Certainly the Atkins plan has its vigorous defenders, on this forum and elsewhere. Most arguments in its defense are anectotal, or personal. You know, "I eat Spam fried in butter and a cheese omelet for breakfast every day, and I never felt better." Not unlike people who will point out that they smoke two packs a day, but are in (seemingly) good health. But there is an absolute linear statistical relationship between the consumption of fat in excess of recommended daily allowances and early mortality, just as there is a demonstrable relationship between smoking and early mortality. If YOU are beating the odds (so far), good for you. I subscribe to the wisdom of the great journalist Damon Runyan: "It may be that the race is not always to the swift, or the contest to the strong, but that's the way to bet."
There is no doubt whatever that strict adherence to the Atkins plan will result in short-term weight loss, and rather rapidly, too, as the body struggles to dilute the excess protein and fat with all the water it can flush out of its tissues and excrete. That accounts for the plan's renewed popularity. But the weight loss comes at a great cost, which need not be reiterated here.
Suffice it to say that fat causes fat. What is intuitively obvious is, in this case, true. It's the Alfredo sauce, not the pasta. It's the sour cream and bacon bits, not the baked potato. It's the cheeseburger, not the bun. Atkinites will disagree, and nothing I can say will dissuade them. Without doubt, if you look hard enough, you can find a doctor who endorses your favorite foods, or is willing to do so if he can translate his theory into a best-selling book. Peanut butter, chocolate, cabbage soup, gin, whatever gullible people will swallow (so to speak).
Those who think that carbohydrates are the cause of obesity should be careful to draw a distinction between "simple" and quickly digested carbohydrates such as white flour and sugar, and "complex" carbohydrate-fiber blends such as whole grains and beans. But even "simple" carbohydrates, while they constitute "empty calories," and don't do you much good, don't do nearly the harm to your blood vessals, heart, liver, etc. as fat, especially of the saturated variety.
Best wishes to all FReepers for good health and a long life, however you accomplish it. Think of the long-term ramifications if we outlived the liberals by ten years, on average.
This is being too simplistic. Anyone who understand carbohydrate metabolism will tell you that eating them in excess is bad for you. Excess of anything really. Fats are just another kind of food, there are good fats and bad fats. Saturated fats are the bad guys, but there are quite a few good, and neccessary fats. Fats are not evil.
I never really understand the Atkins bashers. Basically, all that is cut out (temporarily, I might add) is processed flour and processed sugar. If flour and sugar were so vital to mans survival then none of us would even be here. Ancient man did not have sugar processing mills or bleached white flour and he did just fine and so are the millions of people who have given up sugar and flour.
I researched the plan quite a bit a few months ago and found that to be (kinda) true. The majority of the diets defenders were speaking from personal experience and the majority of detractors were using anecdotal evidence:
"My boss's brother's barber did that diet and in one month he grew hair on his palms and his heart exploded."
You know, "I eat Spam fried in butter and a cheese omelet for breakfast every day, and I never felt better."
You do realize this is not really what the plan dictates, don't you?
You are pretty darn certain of your facts and speak with great authority. Unfortunately, your "fat makes fat" statement may sound cute and logical on the surface, but it demonstrates sheer ignorance on your part even if you did try to hide the ignorance under an all-knowing and paternalistic presentation. Monounsaturated fats trigger the body's fat burning mechnisms. Carbohydrates trigger fat storage through insulin release. These are biological facts. Denial on your part proves that your mind is made up and you are finished with learning. You obviously can't be bothered with something that requires a little knowledge or thought. Your simple and cute way of looking at things are sufficient for you, fine. By why spout it off and actually harm others' attempts to learn?