With the Atkins diet, you can eat as many fatty and protein-rich foods as you want and you should still be able to lose weight. Here you can find out exactly what the diet is all about and how healthy it actually is.
How does the Atkins diet work?
The Atkins diet is based on the American doctor Dr. Robert Atkins back. He described the weight loss method for the first time 1972after trying them for himself. The special thing about the diet: There are no precise specifications and restrictions on the amount and number of calories. You can eat as much fat and protein as you want. Only on carbohydrates you should do without if possible.
According to Atkins, your diet should consist of 40 to 45 percent fat, 40 percent protein, and 15 to 20 percent carbohydrates during the diet. In order to achieve such a low carbohydrate content, you not only have to avoid sweets, pastries or soft drinks, but also:
- loaf
- Pasta
- Potatoes
- rice, couscous, bulgur & Co.
- legumes (like chickpeas, lentils, beans)
- oatmeal
- many types of fruit and vegetables (such as bananas, apples, kohlrabi, pumpkin)
In order to achieve the high protein and fat content, the menu of an Atkins diet consists essentially of meat, fish, eggs, dairy products and only a few plant-based products (such as Nuts, Tofu, berries or lettuce).
Atkins Diet: This is what happens to your body
Our bodies prefer to get energy directly from carbohydrates. If these cease to exist, he has to change his strategy. Once the carbohydrate reserves are empty, our body switches to the so-called Starvation metabolism. It then attacks the stored fat cells. In order to be able to use the fat as an energy source, he first converts it into ketone bodies. Our body is then in ketogenesis.
This is a by-product acetone. This substance is the reason why there can be an unpleasant mouth and body odor during the course of the Atkins diet.
Risks: Deficiency symptoms and cravings
One benefit of the Atkins diet is that you don’t have to spend hours counting calories or weighing your food. Nevertheless, the type of diet has decisive disadvantages:
- The diet bans many types of fruit and vegetables and all whole grains. According to the Pharmacy magazine there is therefore a high risk that you will not do enough Fiber, Vitamins and secondary plant substances take to you. In the long term, this can lead to deficiency symptoms.
- The rigorous ban on certain foods also promotes cravings. Since you are relatively one-sided on the Atkins diet, you may soon feel like disobeying the rules. This can result in uncontrollable food cravings that may leave you feeling guilty and remorseful. A balanced diet, in which you also indulge in unhealthy snacks in moderation, can help prevent such attacks. You can find more on this topic here: Cravings: These tips will help you avoid it.
Atkins Diet: Lots of Fat, Protein, and Salt
The unbalanced diet in the Atkins diet has other potential dangers:
- You consume many high-fat animal products on the Atkins diet. These consist mainly of saturated fatty acids, which, according to the pharmacy survey, can have an adverse effect on your cholesterol levels. Cholesterol isn’t inherently bad. However, if your LDL cholesterol level is consistently high, your Calcify arteries. Among other things, this favors heart diseases such as heart attacks or heart attacks.
- As part of the Atkins diet, you not only eat a lot of fat, but also a lot of protein-rich products. Excess protein is converted into urea in the kidneys. If you already have a weakened kidney, it may no longer be able to filter the protein breakdown products from the body and thus become even weaker. Protein building blocks (such as uric acid) therefore remain in the blood and can also promote a gout attack. Those with kidney disease should therefore avoid protein-rich forms of nutrition such as the Atkins diet, recommends the pharmacy review. Also according to an article by Doctors newspaper Excessive daily protein intake (of two grams of protein per kilogram of body weight) is particularly dangerous for people with kidney disease. According to the Consumer advice center Older people aged 65 and over should also be careful.
- Many animal products, such as sausage, some types of cheese and cured meat, also contain high amounts of salt, according to the pharmacy survey. If you consume too much salt over the long term, it can raise your blood pressure. You can find out more here: Too Much Salt: Signs and How to Avoid Salty Foods.
How sustainable is the Atkins diet?
The Atkins diet is also problematic from an ecological point of view. Many resources are used in the production of animal products: keeping and feeding the animals requires large areas and large amounts of water. The transport of feed and animals also causes CO2Emissions.
In the case of dairy products and beef, cows also emit the greenhouse gas during digestion methane eject. This is why these and other animal products are at the top of the list of the most climate-damaging foods. You can find out more here: These 6 foods are the worst for the climate.
But animal products are not only problematic for the climate. The basic needs of the animals are disregarded, especially in conventional animal husbandry. Also at slaughter and at Animal transport the animals are exposed to fear and stress and often suffer from serious injuries and illnesses. Therefore, whenever possible, use organic products for animal products. You can find out more about this topic in this article: Bio-Siegel in comparison: What do animals get from organic animal husbandry?
Atkins Diet: Conclusion
For both health and environmental reasons, the Atkins diet is not recommended. There are other weight loss methods that allow you to continue to eat nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables or treat yourself to something sweet every now and then. A long term balanced nutrition So saves you stress and health risks. Therefore, strive for a healthy and relaxed diet – and not a short-term diet in which you are forced to banish numerous foods from your everyday life.
Read more on Techzle.com:
- Ketogenic diet: principle and disadvantages of the no-carb diet
- Lose weight effectively: this is how it works in a healthy way
- Lose weight with exercise: Suitable sports and tips