msn health/ atkins diet/ long

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While Atkins peppers his book and Web site with occasional studies

from medical journals, both in the United States and abroad, his

diet remains highly controversial. Entities from the U.S. Department

of Agriculture (USDA) to the American Heart Association (AHA) to the

Center for Science in the Public Interest denounce the diet. No more

than 30% of total calories should come from fat, with the goal of

decreasing that, agree the AHA and the USDA. The USDA's

recommended " food pyramid " calls for six to eleven daily servings of

bread, pasta, and grains (depending on one's age and amount of

activity) and doesn't single out refined flour as a food felon -- a

recommendation that flies in the face of the Atkins plan. Most

health authorities also recommend at least five servings of fruit

and vegetables a day, which Atkins doesn't supply.

H. Eckel, MD, chair of the AHA's Nutrition Committee, is

unconvinced that Atkins' diet controls cholesterol in the long term

and points out that Atkins has few published results and no long-

term studies to back up such a claim. " Our [major] concern is the

high-fat content of the diet and its overall effect on the

cardiovascular system, " Eckel says.

Furthermore, Eckel, professor of medicine, physiology, and

biophysics at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in

Boulder, says that while it is true that total cholesterol should

fall on the Atkins regimen, this is true with every weight-loss

plan. " To be a good measurement, cholesterol levels should be taken

when your weight is stable, " he says. Without that kind of data,

which Atkins doesn't publish, Atkins' plan is misleading his dietary

followers, Eckel says.

The American Dietetic Association is equally dismissive of the

Atkins diet. Gail , PhD, spokeswoman for the organization and

professor of nutrition at California State University, Long Beach,

says, " The body needs a minimum of carbohydrates for efficient and

healthy functioning -- about 150 grams daily. " Below that, normal

metabolic activity is disrupted, she says. " The brain needs glucose

to function efficiently, and it takes a long time to break down fat

and protein to get to the brain. " Carbohydrates, especially in the

form of vegetables, grains, and fruits, are more efficiently

converted to glucose. And this more efficient use of glucose has

developed over a long period of time, according to . " Fruits

and berries are much more indicative of early man's eating pattern

than eating only protein, and we haven't changed all that much

physiologically. "

Food for Thought

Atkins' theories remain unproven, and most experts are concerned

that Atkins' high-protein, high-fat diet can cause a host of

problems, particularly for the large segment of the population that

is at risk for heart disease. What's more, the plan doesn't permit a

high intake of fruits and vegetables, recommended by most nutrition

experts because of the numerous documented health benefits from

these foods.