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Summary: This is a Miracle
Review: I was not obese, but I knew I was over weight. I tried to convince myself that the wieght was ok on my athletic frame. Wrong!!!! When I learned my trygliceride count was at the ceiling I asked my doctor what to do. He said go low carb. I had no idea what this meant. A friend suggested Atkins. I went to the website and figured out what to do. I started immediately. In four weeks I lost 20 lbs without going to the gym. Now I am at the gym every other day and I am still losing weight. I had another blood test. My trygliceride count went way down and my bad cholestorol also went way down. My Dr was amazed.Trust me. I was never able to lose weight until I started Atkins. I am not hungary. I eat great meals and I feel great. Once you get the hang of this, you can eat what you want with the confidence of being able to control yourself. You also have the will power to avoid things like fast food, sugar bread baskets and other unhealthy foods. I got these books for Father's Day. There is a load of information here. Recipes, eating strategies, information on medical studies etc. If you are serious about it, get the books to go with it.
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Summary: Eat yourself thin! It REALLY DOES work!!
Review: I can see from the other reviews I've read that other people get the criticism too. It is unbelievable to me how badly people want to hold onto past notions. To me it all adds up. The sky rocketing obesity and diabetes in this country and all the carbs being consumed. People say it is the fat in fast foods making Americans fat. What else do these foods contain? Tons of carbs! Huge amounts of sugar in soda, high in starch and carbs french fries, not to mention the bun. Another thought is this. In decades past people did eat meat and eggs for breakfast (before we were all told how unhealthy that was) and there weren't nearly as many obese people as there are now. My dad is almost 70 and has eaten it for breakfast most of his life and is slim and healthy. I also agree with other reviewers that most people who say it is a bad diet know VERY little about it. People tell me it isn't healthy to lose weight so fast for one thing. I have lost about 30 pounds in about 2 1/2 months. I don't think that is too fast. I've also heard the kidney story. It is probably the same people saying this that are packing away quarter pounders and whoppers all the time. There are a lot of healthy choices everyone knows about for their protein sources. I have eaten way less burger than ever because I usually ate it with pasta or bread. Now I eat more turkey, chicken, shrimp, lean pork, and fish than ever before. Also, I agree with the person who said they eat more vegetables than ever. Before this I ate salads infrequently and mostly got my veggies on my burgers. I know I am eating much better. Losing weight lowers your blood pressure and gives you more energy to be more active. I also feel less cravings and false hunger than ever before. Who hasn't eaten a big (high carb) meal and felt inexplicable hungry an hour or so later? I know I did and never understood why until I read Dr. Atkins' book. I have a friend who is overweight and no matter what I tell her about this diet she has negative responses and research to say it's bad. I understand that somewhat because I felt it wasn't healthy before I read the books also. Partly because there does seem to be people out there giving it a bad name. You have probably heard of them. They say they can eat tons of hamburger patties, pepperoni, and the like and lose weight. I'm sure they probably do, but they are also the people who go off the plan and gain it all back. I think the most important thing is to fit it into your lifestyle and do it so it can be a permanent part of your life. If you are someone who craves fast food or something else not on the plan, then let yourself have it OCCASIONALLY and then go right back on the diet. That is how I have stuck with it and I plan to do it for life. That overweight friend of mine has lost a couple pounds in the time I've lost the 30. She has been eating the low fat way and probably still eating lots of carbs. This is the same friend who has always told me that white flour isn't good for you. Go figure.
Also, by the way, here's a note to encourage you beginners. I know at least 12 people who are doing this diet(or version of.) They have all lost 30 pounds or more. Some of them as much as 50 or 60! I figured it out and that adds up to well over 300 pounds lost!! Some of them have been on it for 3 years or more. I have lost 2 jean sizes already and I plan to lose a couple more in the coming months. I know you can do it too!!
Rating: 
Summary: My two cents worth
Review: I never met a man that I could not learn something from. Thank you Dr Atkins for bringing to the forefront, just how critical it is for us to eliminate white processed flour products and cane sugar from our diet. These two products result in high insulin levels in our blood stream, and that not only block fat elimination, but also creates it. Eating animal protein does not create that problem. I think a lot of hysteria is created because in order to broadcast the pain free diet, much is made over the issue of being able to eat animal fat, and still lose weight. It is not necessary to eat animal fat in quantity to lose weight on this diet. Why not do this diet and eat lean meats? Lean cuts, and more fish and fowl. If you are a big beefeater, look into local farmers who raise their herds organically, without the use of growth hormones. They sell in quantity at about 70 cents per pound. Freezers are cheap, as well as the 39 dollars per year in electricity it takes to run them. Do it up right.
The other thing that I think is worthy of mention is that the word carbohydrates is overused. White flour and cane sugar are carbohydrates, but so is an orange, or a grapefruit, or a piece of asparagus, or lettuce, or a cucumber. In the Nutri System program you can eat all the lettuce, cucumber, and celery you want. In the Fit for Life program, you eat all the fruits and vegetables you want, and still lose the weight. They tell you not to mix proteins and starches at the same time, which results in you eating your large salad or steamed vegetable with just the meat, but not the bread. Same path, different journey. In Back to Eden by Jethro Kloss, a book that you find in all of the health food stores, we learn that everything our body is made of comes from the earthen soil. Nutritionally abundant soil makes a nutritionally abundant plant, and then we eat the plant. He argues that when we eat an animal, we are getting the nutrition second hand. Dr Weil suggests that our diets should consist of no more than 20 percent meat. Dr Bernie Siegel in "Love Medicine and Miracles" states that, "Even lovers and vegetarians have to die someday" Dietitians are not known to agree universally with one another.
Next point is the overwhelming statistics that prove that those who undergo the Atkins "treatment" have lower levels of LDLs. (Bad cholesterol) If you have a 250 pound person, who now weighs 150 pounds, you have lower LDLs. Why not maintain a low fat intake, and enjoy your favorite meats, cooked lean, but seasoned with natures flavorings. I noticed that the latest statistics published on the Atkins diet, conclude that the participants did have lower LDLs while on the diet, but later on in the results, they added, that the participants were eating two servings a week of Salmon, which is know to be high in Omega 3 fatty acids. So there is a tip. Eat Salmon while undergoing the program, to offset the fat intake. But then again, why not eat the Salmon, while eating more lean, and less fat?
Dr Atkins states that the low fat craze has led to a diet high in carbohydrates, and that is what is to blame for Americans weight problem. Can't argue about that, but the solution is not to pig out on fat. Discovering fruits and vegetables in abundance, while strictly eliminating white flour products and cane sugar is the key to weight loss. Whole grain products are more dietetic; they are not as readily absorbed due to the increased roughage. I love all of the diets. I've done most all of the major ones. I lose on the average about 20 pounds per year. Since I have been losing weight for 27 years, you could say that I have lost over 500 pounds. I do like the bears' do. I live in the Northeast. It gets cold here in the winter, and when it does, I crave fattening things. A calorie is a measurement of heat. When our bodies burn fat, or calories, they generate warmth. When the spring comes, I lose my appetite, and start eating an abundance of fruit and vegetables, limit my carbs, and eat almost zero cane sugar, and it comes off. The only thing missing out of this equation is the support. I guess that is one of the reasons why Atkins is so popular. He has created a kind of cult. The army is taking no prisoners. Either believe in the Atkins plan or be shot at sunrise. :-) It is unusual to see this level of dedication in any program.
Like I said, I have a lot to learn from this man. The astonishing thing is that the white flour and cane sugar create the big insulin rise. Does the animal fat not cause this rise? And if so, does a lot of it simply pass through the intestines, unassimilated by the body, due to the low insulin levels?
In the past year, the government, realizing America's weight problem, decided to get the major weight loss gurus together. What happened? They couldn't agree on anything. It turned into a shouting match. My approach is to study them all. Learn something from each one of them. What I have learned is that there is no one diet for everyone.
I hope this was helpful. I for sure will assimilate what I have learned from Dr Atkins in my annual dietary program. I thank him for that.
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Summary: Thumbs Up for Dr. Robert Atkins
Review: While there are still many naysayers to the Atkins Diet, many MD's now recognize that with the lower weight achieved thru curbing carbs and eating fats-- comes lower bad cholesterol counts and lower blood pressure. The toughest part of this diet is maintaining one's weight. This long-range obstacle is no different for Atkins than any other diet. Many of the folks who took off the pounds thru diet (any diet!) put them back over time. The secret: diet for life. Low carbs doesn't mean no carbs-- It merely means planning your meals carefully.
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Summary: some thoughts for MDs on a thought provoking dietary trend
Review: If you're a doctor, consider this, triglycerides are measured fasting, and research has shown that these triglycerides are a product of de novo lipogenesis, i.e., the liver is synthesizing them from glucose. On a low carb diet, glucose, especially during the long over night fast, is synthesized via gluconeogenesis using glucogenic amino acids, glycerol and lactic acid as the carbon source and using energy from fat. To then turn around and convert that glucose back to triglyceride would be a futile cycle and the body is very good at avoiding futile cycles. If it didn't avoid this cycle, then low carb diets would be even better for weight loss, since each spin of the cycle would waste energy. The most recent research shows that the Atkins diet increased HDL (the "good cholesterol") and reduced fasting triglycerides while leaving LDL about the same. Even though LDL levels remained about the same, one can conclude that the risk from that LDL has been reduced because triglycerides have been reduced and elevated TGs have been associated with a worse LDL particle profile. If you read the studies you will also note that they did not select a population with high fasting TGs. If they had, I suspect the effect on fasting TGs would have been even more dramatic. In my own case, my TGs dropped from 323 to 71 in 6 weeks, far faster than can be explained by my weight loss. What I have related here, is what I have learned trying to discover the mechanisms involved. I think, similarly, you should try to open your mind on the issue of fat in the diet. Much of the research that associated risk of cancer and heart disease with fat has not controlled for Calories, and once Calories have been controlled for the relation disappears in both breast and colon cancer. Instead insulin-like growth factors and the insulin resistance associated with high fat, high carb, high Calorie diets appear to explain most of the risk. The glycation of proteins and oxidative stress caused by elevated glucose levels and the increased sclorsis cause by insulin are mechanisms that are well established in the literature. A lot of poor research that does not control for these factors is still being published so look at only the best prospective studies. In case you don't have time to read the book, the Atkin's diet really only requires a significant reduction in starchy foods, sugar and the most empty fruit Calories. It allows plenty of non-starchy veggies, nuts, unsweetended berries and other fruits to supply vitamin C, folic acid, etc. You may have heard the evolutionary argument that our nearest relatives, the chimps and gorillas were mostly vegatarian and what meat they consumed was lower in fat. What you may not know is that most of the calories they extract from their diets are in the form of fat. They have larger colons that ferment the fibre in their diets, and that energy enters their bodies in the form of short chain fatty acids. Until more evidence comes in, I hope you can at least keep an open mind about this diet and recall how slow the medical establishment was in accepting the role of bacteria in stomach ulcers and how wrong it was in restricting dietary calcium in patients with calcium oxalate kidney stones. Diet and nutrition is an even more complex area with more variables to control.
Rating: 
Summary: Living Off the Fat of the Land
Review: With one third of Americans obese and another third merely overweight, it is understandable why America has such an enormous diet culture. There are countless books and numerous health gurus preaching a variety of ways for people to return to the shape intended by their DNA. The diet book taking America by storm at present is Dr Atkins' New Diet Revolution, an updating of a book published 20 years ago that has now become a dieting classic. That work was so radical at the time that it was widely condemned by the medical establishment. Now, although the Atkins diet remains the subject of controversy, a growing segment of health professionals and medical researchers have come to the conclusion that there is a great deal of sense in the doctor's arguments. What makes this turnaround all the more astounding is that Atkins seems to have found the Holy Grail of dieting, that is a diet that allows us the up-till-now mutually exclusive pleasures of eating to our epicurean satisfaction while also looking slim and trim. Most diets warn us of the dangers of fatty, high-calorie food and encourage us instead to consume carbohydrates. The key to Atkins' system, and what justifies the term 'Revolution' in the title, is that he reverses this equation, targeting carbohydrates as the real villain of the waistline, while giving the more delicious, high-calorie foods, so often denounced by dieticians, the green light. By limiting carbohydrates the Atkins' diet aims to decrease insulin in the bloodstream, which Atkins identifies as the mechanism converting carbohydrates to body fat. Because of the heavy criticism and then growing acceptance that met his ideas in the past, the tone of the writing sometimes has a defensive or even an evangelical ring to it. The diet is presented not only as an easy way to shed a few kilograms, but also as a way to prevent everything from fatigue and mental fog to diabetes and cancer. To back up its claims the book also includes many detailed case studies and controlled carbohydrate recipes. Until the mysteries of the human body are completely understood, a diet book that advocates rich dishes like lobster soup, sea bass, zabaglione, and blueberry ice-cream -- and even provides recipes -- will win out over those that count out how many lentils and cabbage leaves to eat.
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Summary: More credibility for the Atkins program...
Review: recent press releases by the AMA have indicated that trans fats as found in potato chips and packaged snacks are the real culprit and health hazard - not the type of fat that Dr. Atkins recommends in this program.The report further states that consuming Omega fats in the form of fatty fish can reduce cholesterol (Dr. Atkins has been recommending this for years!)So once again Atkins bashers---EAT CROW!!!P.S. I have been on the Atkins program for years. Lost weight - feel great. Cholesterol is lower than ever and my weight is the same as when I was in high school. Thank you Dr. Atkins!!!
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Summary: Tired of being hungry on diets - try Atkins instead
Review: Over the years, I have been on all kinds of diets, and was always hungry. As I got older, I couldn't seem to get the weight off even while having an exercise routine, and I was sluggish all of the time no matter what I did. I mentioned this to a friend and she suggested Atkins. So, I went to the library first and read 3 of the Atkins books including "The New Diet Revolution". The most helpful information was understanding the "why" behind everything - it just made sense to me. I went out and bought all the books and I re-read them constantly. I have been on Atkins for about 6 months, and I really like it. I am not completely true to the program everyday, but I can say that I have made major and permanent changes in the way I eat - I feel so good! The "Induction" phase 1 is a bit hard, but I readied myself by reading and understanding everything first, and that made it so much easier (2 weeks on Induction). My other advice is instead of weighing yourself, take out some kind of clothing that is a bit tight, and then try it on after 2 weeks. Keep going this way! I love it, have all the books, and exchange recipes with friends. I found the hardest part was psychological. But unlike other diets, on Atkins you are not hungry which is great! Good luck.
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Summary: Awesome!
Review: You need to get these books! I was awestruck to find that they were delivered exactly 25 hours after I ordered them online! I can't wait to 'dig in'! Peace & Blessings.
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Summary: The only way of eating that works for me
Review: ....I decided to buy Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution. I read through the book and discovered some interesting chapters on Metabolic Resistance (which is a measure of the ability to lose weight and keep it off) and on the Metabolic Advantage. What I read was indeed a very stunning revelation. The chapters explained that I needed to eat a diet high in protein, high in fat (especially saturated fat), high in dietary cholesterol, and low in carbohydrate (starches and sugars). I couldn't believe it. This was totally contrary to the current conventional wisdom on nutrition. That I was going to have increased muscle definition, decreased bodyfat, increased energy levels, decreased health problems by eating this way was akin to telling someone in the 16th century who had believed all his life that the Earth was flat, that this bit of wisdom was wrong and that the Earth is indeed round! So I decided to give Induction a try for two weeks and measure my degree of metabolic resistance. I had no idea what my CCLL (Critical Carbohydrate Level for Losing) was. But at least, I was going to know without a doubt if eating fat makes me fat. The first two weeks were rough due to carbohydrate withdrawal symptoms. I felt out of sorts, loss of mental acuity, lower energy levels. I was taking a vitamin at the time, only to later learn that it was the vitamin, canola and soybean oils that were making me feel out of sorts (and headachey). I now only use olive oil as the vegetable oil of choice. I had lost a grand total of 6 lbs in two weeks on Induction. The food intolerance problems were determined by reading the chapter on Food Intolerances and using a process of elimination to determine the offending foods (substances) while on Induction. Still, I missed fruit, so, I proceeded on to the Atkins OWL (On Going Weight Loss)/Premaintenance Nutritional Approach. From there, I determined my CCLL and was saddened to learn that it was 50 grams (starches and sugars). My health improved (without the vitamin). I ate nuts and berries in addition to a greater variety of carb-controlled portions of vegetables. I also ate carb-controlled portions of higher carb fruits (half an orange, half an apple, half a banana, half a grapefruit, etc.) in addition to the berries. Beans were (and still are) limited to 1/3 cup. As long as carbs were spread out throughout the day in 5-10 gram counts, kept under 50 grams, and came from a wide variety of natural plant based (whole food) sources, then I was doing fine. The good news is that, I started to feel better and I was very slowly losing inches and pounds. I have been on the Atkins OWL/Premaintenance diet for three years. Even though the scale only shows a weight change of 15 lbs, I have lost 5 inches on my belt! The weight loss plateaus that I experienced showed that I was losing fat from my face. I had to get my wedding ring resized because my ring finger got skinnier! No more hunger problems. No more craving problems and I still eat the same way as I did three years ago. Given the choice between elevated cholesterol levels (LDL 325, HDL 53) or the alternative (Type II diabetes problems, Blood pressure problems, low HDL problems, Triglyceride problems, lack of energy problems, brain fog problems, skin healing problems, hair thinning problems, brittle nail problems, obesity problems, blood sugar problems, and God knows what else), its a no-brainer. I am sticking to Atkins for life. When my wife got introduced to my way of eating, she was a bit puzzled. "This is a diet?". She thought all Americans were eating this way. After all, she had been eating this way for her entire life in VietNam and in the United States and she was not aware that this was an actual diet (meat, fish, fowl, eggs, nuts, berries, butter, cheese, fruits, vegetables, spices, green tea, herbal teas, and some unprocessed whole grains). That's because, in Vietnam, my wife's family could not afford to buy and eat processed high carb junk food and other "luxury items" such as margarine. Members of my wife's family typically make it to the 90s-100s on this "diet" with no obesity problems whatsoever. However, there is a family history of Type II diabetes, but it only affects the elderly and they have only recently discovered that the problem is worsened (aggravated) by the consumption of white bread, white rice and white sugar (which are hard things to give up)... Follow up: Since writing this post, my LDL cholesterol has dropped 134 points without taking any medications, HDL remains unchanged, and my Triglycerides are the lowest that I have ever seen. It just took time and I have to admit that my cholesterols were really bad before I started doing Atkins three years ago. I have lost another inch on my belt and can now wear a size 34 plus the fat is still leaving my face. For three years now, I have eaten 4-5 portion controlled meals each day with a dietary composition of 65 % (or higher) animal fat, 30 % animal protein, and 5 % carbohydrate (starches and sugars). I drink plenty of water and tea. I will also sometimes drink Ginger tea to aid digestion. I exercize with weights and machines at the gym and perform some aerobic exercise with a bicycle or an elliptical glider three or more times a week. I have never felt better or healthier in my entire life.
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