Tyep2 and Atkins...good, bad, or ugly?

[luvdemtigers]

Im thinking about going back on Atkins because frankly, I lost a lot of weight on it a while back...Im wondering if any of you guys with type 2 have done Atkins and if it is safe for a type 2?

[Cinnabon]

I have been low carbing for a long time and I find that it is a great way to control blood sugars along with helping in weight loss.

[Saille]

I would suggest reading the South Beach diet book. Atkins pays very little heed to fats and cholesterol which is unwise for T2's with our increased risk for heart disease. And cutting carbs back to zero would most likely result in disasterous blood glucose numbers.

I've heard many T2's talking about doing the South Beach diet starting with phase 2, though.

[seacomp]

And cutting carbs back to zero would most likely result in disasterous blood glucose numbers. .

Like 85 to 90?

[Linda J717]

my dr said Atkins wasn't a GOOD idea...but that just "carb cutting" would be good. You do need to pay attention to fat content... sometimes losing alot of weight the wrong way is as bad as not losing.

[ontheway]

I was told by my dr. that Atkins was tough on the kidneys.
I, personally, have problems with the idea of cutting out complete food groups. Plus, I don't think that people can stick with it for the long haul....which is important.
I got on the South Beach diet. Also lowER carb, but everything in moderation. All my blood work improved and my blood sugar is under control. When I started my A1c was 7.4.....it is now 5.1! Cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure all improved greatly. :five:
I also have NO PROBLEM staying on it, and like I said before....to me that is key. Otherwise all you get is a yo-yo effect when you get tired of the diet.
I'm also type 2, and I started on Phase 1. You have to check your sugars often though. After 1 week, my BS was so under control that I already had to drop one of my meds because I was going low all the time.
BTW....both my sons went to Clemson!!
GO TIGERS!! :party:

[sydneya]

I've been told by many nurses, doctors, nutritionist that Adkins is very hard on the kidneys for me, a type 2. I do low carb but I will pay attention to fats and cholesterole, too. I feel that it is not safe for Type 2.:ciao:

[Ritehsedad]

Unfortunately, diabetes is not a one-size-fits-all. What works for me may not work for you. Watching your fat intake is definitely important, for example, the current standard for LDL ("bad" cholesterol) for Joe Public is 130, while for diabetics is 100. LDL particles in people with diabetes is unusually small and dense, which is especially harmful to blood vessels. Also, eating too much protein can be hard on the kidneys, especially with diabetics since one of our major complications is nephropathy, which can eventually lead to kidney failure.

So, if you go low carb, also watch your fat and protein intake. An alternative that's not mentioned above is the Glycemic Index. The theory there is that all carbs are not created equally. The more processed a carb is, the more rapidly the body converts it to glucose, and the larger the insulin response needed to deal with the surge of glucose is. The Glycemic index ranks foods (generally on a scale of 1-100) based on how fast they are metabolized, the lower the better. There's a lot to it, so you're best off looking at a book about it (such as "The Good Carb Cookbook, Secrets of Eating Low on the Glycemic Index" by Sandra Woodruff). In a nutshell, less processed is better (whole wheat better than highly processed white bread, al dente pasta better than overcooked pasta).

Hopefully this helps.

[Harold]

Im thinking about going back on Atkins because frankly, I lost a lot of weight on it a while back...Im wondering if any of you guys with type 2 have done Atkins and if it is safe for a type 2?
In another thread you said you recently started taking 2000mg of metformin and your bg's were running 200 to 280. There maybe two problems going on this diet at this time. Intially raising you lipids while your bg's are high might cause some kidney damage. This would depend on how fast this diet lowers your bg's and wether you also have high blood pressure. The other problem would be how you react to the diet while taking metformin. You may find the extra fats increase the side effects, and when the metformin does kick in you may find yourself going low very fast. My own thoughts, on the side of caution, would be to lower your bg's first then slowly reduce your carbs versus jumping into it feet first all at once to give your body time to adjust. Monitor your bg's frequently when making changes to your diet and diabetes meds. Please keep us posted to how your doing and your experiences with this experiment.

[luvdemtigers]

I think that may be a great idea...I do need to get the BG under control first, I think. My Dr. just told me today that she will prescribe the Bayetta (sp) for me and that may help me to lose some weight and get the BG under control at the same time...this way I dont have to go on Atkins at all...We'll see, though. Going to get the Bayetta on tuesday so I will know more once I see the DR and learn more about it.

[maxnew40]

My Endo recommended the South Beach Diet. I have been doing the south beach for almost a week and have noticed a big improvement in my BG. I was typically 160 - 190 in the morning now I am usually 140 or below. Don't know about weight loss I am doing this for my blood sugar numbers.

Max

[MYDEAR]

i been wanting to try the south beach diet. i did atkins a couple of yrs ago and lost a lot of weight, but your right it's very hard to stay on it. maybe SB is the answer