I think low carb is the way to go. Even South Beach is pretty low carb but if you have more than just a few pounds to lose, Atkins is best.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/03072007/news/nationalnews/atkins_is_best_weigh_nationalnews_david_k__li.htm
ATKINS IS BEST 'WEIGH'
AMA FINALLY APPROVES
By DAVID K. LI
THE SKINNY: A study found Atkins was most successful diet for young and middle-aged women.
THE SKINNY: A study found Atkins was most successful diet for young
and middle-aged women.
March 7, 2007 -- The Atkins Diet is back - and this time with the beefy backing of American Medical Association researchers.
The much-maligned, carb-cutting weight-loss plan gained grudging approval in yesterday's Journal of the American Medical Association, which published findings that showed women shedding pounds under Atkins.
"Many health professionals, including us, have either dismissed the value of very low carbohydrate diets for weight loss or been very skeptical of them," said lead researcher Christopher Gardner, an assistant professor of medical research at Stanford University.
"But it seems to be a viable alternative for dieters."
Despite JAMA's reserved praise for Atkins, critics said they've never doubted that an all-meat diet spurs immediate weight loss.
"I don't think anyone should be surprised by this, that some people find it easier to lose weight by getting rid of whole categories of food," said NYU nutrition professor Marion Nestle. "But is it a long-term strategy? Absolutely not!"
A pound of bacon today will end up as a pound on your body tomorrow, the NYU prof said.
"I know loads of people who lost a lot of weight [on Atkins] - and they all gained it all back, every single one of them," Nestle insisted.
The JAMA study put Atkins up against three other popular diets: the low-carb Zone, high-carb Learn and low-fat, high-carb Ornish diets, measuring them for weight loss in 300 young and middle-aged women.
Atkins followers shed an average of about 10 pounds in a year, besting the U.S. government guideline-backed Learn (average weight loss of six pounds), Ornish (five pounds) and Zone (3.5 pounds).
Blood pressure and cholesterol also appeared to stay in check, despite the mass fat intake of Atkins, researchers said.
But to lose weight on Atkins, followers had to stay true to the anti-sugar restrictions, trading in soda pop for water.
"One of the concerns that health professionals have had about these very low carbohydrate diets is that, possibly, the high fat content would be bad for people in terms of their cholesterol levels or their blood pressure," Gardner said.
"Cutting out those simple refined carbohydrates [is key] - the white bread, the white rice, the high-fructose corn syrup, the soda pop."
People who do not read the facts about Atkins are really under a misconception of what Atkins really does. For one thing, Atkins burns fat instead of surger because you are not taking in high carbs which convert to surger. How do we know this? We've been on Atkins for 10 years, we're lean and mean and our doctors keep encouraging us to keep on Atkins. Physicians encourage patients with Diabetes and Heart problems maintain a diet on Atkins.