medications or suffer from any other serious medical condition, you’ll need to find a supportive physician who can assist you in tapering off your medications as your body begins recovering after reducing your carbohydrate intake.

Quick Start Guide
Clicking on this link will allow you to down load my Quick Start Guide to Low Carbohydrate Diets.  Its nothing special just a simple set of guideline I put together that can get people going.

With this guide you won’t need to look up how carbohydrate amounts and you’ll begin losing weight right away.

Women often don’t lose as much total weight as men in the first month but they will notice a change in how their clothes fit.  They tend to lose fat mass but increase their muscle mass resulting in minimal net weight loss.  Many women will often comment that their weight loss is less than they would expect considering how loose their clothes become.  This is the sculpting effect I’ve commented on before.

On the other hand,  men initially lose more right away but slow down sooner.

Download the guide and give it a try, all you have to lose are the pounds.