Dr Atkins first recommended a high protein - low carbohydrate diet in 1972 in his first book. He used this diet to assist his heart patients to loose weight and reduce their risk of heart disease. He experienced many successful cases with this diet and published his book. This book has been revised many times but the diet plan remains the same. The diet plan is in four phases with the final phase being the maintenance phase. On the Dr Atkins diet the participant can eat as much fat with their protein as they please but vegetables are very limited and fruit is off limits for the first two phases.
Dr Dukan also has a diet that recommends high protein and low carbohydrate. This diet also has four phases and includes more vegetables than the Atkins diet and includes daily oat bran for all four phases. In addition to high protein and low carbohydrate it also recommends low fat. The exclusion of fat and inclusion of more vegetables plus the oat bran are the two main differences between the two diets.
These two diets reduce carbohydrates because of the way that the body metabolises it. When we eat a carbohydrate our body produces insulin to metabolise the sugar and allow it into our blood cells so that we can use it for energy. You may have noticed that when we are tired we crave sugar and this is because our brains are telling us that it needs more energy. All sugar that isn't used at the time is then stored as fat for the next famine. However if you live in a country that doesn't experience famine the fat is likely to remain unused unless you make a conscious effort to use it.
The high protein diets have the participant eat almost no carbohydrate for the first phase and very little for the second phase so that they body has no sugar to be stored as fat, which means that the body has to start to use it's fat stores.
There have been both fans and critics of both diets with many blogs from those that have used the diet and articles from the medical profession expressing some concerns. One of the bigger concerns from the medical professional was about the amount of saturated fat permitted on the Atkins diet and how that could potentially affect heart health. Another concern has been that the high amount of protein could cause kidney damage. There appear to be as many articles for as there are against the high protein diet.
People who have tried the diet mostly write about the weight that they lost but many also write about the constipation, bad breath and lack of food choices in the first two phases. Some people have found the diets so successful that they have stayed on the maintenance phase for years. As with all weight loss plans there are many aspects to consider and personal preferences. Would you prefer a diet that allowed you to eat limitless amounts of cheese, cream and other fats in addition to protein or would you prefer a diet that prevented you from eating fats and had you eat more vegetables and oat bran? Neither permit sugar during the first two phases.
Because both diets have been around for a while there is a lot of personal experiences and stories about both which you may find helpful if considering either.
Consult your health practitioner before commencing any diet.
warmest wishes
Sarah
If you have been on one of these diets we would love to hear your story. Was it successful?
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