well contrary to popular belief Dr. Atkins didn't die of a heart attack, nor was he obese at the time of his death, as was widely circulated.
I found a link
USATODAY.com - Statements on Atkins' death
it appears that he suffered a serious head injury and went into a coma, from which he didn't recover.
the report of obesity was based on a the fact that he had gained 60 or so pounds in weight due to water retention caused by organ failure.
he did apparently suffer from cardiomyopathy - which was caused by a viral infection, which may have complicated the head injury (although it does not explicitly say so in the article)
