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Eco-Atkins; Does It Work? |
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 A few short years ago the Atkins diet was all the rage. In fact, many still use the principles of the Atkins diet to lose weight. When this high protein, high saturated fat, low carb diet first appeared on the scene it seemed to go against all other diet plans that came before it, most of which seemed to promote the idea that fat is bad. Despite some studies that suggested the Atkins diet may in fact lower blood pressure and reduce cholesterol levels, the Atkins diet started to lose popularity when critics began to claim that the diet increased the risk of heart attack and kidney stones.
Enter a new spin on the Atkins diet called the ‘Eco-Atkins’ diet. This diet attempts to take the basic principles of the original Atkins diet but instead of promoting highly saturated animal fats, it touts healthy vegetarian proteins. Instead of eating lots of high cholesterol treats like beacon, eggs, ham and the like, Eco-Atkins dieters will enjoy a variety of soy, nuts, fruits, vegetables, whole-grain cereals and vegetable oils.
So does the Eco-Atkins diet work? Although there is not much data on if it can significantly increase weight loss, a University of Toronto study did conclude that the diet was able to reduce blood pressure when compared with people who ate a high-carb, low fat diet. Since the diet promotes making healthy food choices in general with high protein content, many experts suspect the diet could also lead to reductions in cholesterol levels and weight.
Author: Christi Larson, Pharm. D.
Dr. Larson is a pharmacist, author of Empowered Medicine; A Guide for Consumers and creator of Empowered Medicine. You can read more about her by visiting www.EmpoweredMedicine.com and clicking on the 'About Us' tab. EmpoweredMedicine.com is committed to providing evidence-based medical information from a pharmacist's point of view.
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