The low carb diet revolution lasted a bit longer than the New Coke.
But Coca Cola quickly rebounded and thrived.
It may not be as easy for Atkins Nutritionals, which is seeking bankruptcy protection as the signs of its diet revolution lay in tatters in the form of clearance sales on low carb foods.
And if you hear a huge sigh of relief, its probably from cows, pigs, lambs (and perhaps even cats and dogs) since the diet encouraged its participations to pig out (no pun intended) on meat almost until they plotzed.
Are you surprised Atkins has problems? Why do you THINK they call “fad diets” fad diets?? USA Today reports:
News that Atkins Nutritionals is seeking bankruptcy-court protection has some nutrition experts sounding the death knell for the low-carb, meat-lovers’ diet — the hottest weight-loss craze of the past decade.
But others say that no matter what happens to the company founded by Robert Atkins, the late cardiologist’s vision of what the American diet should become has forever changed the nutritional landscape.
And the company says it’s business as usual for dieters. Colette Heimowitz, an Atkins spokeswoman, says the bankruptcy “will allow us to grow without the crushing debt. Day-to-day operations will continue.”
Critics say the once wildly popular plan — which slashes consumption of breads, pasta, potatoes, rice, cakes, cookies and some fruits and starchy vegetables while beefing up protein — is going the way of the grapefruit and cabbage-soup diets.
For months, there have been news reports that interest in the diet is waning as people move to more moderate variations such as the South Beach diet.
“The low-carb diet is on life support,” says registered dietitian Keith Ayoob at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, a longtime critic of the Atkins diet. “The bloom is off the low-carb rose. People got bored with it. After a while, they wanted to have an apple or a slice of bread.”
Reuters gives more details on why it’s probably time to stick a fork in the Atkins craze:
In its heyday, Atkins listed Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) among its backers and analysts predicted an initial public offering. Its trademark red “A” logo appeared on a range of packaged foods and was featured in advertising for Subway sandwich stores and the T.G.I. Friday’s restaurant chain.
The low-carb craze peaked in early 2004, when over 9 percent of U.S. adults claimed to be on such a diet, according to market research firm NPD Group. That figure declined to 2.2 percent last month.
“The low-carb trend has sort of died on the vine,” said Bob Goldin, executive vice president at Chicago-based food industry consulting firm Technomic Inc.
Atkins has said demand for its products began to slump at the end of 2004 as rival food companies, including heavyweights like Kraft Foods Inc. (KFT), flooded the market with everything from low-carb Oreo cookies to cereal.
At the same time, Atkins faced increased scrutiny by critics. In particular, the death of company founder Robert Atkins after a fall in April 2003 led to much negative publicity when reports claimed he had been overweight and suffered from a heart condition.
That certainly didn’t help. It was denied by Atkin’s family but news reports noted the millions that were at stake in it not being true, so perhaps the public just didn’t believe it (even if it wasn’t the cause of his death). But, mainly, fad diets come and go — and maybe it was just the time this one went.
Forbes’ Health Day News also notes another factor: yes, said Arlene Spark, associate professor of nutrition at Hunter College in New York City, people lost weight at first but in the LONG TERM some found found it was hard to keep the weight off
“You do lose a considerable amount of weight. It’s not a great way to lose it,” Spark said. “You lose very rapidly at the beginning. The first two weeks, if you can even stay on for two weeks, you lose an enormous amount of water..If you ask people how they’re doing six months later, they’re not doing so well [in terms of weight loss]…”
Critics also worried that the emphasis on foods high in saturated fats — such as red meat and cheese — would harm heart health down the line.
But other studies showed that the diet worked in the short term:
Low-carb dieters lost more weight at the end of six months than people on a low-fat diet. They also had lower levels of triglycerides — blood fats that can raise the risk of heart attack or stroke — and improved levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), the so-called “good” cholesterol, according to two studies published in the May 18, 2004, issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
After a year, people on the low-carb diet had better triglyceride and HDL levels than those on a conventional low-fat diet, although weight loss was similar between the two groups, the studies found.
In addition, Atkins’ ideas about a low-carb diet did gain respectability among experts. Even so:
But staunch critics said such short-term studies did not measure the potential long-term risk for heart disease, the nation’s top killer. Without solid evidence, no one really knows whether the Atkins approach can produce lasting weight loss without damaging the heart, they contended.
We can report one case in San Diego. TMV knows someone who was on the Atkins’ diet — and loved it. It could never be totally pinpointed as the cause of what happened, but this person suffered severe heart problems and a major operation. He survived, but his doctor put him on a strict, healthy, non-Atkins diet and ordered him to exercise regularly. He has since lost a lot of weight and is in good health.
In Great Britain, the Guardian has this tidbit that illustrate’s the diet’s problems:
A report published by the market analysts Mintel in October highlighted the high drop-out rate for low-carb diets.
Only 2.8% of those questioned by Mintel were currently on a low-carb regime such as the Atkins diet, while another 10% said they had followed one of the diets but had given up. Only 1% were willing to try them again.
In June, the Advertising Standards Authority called for an advert for the Atkins diet to be pulled because its claim that followers could “enjoy a healthier lifestyle” could not be proved.
ADDITIONAL READING:
Atkins Nutritionials
The Diet Channel on Atkins
Atkins Diet Alert (anti-Atkins)
Atkins Exposed
South Beach Diet Online
FAQ South Beach Diet
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.