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Atkins Diet: Fats
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The Atkins diet is set up in four phases, gradually incorporating more carbohydrates into your diet as you successfully complete each stage. The first phase is what Atkins is best known for, the initial fourteen-day Induction diet. Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution book states that the purpose of the Induction diet is "to correct, as expeditiously as possible, an unbalanced metabolism." During this phase, your body will switch from a carbohydrate-burning to a fat-burning metabolism; it will stabilize your blood sugar, stop cravings through abstinence (not moderation), and break addictive eating patterns. The rules of this diet are strict, with every carbohydrate going into your mouth being counted, including the oft forgotten grams in chewing gum, cough syrups, and cough drops. Intake is restricted to 20 grams of carbohydrates a day at most, and if a certain food is not on your Induction diet, you are to have absolutely NONE of it (http://www.atkinscenter.com). In this stage no fruit, bread, grains, starchy vegetables, or dairy products other than cheese, cream, or butter are allowed.
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Designed to catapult your body into a state of fat meltdown, Dr. Atkins's diet has taken America by storm. It targets insulin, the hormone that regulates blood sugar levels. The bodies of most overeaters are continually in a state of hyperinsulinism; their bodies are so adept at releasing insulin to help convert excess carbohydrates to fat that there's always too much of the hormone circulating through the body. This puts the body into a bind; it always wants to store fat. Even when people with hyperinsulinism try to lose weight--especially when they cut fat but increase carbohydrate consumption--their efforts will fail. This is why Dr. Atkins refers to insulin as "the fat-producing hormone."
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Authored by Dr. Robert C. Atkins, the diet regimen is a low carbohydrate, high protein diet. According to the popular way of following this diet you are allowed to eat as much fat as you like as long as you consume very little carbohydrates. The magic behind the short-term success of low carbohydrate diets lies in their effect on the body: the body's preferred energy source is glucose. When carbohydrates are significantly restricted, the body runs short on its constant supply of glucose, the breakdown product of carbohydrate. The body anticipates these situations by storing glucose (glycogen) in the muscles and liver. For every gram of glycogen the body stores, it must store with it three grams of water.
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The Atkins diet seeks to restrict carbohydrates and replace them with fat and protein as people become overweight by eating too much carbohydrate. A high carbohydrate intake can make too much insulin in the body, cause hunger, overeating, and favor fat storage. The theory is by restricting carbohydrates in the diet, the body switches from burning glucose as its primary energy source to fat instead. Weight loss occurs by targeting body fat as the new fuel.
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The purpose of the Atkins diet is to change one’s metabolism and lose weight easily by eating foods high in protein and limiting foods high in carbohydrates, which tend to raise blood sugar levels the most. The diet works on the principle of ketosis – the process by which excess, stored body fat (the body’s secondary energy source) is burned, resulting in weight loss. A background understanding of the body’s natural energy system helps to understand Atkins’ rationale. Diets high in carbohydrates increase your body’s production of insulin because of their glucose and sugar makeup. When insulin is at high levels in the body, the food you eat can readily get converted into body fat, in the form of triglycerides. Thus, if lower amounts of carbohydrates are consumed, the body naturally produces less insulin and looks to other sources for fuel, namely FAT!
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The Atkins diet holds the controversial belief that low fat is not the only way to go for a healthier lifestyle and weight control. Dr. Atkins blamed carbohydrates (grains, pastas, fruits, potatoes) for weight gain. He believed that if you reduced your carbohydrate intake then you would lose weight. Too many carbohydrates in your diet encourage your body to retain fat. When the body absorbs simple carbohydrates quickly, it causes an insulin response that speeds the conversion of calories to fat. The plan focuses on the consumption of nutrient-dense, unprocessed foods and vita-nutrient supplementation.
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