Dr. Robert Atkins. Was he a genius, a quack, both?

[Odin2005]

I strongly agree with him that the high-carb, low-fat diet promoted by mainstream nutritionists is actually unhealthy and fattening (And IMO is all about maximizing the profits of Agribusiness). In my experience when I eat carb-rich foods I'll feel hungry again in a couple hours, but when I eat a meal with lots of protein and fat I actually feel full for as long as 10 hours afterwards, and therefore I eat less.

On the other hand, he seems to have went off the deep end in his later years into the nutritional supplement woo. Thinking, for example, that high doses of Vitamin B12 cures Autism.

[Lex]

1. I cut out all carbs except for leafy greens, non-starchy veggies

and berries and nuts, and stuck to lean meats and cheeses, and dropped 90 pounds. I did this after reading Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution. So I don't think he's a quack at all.

Now as far as his take on vitamins and such, I didn't really follow him on any of that, or even know much about it.

[laconicsax]

2. Carbs make life worth living...I say quack.

[sense]

3. He was right, still is....

We've been fed a huge line of crap since the 70's about what's healthy and what's not. You're absolutely right about maximizing profits being the motive for the lies we've been told. Here's a good video by a swedish doctor that explains:

http://vimeo.com/couchmode/ancestralhealthsymposium/videos/sort:newest/29464690

I followed conventional wisdom for more than 30 years about how to be healthy and all I (and millions of others) got was fatter and sicker. Now that I've done the research (instead of listening to my CW deluded doctor) I'm healthy and fit. I've cured my own depression, gotten off all but one med. and cured my diabetes, by eating what we evolved to eat. No processed foods, sugar, grains, legumes, or soy. I eat a diet high in the good fats (butter, lard, coconut oil), protein and non-starchy vegetables. I'm never hungry, all disease is gone and as a bonus I have great energy and the weight just fell off. No more supporting big agra and big pharma for me!

[LeftishBrit]

4. I think that most of the theory is quackery

However, I do know people who've lost weight successfully on his diet. I think a lot of it is probably about breaking unhealthy habits, by actively adopting a new routine, rather than *just* giving up certain foods. And as you say, some foods feel more filling than others, and therefore result in less eating overall.


I have never been able to get into these diets myself -perhaps I am just not disciplined enough; also I have some dietary restrictons for other reasons, so could end up on a very unbalanced diet indeed. I am no poster girl for methods of losing weight, but have found the most effective diet for me to be just the 'No bread or biscuits in the house' diet.

[Odin2005]

5. What I know about human physiology makes me think...

...that he is mostly right that the low-fat, high carb diet being bad for you, though I do not support the extremes of his diet unless one is a diabetic. Fat triggers hormones that make you feel full and also take longer to digest.