Atkins Diet

The Atkins Diet is one of the most popular low carbohydrate diets available today. It was developed by an American physician, Dr Robert Atkins, during the 1960s, and was soon turned into a nationally-franchised dieting business because of its success in effectively creating weight loss.

Doctor Atkins argues that Western eating habits have two main unrecognized factors. He suggests that:

1. Obesity is caused by eating refined carbohydrates, particularly sugar, flour, and high-fructose corn syrups; and

2. Saturated fat is much overrated as a nutritional problem... Only trans fats need to be avoided (i.e. artificially processed fats, such as those made from hydrogenated oils.)

Dr Robert Atkins believes that its this big increase in refined carbohydrates which has caused the gigantic rise in metabolic disorders since the early 1900s, when farming became mechanised and when big businesses began to take over the production of our staple foods.

Atkins says we have been wrong to obsess on dietary fat as being bad, because this has only increased the proportion of insulin-inducing foods left in our diet... And that has made the obesity epidemic far worse.

Since it is a lo-carb diet, the Atkins Diet helps you to lose weight through restricting your intake of sugars and refined carbohydrates. The Atkins food plan is particularly strict at the beginning so that it quickly induces ketosis to burn fat. It is quite normal to feel lethargic, to have headaches and to experience bad breath while you are going through ketosis, but that's actually good because it means you are losing weight rapidly.

Once the initial rapid weight loss has been achieved, the Atkins method switches you to a more moderate eating plan where you continue to lose weight, but at a more relaxed pace. You will feel better at this stage, and should be pleased with the number of pounds (or kilos) that you've shed already. You continue to burn away the fat bit by bit until you reach your desired weight.

Once you are at your ideal weight, as determined by a physician or other health professional, then you switch from a weight loss diet to a maintenance diet. This ongoing Atkins maintenance food plan is designed to supply all the nutrients your body needs to operate at maximum efficiency, and at the same time, it eliminates the highly-processed carbs and sugars that bring on food cravings.

For a quick detox and fast weight loss, I'd recommend the no sugar no flour diet.