Atkins Diyetinin Nasıl Çalıştığına Giriş

Kabul edelim, siz veya tanıdığınız biri şu veya bu dönemde diyettesiniz . Aslında, bu makaleyi okuyan birçok kişinin şu anda bir çeşit diyette olma ihtimali yüksek. Dışarıda her türlü diyet var, ancak çoğunun ortak bir temel yanı var - planı takip ederken, yediğiniz kalori miktarını izlemeniz gerekiyor. Diyetlerin çoğu ayrıca yüksek yağlı yiyeceklerden kaçınmanızı gerektirir. Ancak bunu yapmayan bir diyet var. Diğer rejiminin aksine, oldukça fazla miktarda kırmızı et, yumurta, peynir, tereyağı ve hatta domuz pastırması yemenize izin verir - bunların tümü başka planlarda kaçak olarak kabul edilir.

Açıkçası böyle bir program üzerinde kayda değer miktarda tartışma var; Artık Atkins Nutritional Approach™ olarak bilinen Atkins diyeti, medyada sıkça konuşulan bir konu. Ülke çapında diyet yapanlar bu alışılmışın dışında planı izlemenin sonuçlarından heyecan duysa da, tıp camiası bunun gibi bir yaklaşımın birisi için ne kadar sağlıklı olabileceği konusunda oldukça iyi bölünmüş durumda - özellikle uzun vadede.

Şu anda muhtemelen böyle bir diyetin aslında nasıl kilo kaybına yol açabileceğini merak ediyorsunuz. Merhum Dr. Atkins'e göre, her şey karbonhidratları sınırlamakla ilgili. Amerikalılar olarak büyük miktarda karbonhidrat yiyoruz. Bunlar beyaz un ve rafine şeker içeren yiyeceklerdir. Yani yediğimiz makarna, ekmek ve tahıl gevreği gibi paketli gıdaların çoğu karbonhidrat yönünden zengindir. Atkins diyetinin temel ilkesine göre, karbonhidratları dört aşamalı bir süreçte sınırlandırarak vücudunuz yakıt için karbonhidratlar yerine depolanmış yağlarını yakmaya zorlanır.

Bu yazıda düşük karbonhidratlı diyetin arkasındaki genel teoriye bir göz atacağız. Atkins diyetinin dört aşamasına ve planın hangi yiyecekleri yemenize izin verdiğine bakacağız. Ve son olarak, programın yararları ve sakıncaları ile tıp uzmanlarının bu konuda söylediklerini tartışacağız.

1. Düşük Karbonhidratlı Diyet Nedir?
2. Atkins'in Dört Aşaması
3. Yiyebileceğiniz Yiyecekler
4. Atkins Kilo Kaybına Nasıl Neden Oluyor?
5. Yararlar ve zararlar
6. Uzmanlar Tartışıyor

1972'de Dr. Robert Atkins, diyet için yeni bir yol öneren Dr. Atkins Yeni Diyet Devrimi adlı kitabını ilk kez yayınladı. Bu zamana kadar diyet, günde yenen kalori sayısını veya yenen yağ ve karbonhidrat miktarını azaltmaktan ibaretti. Ancak Dr. Atkins'in diyeti kesinlikle karbonhidrat tüketimini sınırlamaya odaklanmıştı. Peki, karbonhidratlar nelerdir?

Muhtemelen "karbonhidratlar" ve "karmaşık karbonhidratlar"ı duymuşsunuzdur. Pirinç, makarna, ekmek, kraker, mısır gevreği, meyve ve sebze gibi birçok formda bulunurlar. Karbonhidratlar vücudunuza temel yakıtını sağlar. Vücudunuzla karbonhidratlar arasındaki ilişkiyi, bir araba motoru ile benzin arasındaki ilişkiyi düşündüğünüz gibi düşünebilirsiniz .

En basit karbonhidrat glikozdur . "Kan şekeri" ve "dekstroz" olarak da adlandırılan glikoz, vücudunuzdaki her hücre için kullanılabilir olması için kan dolaşımında akar. Hücreleriniz glikozu emer ve hücreyi sürmek için enerjiye dönüştürür.

"Karbonhidrat" kelimesi, glikozun karbon ve sudan oluşması gerçeğinden gelir. Glikoz için kimyasal formül:

Glikozun altı karbon atomundan (karbon...) ve altı su molekülünün (...hidrat) elementlerinden oluştuğunu görebilirsiniz. Glikoz basit bir şekerdir, yani dilimize göre tadı tatlıdır. Muhtemelen duymuş olduğunuz başka basit şekerler de vardır:

Glikoz, fruktoz ve Galaktoz monosakkaritler olarak adlandırılır . Laktoz, sakaroz ve maltoza disakkaritler denir (iki monosakkarit içerirler). Monosakkaritler ve disakkaritlere basit karbonhidratlar denir . Bir gıda paketindeki "Beslenme Gerçekleri" etiketine baktığınızda ve etiketin "Karbonhidratlar" bölümünün altındaki "Şekerler"i gördüğünüzde, bu basit şekerler, etiketin bahsettiği şeydir.

Ayrıca yaygın olarak "nişasta" olarak bilinen karmaşık karbonhidratlar da vardır. Karmaşık bir karbonhidrat, glikoz moleküllerinin zincirlerinden oluşur. Nişastalar, bitkilerin enerji depolama şeklidir - bitkiler glikoz üretir ve nişasta oluşturmak için glikoz moleküllerini birbirine zincirler. Çoğu tahıl (buğday, mısır, yulaf, pirinç) ve patates ve plantain gibi şeyler nişasta bakımından yüksektir. Sindirim sisteminiz, glikozun kan dolaşımınıza girebilmesi için karmaşık bir karbonhidratı (nişasta) bileşen glikoz moleküllerine geri döndürür. Bununla birlikte, bir nişastayı parçalamak çok daha uzun sürer. Şekerle dolu bir kutu soda içerseniz, glikoz kan dolaşımına dakikada 30 kalori gibi bir oranda girer. Karmaşık bir karbonhidrat daha yavaş sindirilir,referans ). Kompleks karbonhidratlar brokoli gibi lif bakımından yüksek veya muz veya patates gibi lif bakımından düşük olabilir.

Karbonhidratlar vücudun enerji için kullandığı tek madde değildir. Vücut ayrıca proteinleri ve yağları kullanır.yakıt için. Protein kırmızı et, kümes hayvanları ve peynir gibi gıdalarda bulunur. Yağlar da beslenmemizin önemli bir parçasıdır. Birçok gıda farklı miktarlarda yağ içerir. Yüksek yağlı yiyecekler arasında tereyağı ve krema gibi süt ürünleri ile mayonez ve yağlar bulunur. Düşük karbonhidratlı diyetin arkasındaki fikir, yediğiniz karbonhidrat miktarını kısıtlamak ve protein ve yağ miktarını artırmaktır. Başka bir deyişle, düşük karbonhidratlı bir diyet yemek, bir çizburgerin tadını çıkarmanıza izin verir, ancak onu çörek olmadan sipariş etmeniz gerekir. Unutmayın, ekmek karbonhidrat içerir ve hamburger ve peynir protein ve yağ içerir. Yani, düşük karbonhidratlı diyet kulağa nasıl geliyorsa, protein ve yağ yiyebilirsiniz, ancak yediğiniz karbonhidrat miktarını sınırlamanız gerekir.

Atkins diyeti dört aşamalı bir beslenme planından oluşur. Yediğiniz yiyecekler hangi aşamada olduğunuza ve kendi kişisel metabolizmanıza bağlı olarak değişir . Atkins diyetinin dört aşaması şunları içerir:

USDA Gıda Piramidi, karbonhidrat tüketimi açısından zengin bir diyet önerir. Aşağıdaki resimde görebileceğiniz gibi, piramidin temeli, günde altı ila on bir porsiyon karbonhidrat önerilir.

The Atkins food pyramid looks very different from this one. In fact, one of the reasons the Atkins diet was popular in the 1970s and has become popular again today is because it allows dieters to eat more of the foods most diets restrict or would never even allow -- such as red meat and high-fat dairy products like cheese and butter. According to the Atkins Web site, the Atkins plan helps people feel less hungry and less deprived than many other diets.

Unlike the traditional food pyramid, the Atkins pyramid places dietary emphasis on protein sources as opposed to whole grain foods. Additionaly, the Atkins plan doesn't set limits on the amount of food you eat. It only sets limits on the type of food you eat. For example, you cannot eat white rice or foods made with white flour like cake or pasta, but you can eat a large amount of fish, poultry, red meat, eggs and cheese. These foods are made up mostly of protein and fat, as opposed to carbohydrates. Furthermore, Atkins is different from most diets in that you don't need to count calories. In fact, many people on Atkins consume more calories than they were before the diet (one gram of fat contains 9 calories, while one gram of any carbohydrate contains 4 calories).

Since the Atkins diet occurs in four phases, what you can eat will differ slightly in each phase. As you go through the phases, you are allowed more and more carbohydrates, but they should consist mostly of fiber-rich carbohydrates like leafy greens and certain vegetables. White rice, white bread, potatoes and pasta made from "white" or processed flour remain forbidden-foods for the duration of the Atkins plan. At this point, you may be asking yourself "How can someone lose weight on a diet like this?"

Let's examine how the Atkins plan can result in weight loss.

A Few Words on Calories ...

A calorie is a measurement of energy. We tend to associate calories with food, but any sort of energy can be measured in calories. The official definition of a calorie is the amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of a gram of water by 1 degree C. A kilocalorie is 1,000 calories. Just to make life confusing, the "calorie" that you see on packages of food is really a "kilocalorie" in the scientific sense.

It makes sense that food contains energy, because most foods burn. For example, if you have ever roasted marshmallows , you probably know that marshmallows burn. What's burning in that case is the sugar in the marshmallow. Fat burns too -- you know that if you have ever seen a grease fire. Your body "burns" fats, carbohydrates and proteins -- not with flames, but with more controlled chemical reactions that release the energy in different ways.

Fats, proteins and carbohydrates have characteristic calorie measurements. One gram of fat contains almost 9 calories (kilocalories) of energy. One gram of any carbohydrate contains 4 calories (kilocalories). One gram of protein contains 4 calories (kilocalories) as well. Knowing these values, you can calculate the number of calories in any food as long as you know how many grams of fat, protein and carbohydrates it contains.

As you now know, the Atkins plan begins by restricting carbohydrates. When your body is not given fuel in the form of carbohydrates, it uses fuel in other ways. So, let's say you've just started following the Atkins plan and are consuming a modest 20 grams of carbohydrates or less. Here is what's happening inside your body:

So, what does this mean in simple terms? In theory, the Atkins diet enables your body to switch from a machine that uses carbohydrates for fuel to one that uses fat for fuel. Therefore, a diet with little or no carbs forces the body's storage of fat to become its main energy source.

To further understand the way your body loses weight on the Atkins diet, you must consider the way the body uses sugar as fuel. To turn sugars into fuel, your body uses the hormone insulin. Insulin enables our cells to turn carbohydrates into glucose by controlling the amount of sugar in our blood. The body secretes insulin to keep blood sugar from getting too high. Insulin is a storage hormone, meaning that it causes sugar we don't use for fuel to be stored as fat. It also keeps the body from burning stored fat. The Atkins diet suggests that it is this "insulin response" that continues to add fat to our bodies. This function is an asset when food is scarce, but an abundance of sugar-filled and high-carbohydrate foods will promote the accumulation of body fat.

On the contrary, a low-carbohydrate diet allows your body to release less insulin. According to the Atkins plan, when insulin levels are normal, your body will begin to burn its own fat as fuel; thereby resulting in weight loss. By keeping insulin levels stable, not only does your body burn fat, but it may also lead to less hunger and fewer cravings. Simply put, according to the Atkins folks, their diet attempts to control insulin levels by controlling the amount of carbohydrates you eat.

Glossary of Atkins Terms

Source: the Atkins® Web site

• Carbohydrate: One of the nutrients that supply calories to the body. Compounds composed of carbon, oxygen and hydrogen arranged as simple sugars. Sources include grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and other plant foods.
• Induction: The initial phase of the Atkins plan, which lasts a minimum of two weeks. During this time, it is recommended that carbohydrate consumption not exceed 20 grams a day, in order to trigger ketosis, in which the body burns its own fat for energy.
• Insulin: A naturally occurring hormone secreted by the pancreas that helps transport glucose into muscle cells and other tissues, where it is stored for energy use. Insulin is also known as the fat-producing hormone.
• Ketone: The normal products of fat metabolism, when there are insufficient carbohydrates as a source of energy. For people who are restricting their intake of carbohydrates, ketone presence in the urine indicates achievement of a fat-burning phase that will result in weight loss.
• Ketosis: This is a biological process that results when sufficient glucose as a source of energy is not available from dietary carbohydrate and the body switches to primarily using fat.
• Protein: One of the nutrients that provide calories. Protein, needed for the growth and repair of all human tissues, is composed of 22 amino acids. Protein provides the body with energy and heat, and is needed for the manufacture of hormones, antibodies and enzymes. Forms of protein include meat and poultry.

Now that you understand how the Atkins plan works, let's examine some of the benefits and drawbacks of low-carbohydrate eating. According to the Atkins Web site, there are four main benefits participants gain from following the Atkins plan:

The Atkins Web site also lists a few drawbacks to the diet. The two main drawbacks are bad breath, which is a result of excess ketone production, and constipation.

While some may consider the strictness of the diet a drawback, Atkins dieters are quick to point out that only carbohydrates are restricted - leaving a large selection of other food options.

And, unlike many other diets, for the most part the amount of food you eat has no restriction. Although, according to the Atkins plan, it's unlikely that you'll be overeating because:

The medical and nutritional communities have been increasingly concerned about some additional drawbacks to the Atkins diet. Many believe that the diet is a temporary fix for the permanent problem of weight loss. In other words, limiting carbohydrates to the degree the Atkins plan does, may be very difficult to maintain for many people. After all, the typical American eats a large amount of carbohydrates and the almost total elimination of this food group may not be something dieters can stick with for an extended amount of time.

Many medical groups have voiced concerns over the potential long-term health risks of the Atkins diet, such as kidney stones, ulcers and repeated kidney infections. Furthermore, in the past, research has shown that eating high levels of saturated fat -- as Atkins dieters often do -- may have negative health effects including increased cholesterol which can lead to heart disease and stroke.

Debates over the Atkins diet continue, and it would appear that the medical community is split on the issue. Let's take a closer look at what the experts are saying.

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As mentioned earlier, there has been a great deal of controversy over the Atkins plan and other low-carbohydrate diets. The controversy generally revolves around the consumption of high-fat and high-protein foods, which are by and large believed to lead to heart disease and other ailments.

The controversy heated up when the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM -- rumored to have ties to PETA) came out against the Atkins diet in December 2003 claiming that high-fat, carbohydrate-restricted diets lead to increased risk of chronic diseases and health problems. According to the PCRM's 2003 report, 429 people reported problems with high-protein, carbohydrate-restrictive diets. These ailments included kidney stones, heart problems (13 individuals reported heart attacks), gastrointestinal problems including ulcers and diarrhea and kidney infections. In fact, the American Academy of Family Physicians claims that high protein intake is largely responsible for the high prevalence of kidney stones in the United States.

However, critics of the PCRM data believe these studies cannot prove a cause-and-effect relationship between the Atkins diet and health problems. In fact, until recently, there has been little research into the long-term effects of the Atkins diet. It would appear that more studies will be needed to fully examine the effects of the Atkins plan and other low-carbohydrate diets. According to a recent report from ABC News entitled "Is the Atkins Diet Dangerous?", experts suggest that additional randomized, long-term studies are needed.

According to another ABC news report, a new study published by the New England Journal of Medicine compared the weight loss of obese individuals on the Atkins diet versus traditional low-fat, low-calorie diets.

After one year, there was no weight difference between the groups. The Atkins group, though, did increase their HDL (the "good" cholesterol) levels. These results seem to suggest that the Atkins diet may not contribute to higher cholesterol levels even though the diet contains cholesterol-rich foods.

However, much of the medical community remains concerned about the increased levels of protein and fat consumed while following the Atkins plan. In addition to cholesteral levels and heart disease, they're also concerned about kidney function. An increased consumption of protein leads to an increase in ketones in the kidney. The increased level of ketones, or ketosis that occurs with the Atkins diet may be responsible for decreased kidney function. According to Harvard researchers, quoted in the PCRM study, individuals who consume large amounts of animal protein may be at risk for permanent loss of kidney function.

Regardless of the successful weight loss of people on the Atkins plan, doctors and nutritionists will continue to worry about the health effects of the diet. The PCRM Atkins Diet Alert suggests that carbohydrates are not necessarily responsible for weight gain. In fact, many people throughout Asia eat large amounts of carbohydrates and generally have lower body weights than Americans. Furthermore, many experts are quick to mention that carbohydrates are an essential part of the human diet.

In answer to this, Atkins supporters would point out that the Atkins plan limits carbohydrate intake, but does not eliminate it altogether. Although carbohydrate consumption is quite restricted during the "induction" and "ongoing weight loss" phases of the Atkins plan, progressively more amounts of carbohydrates, especially "good carbohydrates" like green, leafy vegetables and fruits, are allowed during the "pre-maintenance" and "lifetime maintenance" phases.

In the end, deciding to go on a diet, including the Atkins plan, is a personal decision. And, as is the case with any radical change in diet, it's a good idea to first discuss this with your physician.

For more information regarding the Atkins diet and related topics, check out the links on the following page.

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