Studies suggest Atkins diet is safe

NEW YORK, Feb 18 (Reuters Health) -- The extremely carbohydrate-restricted
Atkins diet is a safe, effective way to lose weight, according to studies
presented at the Southern Society of General Internal Medicine in New
Orleans.

A study of the diet conducted at the Durham VA Medical Center in North
Carolina showed that on average, mildly obese people lost about 21 pounds
in four months on the diet, and had positive changes in heart risk factors
such as reduced cholesterol and increased HDL or ``good cholesterol.''
These results are supported by a second study from researchers at the
Atkins Center for Complementary Medicine in New York.

The Durham study included 41 mildly obese, healthy people who attended an
outpatient clinic. The study participants followed a program that reduced
carbohydrate intake to less than 20 grams per day, and included vitamin
supplements, fish oil supplements and 20 minutes of exercise at least
three times per week.

Over four months on the diet, the participants lost an average of 21.3
pounds, and showed a 6.1% drop in cholesterol, and almost a 40% drop in
the level of triglycerides in their blood. In addition, their HDL levels
increased by about 7%. In a press release, the researchers also say that
their study did not find any of the safety concerns voiced by the American
Dietetic Association, such as potentially dangerous effects on liver and
kidney function.

``In four short months on the Atkins Diet, we were able to confirm
scientifically what Dr. Atkins states he has seen in his practice over the
past decades. The diet lowers cholesterol and triglycerides and raises
HDL... which may represent an entirely new approach to the control and
prevention of heart disease,'' said lead researcher Dr. Eric C. Westman,
assistant professor of medicine at North Carolina's Duke University.

The study is continuing in order to assess the long-term effects of the
diet.

Reporting the results of the second study, Colette Heimowitz, director of
nutrition at the Atkins Center in New York, said that it was based on 319
overweight or obese patients treated at the Center for at least a year.
Investigators collected information on weight, blood pressure, cholesterol,
 kidney and liver function and other parameters during the study.

``What we found is what we already knew from anecdotal data,'' Heimowitz
told Reuters Health in an interview after the meeting on Friday. ``There
were some pretty impressive benefits in body composition, HDL levels went
up, LDL levels went down and blood pressure decreased,'' she reported.
Where HDL is the good cholesterol for its association with reduced heart
risk, LDL has earned the name of being the ``bad'' cholesterol because
high levels are associated with heart disease.

``We now have data for the scientific community'' on the healthful
benefits of the Atkins diet, Heimowitz asserted.

The Atkins diet severely restricts carbohydrate intake to induce a state
of ketosis, or metabolic starvation. Dieters are encouraged to measure
urinary ketone excretion as an indication of how effective the diet is in
inducing fat breakdown. ''Ketosis is a benign byproduct of fat burning,''
Heimowitz asserted. ``With an adequate protein and fat intake, there is no
loss of muscle mass...There is no change in (blood) pH if the diet is
properly done,'' she said.

However the diet is not for everyone, Heimowitz warned. ''It's for those
who need a correction in their sugar and carbohydrate metabolism...We
encourage (vitamin) supplementation and an intake of 'good' fats, such as
fish oil,'' Heimowitz commented.