The Skinny on Fat (The Truth About Obesity, Part 2)

Tech Central Station ^ | July 16, 2003 | Sandy Szwarc

[Timesink]

A host of sinful foods have been demonized as the root of obesity and poor health of American adults and children. Fast food restaurants have been sued, accused of contributing to customers' obesity because their food tastes too good and they tempt us by advertising. Taxes are being proposed on foods deemed fattening or bad for us, namely, anything with meat or fat, that is fried or processed or that is sweet.

[sinkspur]

I eat pasta once a week, and look forward to it.

Or a big plate of nachos, or even fried chicken.

Once a week, though. A "splurge" meal.

Then I get right back on Atkins and my weight stays the same.

[Xenalyte]

I'm guessing that even with your weekly splurge (what a strange word that is!), you're staying inside your safe carb-intake zone. I'm not doing full-on official Atkins, so I'm not sure what it's called, but I understand some of us can maintain on 100 grams a day and some need to go as low as 40.

[Aquinasfan]

Tell me more! Please! (I'm 6'4"/285+ and want do peel off about 50-80 pounds or so...)

My wife and I do Atkins and have had tremendous success. She also works part time as a cashier at a grocery store. She can tell the Atkins people by what they're buying. Everyone she talks to has has success with the diet. It's the best and easiest way to lose weight rapidly. The only hard part is the sugar/carb withdrawal stage in the first week or two after beginning induction. After that, you'll feel so much more energetic you won't believe it, and you'll never want to go back. Sugary foods will look to you like poison.

[Aquinasfan]

Results are what counts.

Whatever happened to empirical evidence? This is science, isn't it?

[sinkspur]

I have to go low; my safe zone is around 50, and I try to get as much of that as I can from vegetables and good stuff.

But I'll even cut the salads a day or two before Saturday (which is splurge day in our house). Or I'll walk an extra mile for a couple of days.

This is really simple stuff. You just learn about how your body reacts to certain foods.

One thing I know, however, is that I eat fewer calories lately; it doesn't take much cheese or steak to satisfy. If I get hungry later, I can always have some jerky or pork rinds.

[najida]

I am an RD in a Psychiatric Hospital now....and I consult a lot on the side. Plus write menus and recipes for some LTC facilities.

[CajunConservative]

For anyone who wants the low down on these harmful "diets", you can CLICK HERE, and browse from some online excerpts from Pam Smith's book "The Diet Trap".

I gained a lot of weight following "The Diet Trap". In my journey to find out what works for ME I have discovered that too many carbs, be they the non refined ones or the refined ones causes many many problems. The ONLY way I ever lose weight and more importantly feel great is when I restrict carbs, get adequate protein and eat plenty of healthy fats.

When are people going to get off their high horse and mind their own business in regards to diet? Some people need the Atkins approach for optimum health while others need more of a vegetarian approach. People are different, have different metabolisms, different genetics and different caloric needs. Diets are not one size fits all. It all comes down to taking responsibility for your own health and not relying on any one to determine what is right for you.

I gained freedom from diets by listening to the signals my body gave me when I ate. When I ate the high carb/low fat diet my body started falling apart inside while ballooning up on the outside. When I ate a restricted carb/high protein/high healthy fat diet I started healing and losing weight and most importantly the brain fog disappeared.

I also learned that no one, not even the vaunted doctors get it right all the time. I followed their advice that phen/fen was safe and one dose told my body differently and thank God I listened and threw them away.

[Kevin Curry]

It's as simple as a bank account: If you put in (absorbed nutrients, not consumed nutrients) more than you take out, your deposits will grow. If you take out (via energy expenditure) more than you put in, your deposits will shrink.

I don't think it's that simple. Our bodies are not simple warehouses or bank vaults but complex chemical factories. What we eat dynamically influences how our bodies process and store what is eaten.

[najida]

You and I have the same history (early surgery). My weight will always be a battle for me. Talk to your Doc about getting on some of the yam based ERT meds. And yeah, the psychotropics will put the weight on!!

As for exercise, find ANYTHING you can do that you like doing. Walking, biking, dancing in your living room, weeding the yard. As you build stamina, you will start to feel better.

[aruanan]

This is totally incorrect. Dr. Richard Heller and Dr. Rachael Heller state that human fat is a by-product process in which carbohydrates (including sucrose and fructose) are converted by insulin into glycogen, which is the actual fuel of the body. When too much glycogen is created by this process, it is converted to fat and stored for future use. According to these two medical professors, fat IS created from carbohydrates

Dr. Heller and Heller as quoted are inaccurate, as are these statements:

1. "converted by insulin into glycogen" The principal action of insulin is to aid in the uptake of blood glucose into cells. Insulin is also involved in the formation of glycogen, a polymer storage form of glucose.

2. "glycogen, which is the actual fuel of the body" The principal fuel of the body is fat. That is, the greatest percentage of your total energy expenditure is your basal metabolic rate. The greatest percentage of that is accounted for by fat oxidation. In addition, glycogen is not the "actual fuel" of the body since glycogen is a storage form of glucose. It is glucose which is the principal carbohydrate energy source of the body.

3. "When too much glycogen is created by this process, it is converted to fat and stored for future use." The actual situation is a bit more complicated. When glycogen stores are replete (2 or 3 days' worth of energy is all they hold), in order to protect the liver (look what happens to the liver of a goose when force-fed carbohydrates in excess of energy needs) the body compensates by preferentially increasing carbohydrate oxidation and simultaneously reducing fat oxidation. If the diet is chronically in energy excess, the positive balance will be stored in the form of dietary fats.

4. "According to these two medical professors, fat IS created from carbohydrates". Fat is created from acetyl-CoA which is the end product of the catabolism of glucose or fatty acids. This is just at the point where acetyl-CoA can enter the Krebs cycle and be used to produce ATP (and NADP). In some organisms, de novo lipogenesis is very active. It is not so active in humans. Instead of using energy to make a lot of fat, fat oxidation is curtailed and carbohydrate oxidation increased. Most of the fat that people gain comes from their diet in the context of a hypercaloric intake. They may be making some relatively tiny amounts of fat de novo, but this is the result of having a hypercaloric diet, not merely just having a higher intake of carbohydrates.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Now this is funny.

Earlier in the thread you said I post nonsense.

Then a few posts later you refer to me (or Pam Smith) as a "dietician", which neither of us are.

She is not advocataing a diet. And thats something else funny; you said Atkins diet is not a diet but a way of life? Sorry. Anyone who says "eat this, don't eat that" is giving you a diet. Pam Smith, if you read her books, will tell you the main thing is balance.

Lets break down some numbers, shall we? Let's deal with facts. How about a simple start:

Atkins says, in his "way of ife", to cut out (for example) tomatoes for the first few weeks.

What is the carb count in a tomato as compared to anyo of the other foods he tells you to eat in his first few weeks?
As well, what other benefits are there in a tomato? (Have you ever heard of lycopene?)

Atkins "way of life" eats muscle mass.

Oh. And an FYI. Your heart is a muscle.

I wonder what a MUGA scan would return on someone who has followed his way of life for a few years would be.

[aruanan]

It's not a diet; it's a new way to eat!

Ha ha ha. A diet is any characteristic way of eating, new or otherwise, regardless of its purpose. This is the principal meaning of the word. A lot of people think "diet" means only "something I do with food to lose weight".

[RedBloodedAmerican]

I gained a lot of weight following "The Diet Trap".

There could have been several reasons for that. And it was not the fault of Pam Smiths advice. One could have been the shock your body went thru eating properly. Another could have been excercise (lack of). Your body has to adjust to eating properly, and you may gain some (but I doubt it), but you will hit a plateau and then the wieght will melt off.
How long did you follow her advice, and did you follow it regularly?

And the Atkins diet will affect ALL people the same; it will begin to eat muscle mass. It does not care about metabolism, or body differences.

[sinkspur]

What is the carb count in a tomato as compared to anyo of the other foods he tells you to eat in his first few weeks?

As you know (or maybe you don't), Atkins is not based on calories; it's based on the glycemic index, and tomatoes are high on the glycemic index.

I didn't do the strict induction phase of Atkins, so I never "cut out" anything completely.

What is Smith's plan? Her boilerplate tells me nothing. And, if she's not a dietitian (since you're such a stickler for qualificaitons), why should we listen to her?

If someone wanted to get the entire Atkins plan, they could do so right on the Atkins website; they don't have to go out and buy a book.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

I like what Pam Smith says in reference to Atkins type diets: "Why do you think they call it a 'diet'?"

[sinkspur]

And the Atkins diet will affect ALL people the same; it will begin to eat muscle mass.

It will not, no matter how many times you repeat this falsehood.

Atkins burns FAT.

Why don't you pimp Pam Smith, and stop disparaging Atkins, since you clearly know nothing about the Atkins plan.

[Aquinasfan]

Atkins "way of life" eats muscle mass.

So eating sugar and flour builds muscle mass? No wonder why so many kids who eat Fritos and Twinkies are so fit...

[sinkspur]

I gained a lot of weight following "The Diet Trap".

I don't know, but I would guess she encourages a "balance" of carbs and proteins.

Of course you'll get fat from that.

Too many carbs. Our bodies don't need that much sugar (natural or otherwise).

Try Atkins. You'll lose weight and feel better.

[CajunConservative]

There could have been several reasons for that. And it was not the fault of Pam Smiths advice. One could have been the shock your body went thru eating properly.

I was on it long enough to figure it did not work for me. It was three or four months of following her plan. I also walked 5 miles a day. It may work wonderfully for you and others, and that is fine. However, I had other physical problems that were worsened following that plan because of too many carbs for me. I have a medical condition, PCOS in which the main way to treat it is Atkins or other restricted carb plans.

Anytime I eat small frequent meals like she advocates I gain weight. I am actually doing Carbohydrates Addicts now and feel great on it. What works for me is to restrict WHEN I eat carbs not just how many I eat or what type I eat. I am getting plenty of veggies, non refined carbs daily in a way that I am losing weight and not hungry nor tied to the snacks every two or three hours now. I don't get hungry until dinner time most days. That is a nice feeling. That gives me control over the constant urge to eat, cravings, never feeling satisfied, and always hungry.

And the Atkins diet will affect ALL people the same; it will begin to eat muscle mass. It does not care about metabolism, or body differences.

Where's your proof??? On Atkins, you are eating enough protein to to meet dietary needs.

[CajunConservative]

I am doing a combination of Atkins/CAD and that is what is working for me. If I eat any carbs early on it sets me up for hunger later on during the day. This seems to be working for right now.