Current opinion in clinical nutrition and metabolic care
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Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care · Jul 2004
ReviewCarbohydrate and weight control: where do we stand?
The Atkins diet has been criticized and vilified by much of the scientific community since it was proposed 30 years ago, because it challenged nutritional recommendations and dietary guidelines for a healthy diet. However, in spite of such recommendations the prevalence of obesity continues to rise. The present review evaluates recent scientific evidence and attempts to reach consensus on the confusion of weight-reducing diets. ⋯ Low-carbohydrate, Atkins-type diets have been demonstrated to have positive effects on weight loss and biomarkers of cardiovascular risk, which has prompted some researchers to question the validity of present-day dietary guidelines. Although evidence is accumulating in their favour, the safety and efficacy of low-carbohydrate, high-protein diets needs further long-term verification.