I dont know if any of you are using the atkins diet in full fledge but I DONT LIKE THIS DIET. I think that down the road there could be serious complications after being on it long term. Your body’s primary fuel is glucose... supplied largely by carbohydrates. Glucose is the primary fuel for most cells in the body and the most efficient and effective fuel for the brain, red blood cells, nervous system, fetus, and placenta. Even when fat is burned for energy, a small amount of glucose is needed to metabolize fat completely. I know all this because I work for a durable medical equipment company dealing mostly with diabetics, ostomy patients and asthmatics.
When there isn’t enough carbohydrate in your diet to produce glucose for fuel... like after a period of starvation or an extremely low carb diet the body uses back-up proteins and fat for energy instead. This can lead to ketosis which is a disruption in the acid/base balance and causes blood to become acidic. it sucks the calcium from the bones and causes dehydration, bad breath & poor appetite...along with many other symptoms.
When your body is in ketosis with no carbohydrates in your diet & unavailable glucose in your blood... your whole body including your brain start using ketones for part of its energy needs. The rest of its energy needs comes from protein breakdown so since theres no glucose present is being used for the brain. during starvation or a very low carbohydrate diet since the body’s first need is energy you have no choice but to break down protein. and in the end you may end up becoming thinner but an UNMUSCULAR & FLABBY thin person!
Atkins believed starving or semistarving is normal I believe its dangerous. Have you ever seen someone with anorexia? you have NO idea what ketosis can do to a person's physical and mental health and life... when people starve or just semi-starve, it’s very well documented that they experience a multitude of dangerous health problems and symptoms like low metabolic rate, low body temperature, cold sensitivity, sleep disturbance, abnormally low blood pressure and heart rate, constipation, depression, social isolation, irritability, preoccupation with food, easy fatigue, low energy, inability to concentrate and the list goes on
Ketones are also dangerous for a developing fetus which is dependent on glucose for growth and energy...in the absence of glucose a fetus is forced to use ketone bodies for the growth and development of its organs, including the brain. I have read ar4ticals that this can cause retardation.
just to let you know what all that excess meat and animal fat is doing to your body...
-Kidney strain causing diabetes or kidny loss
-Calcium loss
-pomotes obesity .
-increases Cancer risk
-increases heart disease risk
-increases risk for Alzheimer’s and Dementia
"Ketones are also dangerous for a developing fetus which is dependent on glucose for growth and energy...in the absence of glucose a fetus is forced to use ketone bodies for the growth and development of its organs, including the brain. I have read ar4ticals that this can cause retardation."
If I recall correctly, Ketones are from your brain...when you go below like 4% body fat your body will tap into your brain for a source of energy if needed. And your body can learn to function like that on a normal basis. It takes time to adjust to it but you can live fine.
As for the diet itself..its works. Only down side is when you eat carbs you will gain weight fast. And those side effects are for extreem cases I am sure. No one will get those until they are very skinnny and have no fat left to use as energy. And when the femal goes below 11% they stop having there period....so I dont think they can get pregnent at that point.
Also, you jump from one thing to another. The diet is a diet not a way of starving yourself like anorexia (sp). Anorexia and this diet are two diff things. Anorexia is a diseas not a diet.
Best bet for people to loose weight is to eat a HI Protein diet with mod to low fat and low carbs. As well as work out with both weights and do cardio.
joeyjoey
07-23-2003, 10:47 PM
I don't like the diet either, but I don't think it's as dangerous as it seems because I don't think many people actually stick to it. There's only so long one can stick to no carbs and live off of ketones.
The Kid
07-23-2003, 10:54 PM
Originally posted by joeyjoey
I don't like the diet either, but I don't think it's as dangerous as it seems because I don't think many people actually stick to it. There's only so long one can stick to no carbs and live off of ketones.
That def is true about people sticking to the diet. But I have heard you can live off burning ketones for energy for a long time. I personally would never get that extreem or diet that extreem but some people do.
KeLe.GirL
07-24-2003, 12:37 PM
Originally posted by The Kid
"Ketones are also dangerous for a developing fetus which is dependent on glucose for growth and energy...in the absence of glucose a fetus is forced to use ketone bodies for the growth and development of its organs, including the brain. I have read ar4ticals that this can cause retardation."
If I recall correctly, Ketones are from your brain...when you go below like 4% body fat your body will tap into your brain for a source of energy if needed. And your body can learn to function like that on a normal basis. It takes time to adjust to it but you can live fine.
As for the diet itself..its works. Only down side is when you eat carbs you will gain weight fast. And those side effects are for extreem cases I am sure. No one will get those until they are very skinnny and have no fat left to use as energy. And when the femal goes below 11% they stop having there period....so I dont think they can get pregnent at that point.
Also, you jump from one thing to another. The diet is a diet not a way of starving yourself like anorexia (sp). Anorexia and this diet are two diff things. Anorexia is a diseas not a diet.
Best bet for people to loose weight is to eat a HI Protein diet with mod to low fat and low carbs. As well as work out with both weights and do cardio.
Ketones are due to HIGH ACIDITY LEVELS in the blood... which is caused by glucose insufficient glucose intake remember Michael I work for a diabetic supply company and I actually work in the pharmacy now dealing with insulin dependent patients. your brain will start using the ketones if it cant get from breaking down carbs (b/c there is none to breakdown).
I brought up anorexia b/c essencially these people are starving themselves of energy and increasing ketone levels. granted it is an extreme but many years down the road what happens to these anorexics can happen to the dieter after being on this diet long term.
The Kid
07-24-2003, 05:17 PM
I just slightly misunderstood what I was taught in class about the Ketons thing. I thought he said they come from your brain not that your brain uses them.
And the diet would have to go on for a long time for your body to tap into that kind of energy source....
(just so you know, I wasnt trying to pick your article apart (and be rude) I was simply adding my thoughts on it).
As for the insulin dependent people its a diff form of ketosis...its known as Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA). But I am not going to get into that cause I dont know every angle about it.
KeLe.GirL
07-24-2003, 06:35 PM
Originally posted by The Kid
(just so you know, I wasnt trying to pick your article apart and be rude I was simply adding my thoughts on it).
ok it's cool :D
jameznyhc
07-24-2003, 09:53 PM
I beleive it totally works but....if you keep your carb levels at 30-50 grams per day (depending on body weight and sex) with high protein you should be fine you will loose the weight but at a slower pace with out risking ketosis and your body will use a balaced fuel/energy source pulling from fat and carbs..the main key is to stay away from processed carbs and bleached carbs!
Bobby2k
07-30-2003, 11:08 PM
Ive never heard of someone sticking to the diet past when they dropped the poundage they wanted. True You lose alot of weight on the diet but the problem is once you begin to eat carbs again you gain that shit right back
SLAVE2THEMUZIK
07-31-2003, 01:23 PM
Originally posted by Kel e grl
I dont know if any of you are using the atkins diet in full fledge but I DONT LIKE THIS DIET. I think that down the road there could be serious complications after being on it long term. Your body’s primary fuel is glucose... supplied largely by carbohydrates. Glucose is the primary fuel for most cells in the body and the most efficient and effective fuel for the brain, red blood cells, nervous system, fetus, and placenta. Even when fat is burned for energy, a small amount of glucose is needed to metabolize fat completely. I know all this because I work for a durable medical equipment company dealing mostly with diabetics, ostomy patients and asthmatics.
When there isn’t enough carbohydrate in your diet to produce glucose for fuel... like after a period of starvation or an extremely low carb diet the body uses back-up proteins and fat for energy instead. This can lead to ketosis which is a disruption in the acid/base balance and causes blood to become acidic. it sucks the calcium from the bones and causes dehydration, bad breath & poor appetite...along with many other symptoms.
When your body is in ketosis with no carbohydrates in your diet & unavailable glucose in your blood... your whole body including your brain start using ketones for part of its energy needs. The rest of its energy needs comes from protein breakdown so since theres no glucose present is being used for the brain. during starvation or a very low carbohydrate diet since the body’s first need is energy you have no choice but to break down protein. and in the end you may end up becoming thinner but an UNMUSCULAR & FLABBY thin person!
Atkins believed starving or semistarving is normal I believe its dangerous. Have you ever seen someone with anorexia? you have NO idea what ketosis can do to a person's physical and mental health and life... when people starve or just semi-starve, it’s very well documented that they experience a multitude of dangerous health problems and symptoms like low metabolic rate, low body temperature, cold sensitivity, sleep disturbance, abnormally low blood pressure and heart rate, constipation, depression, social isolation, irritability, preoccupation with food, easy fatigue, low energy, inability to concentrate and the list goes on
Ketones are also dangerous for a developing fetus which is dependent on glucose for growth and energy...in the absence of glucose a fetus is forced to use ketone bodies for the growth and development of its organs, including the brain. I have read ar4ticals that this can cause retardation.
just to let you know what all that excess meat and animal fat is doing to your body...
-Kidney strain causing diabetes or kidny loss
-Calcium loss
-pomotes obesity .
-increases Cancer risk
-increases heart disease risk
-increases risk for Alzheimer’s and Dementia
I'd like to add that the main problem with the "Atkin's diet" is that most ppl are on it for more than a week....intake of that much protein for more than a week will DESTROY your liver, in addition to all the other effects you've listed.
SLAVE2THEMUZIK
07-31-2003, 01:57 PM
oh and..the body doesnt "use ketones as energy"..ketones(produced in the liver) are the end product of the breakdown of fat when their isnt enough insulin circulating in the blood to deliver glucose to the BODY cells...but if if you were to consume no carbohydrates at all, the body will start converting protein into glucose as it will still need at least 30g glucose per day...the ONLY PLACE KETONES ARE USED AS FUEL IS IN THE BRAIN when there arent enough carbs floating around...but they ARE NOT used as fuel for the rest of the body......and the fruity breathe is from the type of ketone called "acetone" being released from the body through the lungs...the other types of ketones are spilled over into the kidneys and excreted through urine which is how diabetic ketoacidosis is diagnosed...Ketones are extremely dangerous...they can poison and even kill body cells, leading to coma +/or death
KeLe.GirL
08-02-2003, 11:16 AM
Originally posted by SLAVE2THEMUZIK
Great post!
I'd like to add that the main problem with the "Atkin's diet" is that most ppl are on it for more than a week....intake of that much protein for more than a week will DESTROY your liver, in addition to all the other effects you've listed.
Thanks girl :heart
James Maxx
08-11-2003, 02:32 PM
I have been on Atkins for a week now and will continue to do it for about 3 more weeks. So far I lost about 5 lbs and my muscle is still intact.
There are different phases of the diet. The first is the toughest and lasts about a few days called the "Induction" phase. You can't eat more than 10g of carbs a day and is designed to deplete whatever carbs/glucose you have left in your body that would be used as energy.
After that phase you increase your carb intake slightly to about 30-50g max because at this point you will be in ketosis (burning fat and a little protein). You need to eat a lot of protein and water to retain your muscle and its also a good idea to take anti-oxidants/multi vitamin. The small amount of carbs will just be enough to not cause any negative effects on your body but at the same time you will still be burning fat for energy.
There is a product called Ketostix which you test with your urine and tells you how much into ketosis you are. The darker the color, the more keotnes in your body, therefore burning fat.
It is not a good idea to do this diet longer than a month (my older cousin did it longer and lost 40lbs and hes fine but still I wouldnt do it).