Consider this. Cholesterol levels will go down as a result of any weight loss period. You could be drinking motor oil to lose weight and your cholesterol will go down so don’t think for a second Atkins is healthy.

A recent study presented at the American Heart Association, corrected for this cholesterol “weight loss” lowering effect. This study involved 18 people, each of whom were put on three different diets for month, and they were carefully monitored so they had no weight loss. The three diets were: Atkins with 50% of calories as fat, South Beach with 30% calories as fat and the Ornish diet with 10% fat.

Atkins was decidedly the worst diet. LDL or bad cholesterol went up by 7% on Atkins, while it decreased by 7% on the Ornish diet and by 10% on the South Beach diet. Not only that, but markers for inflammation went up by 30-45% on the Atkins diet whereas on the South Beach and Ornish diets they were either unchanged or decrease by 15-20%. Inflammation is a marker for accelerated aging and high levels of inflammation are associated with an increased risk of cancer, stroke, heart disease, dementia to name just a few chronic diseases that plague Western society.

Atkins has so many devotees because it’s easy to follow in our overly processed food world. It will result in weight loss because by cutting out refined carbs such as white flour products (cakes, cookies, breads etc) you’re essentially cutting calories. However by consuming a diet high in animal protein that’s low in fruits and veggies you’re putting your health at risk. The cholesterol lowering effect of Atkins is an illusion. It’s due to weight loss, not the diet. When you factor the weight loss out, Atkins causes your cholesterol and inflammatory markers to go up.

For those of you who may not remember, Rocco got his “break” with the reality TV series “The Restaurant.” The series didn’t last too long, and the food didn’t frankly look that good, but Rocco still makes the rounds on QVC, the Food Network and various morning shows.

As many of you know, much of the initial weight loss on Atkins is water loss because as you go into ketosis you deplete glycogen stores which hold on to water. After that, Atkins does result in “real” weight loss. Personally I believe Atkins is easier to follow than most diets, because in our overly processed world it’s easy to “throw out the bun and eat the burger.” Or in Rocco’s case throw out the pasta. Finding veggie and fruit options at fast food restaurants for instance, is a lot harder proposition. By cutting out the carbs (refined carbs) you are essentially cutting out some of the most calorie dense foods (cakes, breads, cookies etc) in the American diet. So what a lot of people don’t realize is that on an Atkins diet you are essentially cutting back on calories. The problem with Atkins is that although it may be easier to follow, it’s too high in animal protein which causes cancer, heart disease, and osteoporosis. Interestingly, although many people report some initial success with the diet, only 1% of people who have on average lost 70 lbs and kept it off for 6 years report using an Atkins style diet.

As for Rocco, never trust a skinny chef:)

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The Atkins diet also raised HDL (good cholesterol) and lowered triglycerides more than the other diets. The Ornish and Learn diets were the best at lowering LDL (bad cholesterol). Although the Atkins diet raised LDL initially, this effect was not statistically significant at 12 months. It’s not surprising participants were able to lose more weight with Atkins given that it is easier to follow than the others. Think about trying to adhere to the Ornish diet with the lack of vegetarian options on restaurant menus, our fast food culture and the overwhelming presence of processed foods found at your local supermarket.

While Atkins came out on top in this study, it did not measure any long term health consequences. Before you consider loading up on steak and heavy cream consider the findings of the China-Oxford-Cornell Diet and Health Project, a 20 year study on health and nutrition in China. Higher animal protein consumption was directly correlated with increasing rates of heart disease, osteoporosis and cancer.