Report: Diet Doctor Atkins Was Obese

Yahoo/AP ^ | 2/10/2004 | AP

[ClintonBeGone]

NEW YORK - Dr. Robert Atkins, whose popular diet stresses protein-rich meat and cheese over carbohydrates, weighed 258 pounds at his death and had a history of heart disease, a newspaper reported Tuesday.

Atkins died last April at age 72 after being injured in a fall on an icy street.

Before his death, he had suffered a heart attack, congestive heart failure and hypertension, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing a report by the city medical examiner.

At 258 pounds, the 6-foot-tall Atkins would have qualified as obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (news - web sites)'s body-mass index calculator.

Diet is one potential factor in heart disease, but infections also can contribute to it.

Stuart Trager, chairman of the Atkins Physicians Council in New York, told the Journal that Atkins' heart disease stemmed from cardiomyopathy, a condition thought to result from a viral infection.

Atkins' weight was due to bloating associated with his condition, and he had been much slimmer during most of his life, Trager said.

The medical examiner's report was given to the Journal by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a group that advocates vegetarianism. The medical examiner's office told the Journal that the report had been sent to the group in error.

There was no immediate response Tuesday to a call seeking additional comment from the medical examiner's office.

The diet guru's widow, Veronica Atkins, was outraged that the report had been made public.

"I have been assured by my husband's physicians that my husband's health problems late in life were completely unrelated to his diet or any diet," she told the Journal.

Last month, Veronica Atkins demanded an apology from Mayor Michael Bloomberg after Bloomberg called her late husband "fat."

In April 2002, Atkins issued a statement saying he was recovering from cardiac arrest related to a heart infection he had suffered from "for a few years." He said it was "in no way related to diet."

[ClintonBeGone]

The medical examiner's report was given to the Journal by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a group that advocates vegetarianism.

This man has helped millions of people, yet the libs just can't leave him alone even in his death. Shame on them!

[xzins]

I agree with the wife. This is a hit piece against the doctor. A viral infection that caused bloating at the end of life is hardly traceable to his diet plan.

Who is the opposition to the Atkins Plan: Pasta Companies???

[RunningJoke]

Hesiod foresaw the day when Aidos (the goddess of shame) and Nemesis (the goddess who avenges offenses against shame) would forsake mankind "and bitter sorrow will be left for mortal man, and there will be no help against evil."

[NotQuiteCricket]

He's fat based on the BMI? That thing is a crock of 5#!^ anyway. He had a heart condition relating to a viral infection, and died because he fell and hit his head....but somehow his height/weight ratio is supposed to be relevant. Man, I HOPE his wife files a lawsuit - not for money but to get the ME in jail for violation of privacy or something....I thought those records were supposed to be private for 50 years or something?

[ClintonBeGone]

Who is the opposition to the Atkins Plan: Pasta Companies???

Well, read the quote in my first post - the documents were requested by a group of vegitarian doctors!

[xzins]

Thanks for the post CBG. Excellent catch.

[newheart]

Vegans. that pretty much explains it.

I weighed 255 lbs when I started his regimen two years ago. After 6 months I hit 190. I now weigh between 190 and 205 lbs (I'm 6' 1") The high end follows the holiday carb sabbatical from Thanksgiving to New Years.

Contrary to myths about Atkins, I don't eat a lot of red meat, my kidneys are fine, I am not constipated and I don't have bad breath.

Call me unhealthy, but I probably added a several years to my life by going on Dr. Atkins diet.

So why did the doc weigh so much at his death? Go look up congestive heart failure. It is quite normal for CHF patients to gain a lot of weight. Their bodies retain fluid and their capacity for exercise is severely limited.

[kevkrom]

But I really have a hard time accepting this diet as healthy.

People have been doing Atkins for 30 years or so (though it's only been popular in recent years). To date, no medical study has ever shown that Atkins is unhealthy.

[dogbyte12]

I just started Atkins 3 months ago. I was obese then. Not now. I am 6'2" tall. I weighed 331 when I started. In 3 months, I have dropped 65 pounds, down to 266. When I started, my body fat percentage was 28%. As of this morning, my body fat percentage is down to 16.24%. 13 more pounds down, and it will most likely slip under the 15% mark. I will be 6'2, 253, and be considered obese by the BMI chart, by 20 pounds no less. When I hit 233, my last pound "of obesity", I will be wearing size 34 jeans.

Thanks for ruining my life Dr. Atkins (sarcasm)

[Zack Nguyen]

You're right - Arnold Schwarzeneggar talks about high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets in his bodybuilding autobiography, which was written in the mid-1970's I believe.

[ClintonBeGone]

But I really have a hard time accepting this diet as healthy.

I know, but if you read his book you'll realize that like a bad government experiment, the propoganda its been feeding us all these years is completely wrong. The numbers dont lie. The diet works and you'll feel like a million dollars. I can eat anything I want before bed and never taste the sting of heartburn. Before Atkins, I had to refuse to put a single thing in my mouth after 6pm otherwise I would be up all night with acid reflux.

[Zack Nguyen]

Wow, good job!

[ClintonBeGone]

LOL WOW! YOU GO!

[devane617]

I am simply amazed at how many "Green-Leafy" types come out swinging, even in the death of someone.

They can not stand the thought that they were wrong.

[Interesting Times]

AP correctly identified the agenda of the group leaking the examiner's report, so this article rates well above their usual standard.

[devane617]

Way to go! dogbyte

[Sabatier]

I have absolutely no doubt that Atkins has added years to the lives of myself and other members of my family who have followed the Atkins diet, lost weight, and kept it off for years now. This attempt at a character attack on Atkins doesn't change that fact. We eat a lot of green vegetables which have a low glycemic load - not starchy, in other words - and by avoiding bread and pasta you don't get that "I'm hungry" feeling twenty minutes after eating.
PS _ Note to beer drinkers: Guinness stout is naturally low in carbs and tastes way better than watery low-carb beer:)

[Trident/Delta]

This is just another example of an "establishment" defacto thought process and its loyal minions seeking to maintain the status quo. If the Atkins diet is indeed the "right" way for a human to eat, then all those vegan and no-fat evangalists MUST be wrong. Lord, that would never be. Soooo, the hate and disinformation machine MUST be cranked up to discredit it. I read the Diet Revolution book back in 1979. I started on the diet and it was working until my (then) wife decided that is was phoney and burnt my book and attempted to make me a vegan. Now, I am back on the Atkins diet, happy and losing weight like crazy. I have 120lbs to lose. I know I can make it on this diet.

Semper Thin

[mabelkitty]

I've always wondered if it was actually the fact one was eating foods in a more natural state.

No high fructose corn syrup, no bleached white flour, etc., etc.,

I'm sure this could have a major impact on one's weight just be eliminating the processed "food". And I use the term "food" lightly, as what is in the store is not considered food in my opinion.

And why is the Federal Government subsidizing Lucky Charms and other sugar coated cereals that cost $5.00 for a 14 oz box? This is outrageous

/rant