Atkins Diet safety record slammed
low-carbohydrate diets has been criticised after a preliminary
report released last week linked one death and numerous illnesses
to the weight loss regime.
At a press conference organized last week by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, nutritionist Dr Paul Robinson presented findings of a recent study which appeared to show a link between the high-protein diet and a number of serious health problems.
Dr Adams and other specialists were joined by several people who reported being harmed by these diets, as well as family members of the deceased.
The PCRM called on the Centers for Disease Control to begin an immediate investigation into these incidents and the prevalence of adverse effects and deaths associated with the diets.
Dr Neal D. Barnard, nutrition researcher and PCRM president, also presented the findings of a preliminary report which summarized the health problems reported by registrants to PCRM's web-based registry for people harmed by high-protein diets.
Among these findings were the revelations that 42 per cent of registrants experienced a loss of energy, 22 per cent reported reduced kidney function, stones, or severe infection, and 20 per cent reported heart problems or elevated cholesterol.
The report, full details of which can be found here sets out to establish whether there are any long term health consequences of the "modest short-term weight loss" which Atkins and other diets appear to facilitate.
Dr Barnard said that diets high in fat, especially saturated fat, were associated with increased risk of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease, while diets high in animal protein had been shown to increase the risk of kidney problems, osteoporosis, and some types of cancer.
For these reasons, and a number of other reasons highlighted in the report, Dr Barnard said that "high-protein, high-fat, low-fiber, carbohydrate-restricted diets, such as the Atkins Diet, especially when used for prolonged periods, are expected to increase the risk of multiple chronic diseases and other health problems, despite the weight loss that may accompany their use."
Atkins was quick to respond to the claims, citing research based on studies conducted at Duke, Harvard and many other universities and hospitals, as well as the National Institutes of Health and the American Heart Association, which it said "consistently demonstrated the efficacy, safety and cardio-protective benefits of Atkins".
But Atkins was scathing its criticism of the PCRM. "The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine appears to be exploiting the obesity and diabetes crisis in this country to further its own vegan political and philosophical agenda, regardless of the scientific evidence. In fact, it is this very same evidence validating a controlled carbohydrate approach to nutrition that has made leaders in the medical and scientific community reconsider Atkins' validity."
The company said it was "deeply disturbed" by PCRM's "shameless exploitation of people who have struggled through personal tragedies" and "stunned by PCRM's reckless disregard of scientific and medical protocols in assembling their pseudo scientific so-called study".
There has been growing evidence, much published in the last 12 months, showing that the Atkins Diet is effective in weight loss. However concerns over its long-term effects remain and proponents of the regime must still face up to the established scientific evidence linking consumption of high quantities of protein and fat to a number of diseases.
