Heart Healthy Eating

[txdon]

I prefer studies that involve a lot of people for a long amount of time, Like this one:

Low-Carb Diets Increase Risk of Heart Disease

A low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet greatly boosts risk of heart disease, according to a new study published in the British Medical Journal. The diets of nearly 44,000 Swedish women were tracked for about 16 years. Those who ate a diet low in carbohydrates and high in protein increased their risk of heart disease. Here is the math: Every 10 percent decrease in carbohydrate intake or increase in protein intake resulted in a 5 percent increased risk of heart disease. The risk of heart disease increased even further as carbohydrate intake fell and protein intake climbed. Women sometimes adopt low-carbohydrate diets for weight loss, however, this study and many previous studies show low-carb and high-protein diets to be dangerous.

Lagiou P, Sandin S, Lof M, Trichopoulos D, Adami HO, Weiderpass E. Low carbohydrate-high protein diet and incidence of cardiovascular diseases in Swedish women: prospective cohort study. BMJ. 2012;344:e4026

 

[Cat_Driver]

The Atkins Diet does work, I lost a lot of weight SEVERAL TIMES, and that the bad thing. I don't t think anyone can stay on the Atkins program for any real length of time - I couldn't. I could do it for months at a time and the weight flew off and I ate like a pig. BUT, after a while you just get sick of shoveling mass quantities of protein down my throat.

Currently I'm on a fruits and veggie diet, with a protein drink every now and then, and a good thick steak once every few weeks. Fish whenever I feel like it.

Been on this now longer than any Atkins diet and not bored YET - I may, but not yet.

I think the big difference is when I get a craving for bread - I eat it. When I want a bowl of ice cream - I have it. As long a 90% of the time I'm on fruits and veggies I'm OK.

The Atkins make me too paranoid to have bread or ice cream EVER, who can do that?

I also noticed that when I'm off wheat I no longer need to take tums or anti acids. When I was on wheat every day I was on tums every day. Now I can have wheat every now and then and it doesn't bother me. I noticed the same thing when I was on Atkins, no wheat and I was off tums.

 

[txdon]

I see and hear that a lot from former Atkins dieters. Apparently you are dieting for weight loss only and not for weight loss and clean arteries (but you are getting closer). I had to laugh at my brother last week when he was putting his 6th scoop of ice-cream in his bowl and complaining he wasn't losing any weight. He did not even associate what he was doing could be the cause of his weight problem. (according to the label that would be 3 servings).

After my heart attack/procedure (the motivator) and the eliminating of the artery clogging fat/oils and the cholesterol in animal products from the foods I do not consider myself on a diet. There are just some foods that I have no appetite for. Even with no meat and no protein drinks my blood level protein is well within the normal range.

I have a co-worker also that does the Atkins diet he has gained weight (after an initial loss) yet he continues it. The message will probably sink in when he is going through cardiac rehab after his heart attack or procedure.

Even if you have been tested and have no heart disease the heart healthy plant based diet is a healthy way to loose weigh and keep it off.

 

[dmccarty]

I see and hear that a lot from former Atkins dieters. Apparently you are dieting for weight loss only and not for weight loss and clean arteries (but you are getting closer). I had to laugh at my brother last week when he was putting his 6th scoop of ice-cream in his bowl and complaining he wasn't losing any weight. He did not even associate what he was doing could be the cause of his weight problem. (according to the label that would be 3 servings).

I don't see how anyone following Atkins could be eating carb rich ice-cream. :laughing: If one follows Atkins, you eat fat and protein for a few weeks to start the fat burn, then move through three other phases that slowly add carbs from veggies, fruit and whole grains while one looses weight. The other phases are to loose weight but also for the person to see what foods and how much of those foods they can eat without gaining weight. At the end one would be eating a healthy diet of fruits, nuts, beans, veggies, etc. The heavy protein and fat binge is only for a few weeks and DOES cause one to loose weight. The key is to get to a point where one is eating a healthy diet that does not cause one to gain weight which is the hard part. One is not supposed to contain to eat diet mainly from fat and protein int Atkins. That is a short term part of the diet. The last phase of Atkins is very much focused on veggies, fruits, nut, whole grains, etc.

Later,
Dan

 

[txdon]

I should have made it clear and started a new paragraph. My brother is not on the atkins diet, he is on the SAD (Standard American Diet). The diet that he says, he eats everything in moderation, (heard that before?) but complains about gaining weight.

One would wonder why a diet as Atkins would take you through an unhealthy high fat/protein phase. It has always sounded like a silly unhealthy fad diet to me and still does. The judge was right when he dismissed the case when one Atkins dieter sued because he developed heart disease from the diet. The judge dismissed it not because it did not cause the heart disease but because it was self inflicted by the dieter. Eater beware!

 

[dmccarty]

...

One would wonder why a diet as Atkins would take you through an unhealthy high fat/protein phase. It has always sounded like a silly unhealthy fad diet to me and still does. The judge was right when he dismissed the case when one Atkins dieter sued because he developed heart disease from the diet. The judge dismissed it not because it did not cause the heart disease but because it was self inflicted by the dieter. Eater beware!

The first of the four phases in Atkins is the heavy protein, fat phase which causes one to loose weight quickly. This phase drastically reduces carb consumption to something like 5g a day. The body burns carbs quickly so you are hungry all of the time. Protein and fat make you feel full since the body digests them slower so you eat less food and less often. The diet slowly builds up over time adding carbs meaning veggies, fruits, and whole grains. By the end of the diet one would be eating what some people consider a good diet. One does not get heart disease by a heavy eating of fats and protein in a few weeks/months so if one follows the diet correctly it is not dangerous. It certainly works.

By definition all diets are fads, "a temporary fashion, notion, manner of conduct, etc., especially one followed enthusiastically by a group." What someone say is a healthy diet today is very likely to change tomorrow. Atkins, Weight Watchers, Food Pyramids, Med diet, my grannys diet, my grandmother diet, etc all are fads. My grandmothers view on what one should eat differed. Granny was on the whole grain, no refined carb bandwagon at least by the 60's or 70's. My other grandmother was of the traditional diet of the mid 20th century. Granny died in her 90's and my grandmother is in her 90's now. Certainly diet did not have much impact on their longevity. After doing the Atkins diet and loosing 20 or so pounds I really saw what carbs do to you weight wise. Especially refined carbs. I try to avoid them when possible but I am not **** about it either. I have drastically limited refined carbs which really means I simply eat less than I used too. Limiting my beer intake to the weekends has helped as well since liquid calories are so easy to consume and beer, especially the beer I like, is heavy in carb calories. Now are beer carbs considered refined carbs? :laughing:

Later,
Dan

 

[txdon]

One does not get heart disease by a heavy eating of fats and protein in a few weeks/months so if one follows the diet correctly it is not dangerous. It certainly works.

Dan

The one thing that Atkins does address is that this diet is not to be used by people with heart disease (over 6 months). I agreed that it does take years to develop but also your genes will determine how fast it will develop in your particular body. It's not so much the about how much fat/protien your 90 year old grandma ate but what her gene makeup was. Her's was good, mine is crummy along with all the rest of us with heart disease. I have to eat far less, she can eat more apparently as demonstrated by her longevity. I should have titled this thread Heart Healthy Eating for those with heart disease so all of us with the bad genes can exchange ideas. Again, all the cardiologists I have spoken to say to eat no more than 10% fat - if you want to stop heart disease. I doubt the Atkins diet ever gets close to that amount.

 

[crash325]

I have found the problem.

 

[txdon]

That's about it.

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