By now you have all probably read the news about a new diet study which showed (once again) the Atkins diet beating the pants off Dean Ornish, Barry Sears (Zone) and another less popular diet called the LEARN program.
In fact, the Atkins dieters lost 2-3 times the weight of the others.
Women assigned to the Atkins group lost an average of 10.4 pounds (4.7 kgs) compared to 5.7 pounds (2.5 kgs) for LEARN, 4.8 pounds (2.1 kgs) for Ornish and 3.5 pounds (1.6 kgs) for Zone.
Not only that, Atkins dieters showed greater improvements on several measures of cardiac health beating all the other diets. Atkins dieters had lower blood pressure and the highest increase in HDL or good cholesterol levels. Triglyceride levels also plummeted.
Dr. David Katz, director and co-founder of the Yale Prevention Research Center had this to say in response to the Atkins win:
"You lose weight if you have cholera, too."
Excuse me?
Uh, yes doctor, you’re absolutely right. But I got you beat. You lose even more when you die.
I shall call my new book "The Death Diet. Lose weight fast! No hunger pangs, cravings or mood swings. Guaranteed 100% success!"
And just think, experts like Dr. Katz tend to and care for our parents. Scary, huh?
How did this guy get to go to Yale? Better question: "Why does Yale allow him to roam the hallways?"
And there’s more.
"You can’t measure overall health by a few cardiac risk factors." Katz insists. Yet this is EXACTLY what most doctors do. In fact, there is a multi billion dollar industry surrounding but one – cholesterol.
Dr. Katz deepens his ditch: "Like other studies, the JAMA research showed Atkins dieters tended to begin regaining weight after six months." That’s because the subjects increased their carbohydrate intake 3 fold over the reccomended amount for the Atkins diet, and increased their calorie consumption meaning, they cheated at the 6 month mark. Just think how much more they would have lost had they not!
And, in case you all didn’t notice, they ALL gained weight (meaning, they all cheated) after 6 months! (See the above graph.) So what exactly is Dr. Katz’ point?!
Did he really go to Yale?
He vents: "Nothing in this study will change the nutritional recommendations I make to my patients."
Of course not doc. I mean, why bother yourself with the facts, right? You have your PhD already. You know. Learning is over. You know it all. What more is there to learn? (Oh – Dr. Katz is associated with the LEARN diet – I forgot.)
Think I’m being overly sarcastic? How about this:
"Given everything researchers know about food, the debate over the best types of nutrition should be over. People need fresh fruits and vegetables and should stay away from saturated fats and junk food." Dr. Katz confidently asserts.
Yep the debate is over alright. Interestingly enough, if you are on the Atkins diet, you are eating fresh fruits (sparingly) veggies (plentifully), and refraining from junk food. As far as saturated fat is concerned, our dear Dr. Katz needs to read more. It is clear from this statement that he doesn’t know what a saturated fat is. In case you are reading this doc, here ya go.
Jeff Volek, assistant professor of kinesiology who studies nutrition and exercise at the University of Connecticut at Storrs had this to say:
"It is now crystal clear there are a lot of benefits to restricting carbohydrates. Anyone involved in the scientific world who views these results as a surprise is out of touch. Dieters consistently get a better response on low-carbohydrate diets."
You bet.
My friends, eat your butter. Eat your meat. Shun beans and grains, finish your broccoli and have an ‘apple’ a day (notice how the proverb says AN apple?). Drink fresh water and strength train 2X a week.
There you have it.
