July 16, 2003

Anti-Atkins docs start ad campaign for balanced diet

By MICHAEL PRITCHARD Staff Writer, (609) 272-7256, mpritchard~pressofac.com

The high-protein diet championed by the late Robert Atkins is back in the news. Less than two months after the New England Journal of Science published studies that gave the diet new respect, some in the medical community are warning of the diet's dangers.

"It's still a fad diet," said Jennifer Keller, a spokesperson for the Physician's Commit-tee for Responsible Medicine, a nonprofit group based in Washington, which is launching an ad campaign against the diet.

"Like most fad diets, it can help you lose weight in the short term, but it doesn't solve the problem and keep the weight off," she said. "People need to adopt a healthy plan that works over the long term."

The Atkins diet, controversial since it was first released in the 1970s, has become very popular in recent years. It advocates high protein intake - meats, seafood and poultry - while virtually eliminating carbohydrates such as breads and starches.

Atkins diet unbalanced

"It is not a balanced diet," said Jennifer Crowley, assistant director of clinical nutrition for Shore Memorial Hospital in Somers Point. "And any diet that completely eliminates a food group has to be questioned."

The Atkins diet runs counter to the conventional nutrition theory of a balanced, low-fat diet rich in fruits and vegetables.

The studies in the New England Journal, addressing the diet's effects in short studies of a year or less, found people on the diet did lose weight and did not see an increase in their cholesterol. However, the committee feels that the negative sides of the studies were not properly publicized, namely that the weight loss was unimpressive and that most people can't stay on the rigid diet and eventually gain the weight back.

The studies also didn't address the long-term effects of the diet. Many physicians feel the Atkins diet stresses the kidneys and colon and can lead to calcium loss.

The committee's ads are appearing in U.S. News & World Report's annual hospital guide (on newsstands July 21) and on CNN's "AccentHealth" shown in hospital and doctor's waiting rooms.

Like the committee, Crowley says the best way to lose weight is through a balanced, healthy diet along with exercise.

"There is no magic bullet," she said.