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Robert Atkin Diet Research

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The Atkin’s diet is a low carbohydrate food regimen that requires the dieter to strictly limit their intake of all carbohydrates such as starches and sugars. Limiting the body’s consumption of carbohydrates insures that the body is not able to convert excess glucose into fat. As a stated benefit, the diet also claims that the reduced intake of sugars and starches will keep your blood levels from dipping. This will help increase alertness while avoiding energy crashes. Robert Atkin, the creator of the Atkin’s diet, encourages dieters to instead focus on eating healthier fats that contain omega- 3 fatty acids. As featured on the diet’s marketing website www.atkins.com, the conception of the diet stems from the process of ketosis and …show more content…

The studies were conducted on 322 participants who were overweight, most of whom had a BMI of 31. The test subjects were predominantly male, with 86% being male, and 14% being female. Weight lost was most prevalent during the first six months of the trial, for the subsequent year, weight lost became much slower, with many gaining back some weight they lost. At the end of the two yearlong trial, participants lost an average of 4.6 pounds.
Consequently, the Atkin’s diet did work to some extent, however it was mainly beneficial to people who were eating copious amounts of carbohydrates and refined sugars. The danger occurs when a person who has a normal intake of carbohydrates begins the diet, this could eventually lead to a carbohydrate deficiency.
The human body requires carbohydrates in the process of glycolysis (White B. 2000), in which ATP is produced. During periods of starvation, the bodies enters ketosis, where fat is used as a substitute for glucose. However, this process does not yield nearly as much energy as glycolysis and leads to the production of ketones. This is dangerous because the presence of too much ketones in the blood stream will offset the pH levels and make it

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