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Summary: Great diet for a lot of people, but not everyone.
Review: In my life (and I'm only 24) I've tried many diets, and spent a lot of money using products that produced little or no results. Then I figured I try the Atkins diet, even though it seemed a bit gimicky.All I've got to say is that by doing this diet you are committing to a lifestyle change and a complete change of diet forever! Because on this diet you cut out all carbohydrates and sugar, and in order to keep the weight off, you must eat like that forever. So unless you're able to commit totally to this kind of diet, then don't waste your money on the book because it will become useless. The book actually can be shortened to three chapters instead of all the studies they put in it (but some people need that kind of convincing). The diet is simple, cut all carbs and sugar. You never really realize how many day to day things we eat that have carbs and sugar though, and that becomes the hard part. Soon though, you'll learn to create recipes and find substitutes that allow you to have the things that you love without all the carbs. I've noticed to that only people who are sensitive to carbs and sugar do well on this diet, there are some people that this diet just won't work for, but I do think that its a small minority. Oh, by the way, I've lost 75 pounds so far with this diet, and I don't plan to stop until I've reached my "high school wrestling weight" :)
Rating: 
Summary: Great Diet, not so good book
Review: The Diet
I lost 22 lbs in only 5 weeks on this diet and I have kept it off, even though I am not as strict as I should be. It's an easy diet to follow, you don't have to measure food, figure percentages or count calories you just avoid carbs mostly in the form of bread and sugar. Once you have given those up for a few days, your cravings for them decrease dramatically. Basically when you eat sugar, you body sends out Insulin to process it. If you are used to eating alot of carbs, most likely you body produces too much insulin which results in low blood sugar a few hours later --- and you are craving sweets again. On this diet you can regulate your bodys insulin therefore reducing cravings and lose weight. Your body will not burn fat as long as there are carbs in the bloodsteam. Take a look at low fat foods and you'll often find that there is more carbs in there than the regular product. The Book
You don't need to read the book to get all the info you need for this diet, you can get most of it from the website. The book is full of tons or studies, jargon and other blah blah blah. There are maybe 2-3 chapters that tell you everything you need to know.
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Summary: AM I MISSING SOMETHING HERE????
Review: I have read several reviews, and a few people have made such statements as, "This diet taught me to eat more vegetables" or they refer to how they eat so many more vegetables after being on the diet. I've read the book from cover to cover, and it is my understanding that you have to limit the quantity of vegetables that you eat to a very small amount on a daily basis as they contain carbohydrates, and some in large amounts (corn, carrots, beets, etc.). Dr. Atkins suggests about 1/2-cup of iceberg lettuce with lunch or dinner. That is not a lot of lettuce! I'm just wondering--did I miss something because if I could eat unlimited amounts of vegetables while on this diet, I would be in heaven!! Can you have ranch dressing on this diet? I notice Dr. Atkins indicates that you should use vinegar and oil, but I notice ranch dressing usually has only 1-2 grams of carbohydrates. But I have to wonder how that can be when sugar or fructose corn syrup is one of the first five ingredients listed. Also, does anybody recall what Dr. Atkins said in his book about eating products with sodium nitrates in them (i.e., lunch meats, sausages, hot dogs, etc.). It seems to me that he advised against them, but for the life of me, I can't remember why, and I can't find it in the book. I'm wondering why because those products don't have any or very little carbohydrates. If someone knows, please let me know! As far as the book goes, I think it's very well written and offers a lot of answers as to why I've struggled with a weight problem all my life. I've tried the diet a few times, but haven't noticed much success as I wasn't able to stay on it for any length of time before having to cheat or go off of it, but I'm willing to give it another honest try before deciding that it does or does not work for me. Thanks for your time, and if anybody can answer those questions for me, please do so.
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Summary: The book that saved my life
Review: I had a bad bout of clinical depression. How bad was it? For three years my greatest accomplishment was that I kept contemplation of suicide down to twice a week. I tried everything my doctor recomended, I tried a lot of other things. My sister suggested this diet. I started it Ash Wendsday, 2000, thinking I would try it for Lent. Ten days later I stoped taking my medication. That was the day I got robbed outside the bank. Even that (no one hurt, and that's all that's important) was not enough to get me off the diet or back on the medication. That was a year and a half, and 70 pounds ago. I have my life back. Thank you Dr. Atkins! Now my results are not typical, one size does not fit all, and your milage may vary. But read the book. If you have any of the health problems Dr. Atkins describes, why not try it for six weeks? What have you got to loose (except weight)?
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Summary: Does the Atkins Diet work?
Review: I bought the book so I could try the diet. The book tells all the good parts, and glosses over the bad parts of the diet. The Dr's advice seems plausible, but I was worried about the long-term (negative) effects of the diet...these wer glossed over. The book does, of course, a good job of explaining some of the "Why's" to the diet. (But, boy, did I get sick of eggs and meat!)
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Summary: I lost 55 pounds easily from this book.
Review: I have fibromyalgia and they reccomend "The Zone". Which is way to complicated for me to follow. But the Dr. Atkins was easy once I understood the concept of his diet. It is more then a diet it is changing how you think about food. I lost 55 lbs and kept it off for a year. I got pregnant and gained some back. I am now able to go back to that way of eating and I am looking forward to it! I know that I don't process sugar and starch well. I had tried high carbs and low fat and didn't loose weight. I had gone to 1,000 calories and did not loose any weight. It was only after trying this that the pounds melted off. I lost it in all my trouble spots first, the thighs, the butt, the hips, the belly. I have been following it a week now and have lost 5 pounds. Thank you, Dr. Atkins!
Rating: 
Summary: Scared of the direction the American public is headed
Review: I must say that the average rating of four stars is very disturbing. I find this diet to be dangerous, extremely unhealthy and backed up by a lot of pseudoscience. The other thing that bothered me about reading the reviews is how many people said it was great because of the weight they lost. Being overweight is unhealthy, but overall health is much more important. Just because you are skinny does not mean you are healthy. I must also point out that I can often identify a "low carb/high protein" dieter by their stinky breath! I recommend "The Omega Diet" by Artemis Simopoulos as a book that can help you lose weight while not losing sight of the all important aspect of staying healthy.
Rating:
Summary: No way to live long-term
Review: The book is well-written, but it is just not a long-term way to live. Plus eating bacon and other greasy meats is just not good for you if you overindulge, and many Atkins diet adherents do so. I've done this, lost a few pounds, and when my interest in avoiding carbs for the rest of life waned, I put those pounds on in spades. Then i tried Weight Watchers. I've lost 50 pounds and I have a sensible diet I think I can live with long-term. My advice: spend a little bit more dough (no carb pun intended), and go to Weight Watchers.
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Summary: Why I love Amazon
Review: Perusing the more than 900 reviews of the Atkins diet, which I recently began and am having an easy time with, I realized again that there is no other place you could get the opinions of 900 people who tried the same diet. When I thought about trying the diet again (I did it once in 1975!) after someone I know lost 80 pounds in 5 or 6 months, reading these opinions was a big help. As far as the diet goes, I do have some reservations, although I hate to admit it. But if you think of physiological processes and evolution, the lipolysis Atkins talks about may well be a legitimate metabolic pathway that served a real purpose. I'll say that it makes sense when you think about how we have other physiological processes that spare or conserve constiuents that we don't have enough of. Maybe there really is a fat-conserving mechanism that operates to store as much fat as possible, when it's not found in the diet, for essential functions like the production of cell membranes, steroids, and on and on. It wouldn't be the first such mechanism. Until I read a better explanation of the drop in cholesterol levels these people experienced, I'm going to have to stick with the fat-sparing thesis. The body does the unexpected at times. Nobody can aford to think of the current accepted scientific dogma as the only possibility. We'd all be dead at 30 if we had done that! Don't forget, cows eat grass! And they look terrible in mini skirts!
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Summary: GOOD BUT NOT FOR GOUT.
Review: I started the Atkins diet around 5 weeks ago and have so far lost 19lbs,however the down side is that I have had two attacks of gout,something I haven`t had for years,perhaps the reader can offer some advice as to why this was so and what can remedy this,I found the diet no hardship except for the no ice cream sugar, bread and most fruits, the book was easy to follow and educational,with the exception of a few discliplines I found it not to difficult to stick to.I have had no alcohol or bread on this diet or other items that are taboo so am at a loss as to what has triggered the gout.
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