"Atkins Diabetes Revolution"

[Steve Parker]

I'm surprised this hasn't been reviewed here previously. Perhaps it was, but deleted for some good reason.

The full title is "Atkins Diabetes Revolution: the groundbreaking approach to preventing and controlling type 2 diabetes."

A book by Mary C Vernon and Jacqueline Eberstein (2004)

I must give credit to Dr. Robert C. Atkins for popularizing an approach - carbohydrate restriction - that helps people with diabetes control their disease, and likely helps prevent type 2 diabetes in others. Vernon and Eberstein do a great job explaining his program.

I can best summarize this book by noting that it is the standard Atkins diet with a few modifications: 1) special supplements 2) you add additional carbs to your diet more slowly 3) the warning that diabetics may well end up with a lower acceptable lifetime carbohydrate intake level.

By way of review, the Atkins New Diet Revolution [link] is a very low-carb diet, particularly in the two-week induction phase. "Very low-carb" means lots of meat, chicken, fish, eggs, limited cheese, and 2-3 cups daily of salad greens and low-carb veggies like onions, tomatoes, broccoli, and snow peas. After induction phase, you slowly add back carbs on a weekly basis until weight loss stalls, then you cut back on carbs.

As an adult medicine specialist, I have no expertise in pediatrics. I didn't read the two chapters related to children.

The authors present "complimentary medicine"in a favorable light. Unsuspecting readers need to know that much of complementary medicine is based on hearsay and anecdote, not science-based evidence. In that same vein, the two chapters on supplements for diabetes and heart disease recommend a cocktail of supplements that I'm not convinced are needed. I don't know a single endocrinologist or cardiologist prescribing these concoctions. Then again, I could be wrong.

Vernon and Eberstein provide two excellent chapters on exercise.

A month of meal plans and recipes are provided for 20, 40, and 60-gram carbohydrate levels. [The average American is eating 250-300 g of carbs daily.] The recipes look quick and easy, but I didn't prepare or taste any of them.

The 5-hour glucose and insulin tolerance test (GTT, paged 61) that Dr. Atkins reportedly ran on all patientes who came to him is rarely done in other medical clinics. This doesn't mean it's wrong, but certainly out of the mainstream.

The authors admit that at least a few people will have to count calories - specifically, limit total calories - if the basic program doesn't control diabetes, prediabetes, and the metabolic syndrome. Limiting portion size will speed weight loss, they write.

What we don't know with certainty is, will long-term Atkins aficionados miss out on the health benefits of higher consumption of fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains? Much of the scientific literature suggests, "Yes."

What if we compare the long-term outlooks of a diabetic Atkins follower with a poorly controlled diabetic who's 80 pounds overweight and eating a standard American Diet? The Atkins follower is quite likely to be healthier and live longer.

-Steve

[LESESKI]

Thanks for the book review. Here's my personal experience

My MIL came to live with me this February. When she came she could hardly walk (due to nueropathy)5 steps; her BS readings were over 200 and her a1c was 12. She was taking insulin but following the ADA diet that the nutritionist gave her.

She was basically dying. I took her to a new DR who put her on a high does of Metformin and the a low carb diet (basically Atkins maintenance). She did not need to lose any weight.

I'm happy to report that 8 months later her BS stays between 80-90 and she is now taking 1/2 of the meds originally prescribed and her a1c dropped to 5.2. She is also walking around the block every morning.

Dr. Atkins book has saved her life!

[Steve Parker]

Wow, Leseski!

Your MILs experience confirms what I'm reading in the scientific literature by Yancy, Vernon, Westman, and others. Her story helps me put a face on it.

-Steve