JGL53

No, your first sentence simply isn't true - it's a straw man - and good job, BTW, of knocking it on it's ass.

'Atkin's supporters' tend to be people who were binge eaters of sugary carbohydrates, never could get into any other way of eating, and felt so good and did so well on low carb, they thought they had died and gone to heaven. Naturally, if one has no excess body fat problem, no hypoglycemia, no preternatural hunger, no insulin resistence, and no pre-diabetic conditions whatsoever, and is doing just fine eating a high carb diet, then what use is Atkins? None.

But it seems that for a huge per cent of Americans, a half a donut a day just doesn't cut it. One leads to two, two leads to three, pretty soon you're eating EVERTHING in sight - carbs, fat, or protein - as long as there's plenty of sugary carbs in the mix - and soon it's time to punch another hole in your belt. Go to Atkinsfriends.com, go to the BBs there, and you can read tons of personal testimonies of just how that works. Oh, wait, anecdotal stories - totally meaningless - forget it - sorry I brought it up - how UNSCIENTIFIC of me.

Eating sugary, non-fiberous foods leads to overproduction of insulin - this causes too low a blood sugar - then leads to overeating everything - excess body fat is created.

So, sure, it's about the calories, but carbohydrates can lead to excess calories. If you have the 'will power' to not have a sweet tooth', good for you. Millions can't. And they ain't gonna listen to you, bub, but to Atkins. In the end, a dead man will have the last laugh on you. That's how up on diet YOU are.

JGL53

Products from the Good Humor Man (in contrast to you, the bad humor man).


The Ultimate important bit, but a lot of shit is invovled beforehand for many people. See my post for alek0.


Maybe Atkins was too busy helping people to quit binge-eating sugary carb foods and eat a healthy diet to keep records that meet proper standards for a 'study'. Or maybe he was too busy counting his money from a successful cardiology practice. Or maybe he perversely enjoyed being a maverick and king of the alternative diet hill and didn't want the government to agree with him, or all three. Who knows, who cares, at this point in time? Maybe a psychic can conjure up his ghost and ask him.

As for your comments on anecdotal evidence, I have been a lifelong reader of (and admirer of) the Skeptical Inquiror and The Skeptic, and a lifelong admirer of people like Asimov, Gould, Sagan, Randi, et. al. like them. I understand that anecdotal evidence proves nothing, scientifically speaking. I understand that, using critical thinking, one can discern that so-called paranormal claims are wishful thinking, placebo effect, and/or 'after this, therefore because of this' false logic.

But we're not taking homoepathy here. And, conversely, we are not arguing quantum mechanics or cosmological theories here, that are just ivory tower theories that have no meaning or consequence for most people in their daily lives.

We're taking about something that is as personal and as private and as present in one's daily life as worshipping at the church of your choice, or taking a shit in the privacy of your WC.

A person will try a diet. It doesn't 'work' for him. He tries another. It doesn't 'work' for him either (even though others praise it, or the government recommends it, or whatever). Then he tries another. It's 'works' for a few weeks. He will continue with it, doncha think? It 'works' for a few months, then a few years, then a few decades. Case closed for that person. It doesn't matter what other individuals do or think.

This doesn't make sense to you? The person should just follow government recommendations - trust the government - until all the long term studies are done? But what if the person tried the government diet and it didn't 'work'? What if some unapproved 'alternative' diet does work? Doesn't matter to YOU, right? The person must do what's rational and right, according to your definitions, right? Their experience does not count, right? Even after months, years, and even decades of sucess, right?

Stop it now, and do what you and other authorities say, because what the individual experiences over years is to be tossed aside, like so much druck, correct?

Persons hear the anecdotal stories, and for that reason try the diet. It then 'works' for them, or not. Other people's stories are repeated in this individual, or not. That's the way it is working. Really quite simple, actually. Not NEARLY as complicated as you boys make it out to be.

Can you begin to get an inkling of why what you have to say is basically as meaningless to me (and to millions of others) as what I have to say is meaningless to you? Should we continue this? Go have a donut, and a glass of non-fat milk, then get some sleep and think about it.

keyser_soze

I think many here are missing the point. Atkins supporters(like my wife and several of my friends) are not saying that it's atkins or nothing! Quite the opposite, once you reach maitenance level, you are basically on a general diet, but your appetite doesn't come back if you don't have a primarily carb intense diet. My wife eats plenty of carbs, so I am assuming she doesn't think they are EVIL. I don't think the atkins supporters are taking an either/or approach at all, merely relating that it works for them. There are many diets out there, the minority being healthy, but they ALL work for someone. I am all for long term studies, but in the meantime, I SEE it's effects, and I can measure them with my wife's bloodwork and the doctors scales. The doctor is pleased, and is monitoring my wife's blood levels closely. I think some people are taking this as a crusade, when in reality only a minority for and against it are voicing loudly. Most everyone can remain calm, but apparently there are a few who MUST get loud about something. Lighten up, it's just a diet, and the studies will either bear it out or they won't. Either way, no skin...Whatever happened to being openminded and not taking extreme positions? That is why most of us are here, after all.

Nuno Figueira

Low carb diets are healthy in the long run. It's a dietary aproach that stood the test of time and is still practiced by many hunther gatherer populations. There's no evidence that it's unhealthy and since millions are following with no adverse effects, other than minor temporary inconveniences, I think it's ok to assume that a correct low carb diet is a safe one. Even the scientists who are actually doing the research say that at this point there's no evidence against (or for) low carb diest so how come you say it's not healthy?


China for example has a HIGHER hearth disease rate than americans.

Nuno Figueira

Lower than what? Than followers of low carb diets or than people following the EFA "defficient", trans and hydrogenated fats rich, high GI, hypercaloric standard american diets?? You can't really compare things like this, if you really wan't to use statistical data as a term of comparision then at least use data from the groups you're trying to compare.

Amie

I think my birth control pill is making me fat. Just thought I would share. Thank you and have a good day...

King Rat

Are you male or female?

Amie

Female. Its also making me cranky

King Rat

O.K. then, If you were male it would have explained where the boobs are coming from.

JGL53

Well, Godot and alek0, what do you boys think? Nuno Figueira and keyser_soze are not talking the party line. They appear to sorta see all this sorta kinda like I do. Ergo, they are obviously wrong, right? I mean, they deign to disagree with received truth, just like moi. Time to jump in and set those boys straight. Can't have 'unscientific' , non-government approved opinions go unchallenged.

Dare to dream. Maybe in the long run you can wear us rebels down with a continuation of your previous verbose pontification, and we'll just lose it and jump on the low-fat, high carb wagon with you and all the other genius theorists out there.

It could happen. As Body by Jake (TM) encourages us: "NEVER QUIT. NEVER GIVE UP!". The received truth from on high is just TOO important. The FDA and the ADA MUST prevail, or all is lost.