posted
Speed, you are making the common mistake of thinking, "if people would just do X (implied: like me) they'd all be fine". However, the epidemic of obesity and type 2 diabetes in our society seems to argue against that. It's a lot more difficult and complicated a problem than that, in fact, and low carb diets, including very low carb diets, are sometimes a smart option, sometimes the best option medical science has for us.
[ January 01, 2004, 03:32 PM: Message edited by: ak ]
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posted
Not true. Diabetes is a serious problem, but Atkins will only make it worse. Read some of the studies posted. Show me your evidence to the contrary.
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posted
I will ask Joey for specific studies to cite next time I go to him. He has spent decades studying this and is both brilliant and up to date on all that is going on in the field.
It also worked for me. I first had high blood sugar in my early 30s, then went on a very low carb diet under Joey's care and delayed the onset for 10 more years. Then when it came back in my early 40s I did a modified low carb diet (more carbs than Atkins, I think) and reversed it again. Now my blood sugar is back in normal range, my last hemoglobin A1C was 5.8! And I am off insulin and off all diabetic drugs (that treat blood sugar. I still take Enalapril for delaying long term cardiovascular damage.)
There's no easy answer. If there was, this problem would not be the widespread epidemic it has become. Low carb diets are one very powerful tool that, when applied judiciously, can be quite effective. There are risks but sometimes they are more than outweighed by the benefits.
[ January 01, 2004, 05:26 PM: Message edited by: ak ]
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posted
Yeah, ask him. But before you do, read some of the studies that have been posted here already. Tell me what you think. I don't want to get into the "my doctor is smarter than your doctor" game. I'm a health care professional. I may not be as brilliant as your friend, but I know plenty of people who are. I've met and talked with a plethora of them, and I've never met one who would support the Atkins diet, especially for a diabetic. So you'll forgive me if I'm still skeptical.
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posted
The key to anything is moderation! Cutting out the whites (flour, sugar, rice) and replacing them with whole grains is a good start. But you can go overboard on those too. For a diabetic eating less carbs is good. I don't think no carbs is good for anyone. I know my dh has lost weight by cutting out the sugary soda, cutting back on his carb consumption (less potatos for one) and increasing his vegies. There is a book called Eating Smart the Low-Carb Way (I can't remember the author), that explains how to balance it out so you aren't eating too many nor too little carbs. Its a balancing act. Now if my dh would increase his activity more he would see more success (for that matter so would I!). I think any "diet" is extreme and extremes should be avoided. Just my non-professional .02
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You shouldn't be around all those sick people all day. They give you germs!
Take care of yourself, dear, we need you.
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I talked to my dietician friend who also knows a fair amount about the low-carb diets Joey used, and she said the kidney damage from Atkins is because of the large amount of protein people consume.
The way Joey did it, you didn't substitute huge amounts of fats and proteins for carbs, you just decreased your carbs, while keeping the fat low (but including some fat of the correct type to keep the gall bladder working right) and increased the protein only moderately. My old low carb diet that I was on in my early 30s went like this. (Under a doctor's care, with frequent tests to be sure blood chemistry levels were good and ketones weren't too high.) 11 ounces of lean protein a day, lots and lots of water or other non caloric liquids no more than half of which should be caffeinated, 2 cups of boullion dissolved in hot water per day for the salt, 24 almonds a day or six pecan halves (which had just the right sort of fat), potassium supplements (2 k-durs a day), magnesium supplements (3 mg plus protein tablets a day), a multivitamin plus iron, and calcium supplements. I also took 3 gm of vitamin C a day (which he approved), and 200 IU of vitamin E for antioxidant effects.
This is what they worked out for me, based on lots of factors including how I responded in terms of ketones, blood pressure, and blood chemistry, so it wouldn't apply to everyone.
He kept me on that for a month, then added non-starchy vegetables and decreased the protein to 9 ounces a day (stil taking all the rest). He kept me on that until I reached my target body weight and had good blood sugar control, then added 45 gm of carb from starchy vegetables, while further decreasing the lean protein to only 6 ounces a day, and going off some of the supplements.
I have never studied Atkins closely, do I understand that the protein and fat are unlimited? That may be the difference.
Also, there WERE some side effects, which I disucussed with Joey as they arose, and he suggested remedies to. The only one we didn't figure out a way to work around was the mood effects, which Joey said are not common. I seem to be the only one of his patients who has experienced them, possibly, although I'm not sure he would have found out from the others. Joey and I are close friends, of course, so I feel freer about telling him things I wouldn't have brought up to another doctor. Also, there are hints from his other patients that something of the sort may have happened to others, but they never, perhaps, made the connection to their diet.
Anyway, that's why we decided to moderate the low-carbness of it this time around. It has worked again, but taken a lot longer this time. (My age is one factor in that as well. My diabetes has progressed.) Now I am resigned to never being able to eat like a normal person again. I don't care, though, it's worth it not to be sick.
[ January 03, 2004, 11:08 AM: Message edited by: ak ]
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This is kind of unrelated, but I was reminded of it by Mack's discussion of healthy sizes and whatnot. Does anyone else have some kind of freakishly huge difference between pants size and dress size? And if so, which one do you pay attention to when you're trying to get to your "ideal" size?
posted
Get back to the important part - the Subway wraps
I'm not Atkinning, but I don't like the wad of bread in their subs either so I've been getting my usual sammiches with wraps instead. Much tastier.
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posted
God, all this talk about eating right makes me realize how much I neglect my body. I have it lucky, because I'm a scrawny nothing. Unfortunately, that won't last for much longer. My family tends to become round at about age 30. My dad's tried all kinds of diets with my stepmom, I wish they'd just stop buying Oreos (my only recourse is to eat them before they can get to them, trans-fat and cancerous-white-sugar be damned!).
Anyway, does anyone know a way that I can prevent my metabolism from crashing into the ground in ten years? I know exactly why it happens, it's my body's way of saying, "You should be dead, no mammal is meant to live this long, now die!" But how do I stop it?
[edit] Subway makes decent food. I like the fact that, no matter what, the lettuce crunches. I eat at other fast food restaraunts but once a year, because you couldn't pay them enough money to buy a meal that crunches like that. Mmmm.
posted
Yes, exercise The more muscle mass you have, the more efficient your metabolism is, so once you start becoming "round" its an uphill battle.
Of course, all this nutrition and healthy lifestyle stuff is easier said than done. We are very prone to convenience and our cravings/habits It takes a concentrated plan and effort to be healthy.
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posted
You're lucky I swore not to flip off anyone else on this board.
Yeah. The woman who weighed me said that weight and BMI is crap with people who are as active as I am and I'm well within the range of normal and creeping down towards lean (as in, musclely lean, not stick-lean).
I think I'd die if I got stick skinny. o_O
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