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Dr. Robert Atkins |
In Conjunction With AOL
In AOL Live's "Odeon" Auditorium
Host: Dearest
Official Transcript OnlineHost: Power Surge menopause forum, and Thrive welcome Dr. Robert C. Atkins. Come discuss the benefits of natural healing through the use of herbs, vitamins, diet "The New Atkins Diet Revolution," exercise, and lifestyle as written about in his newest book, "The Vita-Nutrient Solution: Nature's Answers To Drugs." Dearest: Dr. Atkins, a very warm welcome to Power Surge and AOL Live. It's an honor to have you as a guest this evening. I've always been curious as to what the personal vita-nutrient protocol is of an internationally renowned nutritionist, such as yourself. Would you care to share your daily regimen with us? Dr. Robert Atkins: First of all, I'm very happy to have an opportunity to talk to all the people who are curious about what I've written. I change my vita-nutrient program according to what I'm trying to accomplish. However, I always make it a point to take my basic vitamin formula, which is called Basic Number 3, and to take my essential oils formula and to take considerable L-Carnitine and considerable CO enzyme Q10 and then I have a formula called Blood Sugar, which contains chromium and vanadium and all of the vita-nutrients that are useful in stabilizing blood sugar. Now, this week, I had an acute touch of arthritis in my instep and took an entire panoply of nutrients which erradicated the inflammation in a matter of two or three days. All the products that I mentioned are available through Atkins Nutritional Atkins Nutritional is 1-800-6-Atkins or the Atkins Center Web site Audience: Is your diet safe to use while breastfeeding a newborn? Or should I wait until she is weaned? Dr. Robert Atkins: The diet is quite safe for breastfeeding; however, weight loss will be painfully slow beca because of the hormones involved in supporting breastfeeding. Dearest: There are millions of documented cases of people following your Atkins Diet not only losing weight, but improving their heart health by lowering cholesterol and triglycerides and feeling generally healthier on your low carbohydrate diet -- why do you suppose your diet has been subject to so much criticism -- even now when it's being copied by diets like The Zone and Sugar Busters? Dr. Robert Atkins: Thank you for pointing out a very important truth. My diet is, however, not healthy for the food industry profits, nor is my newest book, Vita-Nutrient Solution healthy for the pharmaceutical industry's profit. Since these are the two major industries supporting the media, it has been unheard of for the past 25 years to get a word in support of my ideas from the media. Accordingly, the public will only hear the truth from word of mouth or word of internet. Dearest: Thank you, Dr. Atkins. Let's take another audience question. Audence: What is your advice about consumption of alcohol and good health Dr. Atkins? Dr. Robert Atkins: First of all, I do not like to generalize. I would rather individualize. Alcohol may be wonderful for the average citizen, but terrible for an alcoholic, but in general, a glass of red wine (which is preferrable to white wine health-wise) is an appropriate nightly drink. Dearest: I understand that your hope is that "vita-nutrients can and should replace pharmaceuticals." With more doctors prescribing vita-nutrients and more of us becoming enlightened about nutrition, the American public is spending a fortune on things our insurance coverage doesn't support. What can we as individuals do to effect changes? Dr. Robert Atkins: First of all, thank you for acknowledging the most important point of all which is that vita-nutrients already are being used to replace drugs at the Atkins Center in New York City and have been for over 20 years. And the patients' outcomes are clearly better. Perhaps the best strategy to accomplish the recognition of all of this by the insurance carrier would be to teach more doctors the wonders of vita-nutrient therapy and their patients' outcomes should convince the carriers that they spend far less money on hospitalizations when the doctors use vita-nutrients. Audience: Can you tell me what supplements I should buy for your 14 day induction (intro) diet? I've been on it for 6 days and lost 10 lb with no supplement. Dr. Robert Atkins: Sorry about the 6 days without supplements. You should have taken a powerful broad basic formula with 200 to 400 mcg of chromium and 3 or 4 essential oils capsules and I hope you do that quickly to catch up for the lost week. Dearest: Dr. Atkins, can you explain the principles of "ketosis" to those of us on your diet? Dr. Robert Atkins: There are two fuels which the brain, the muscles and the other organs may use to provide the energy that they need to function When carbohydrate is the primary fuel, it is delivered as glucose. When fat is the primary fuel, it is delivered as ketones. Being in ketosis simply means you are using your stored fat for the very reason that you accumulated it in the first place which is to serve as your alternate fuel. The best way to look at it is that people living off of carbohydrate are in glucosis. When these people are living off their fat stores they are in ketosis. Ketones are perfectly safe because they do not accumulate. The person has the same amount of ketones in his body after three months of dieting that he has after three days. Dearest: Are there any downsides to being in a state of "ketosis?" Dr. Robert Atkins: When an overweight person chooses to be in ketosis there are absolutely no downsides whatsoever. When, however, there is a wasting disease such as uncontrolled Type I diabetes, then and only then are ketones a sign of the abnormality. Audience: I have lost 22 lbs on the Atkins diet but now I find I'm bored with the menu. Can you suggest a cook book that will help? The only books I can find are low fat. Dr. Robert Atkins: First of all, I've been on the diet for 35 years and I've never had a boring meal. In addition to the recipes in New Diet Revolution, there are incredibly delicious recipes in the Dr. Atkins' Quick and Easy New Diet Cookbook written by my wife, Veronica. Then there are incredible products available through Atkins Nutritional. There are protein bars which taste like Mounds bars. They are delicious and they come in 4 flavors and there is shake mix which comes in two flavors which can be used to make chocolate or vanilla mousse with heavy cream. There is a bake mix allowing you to make pancakes, waffles, muffins and bread and still lose weight without going off the Atkins diet because all of them contain negligible carbohydrates. Dearest: As you know, Power Surge is a group for women in menopause. Can you share your treatment for coping with the hot flashes, anxiety, depression, palpitations, et al, associated with menopause as well as your feelings about hormone replacement therapy in general. Dr. Robert Atkins: I am very leary of using hormone replacement therapy because it has such an adverse effect on insulin and glucose metabolism and despite the hype it receives, it has been a disaster for people who tend to gain weight. Secondly, all of the hype saying that it would help your heart has been disproven in the August 8th issue of JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association). In the first study ever to be done in the true scientific manner of a matched controlled group, there were more heart deaths on the HRT group than in the placebo group (71 versus 58). The answer is a simple one: folic acid, the B vitamin, in doses of 40 to 60 milligrams, which means 40,000 to 60,000 mcg. Also, boron in doses of 12 to 18 milligrams should be used, and a natural progesterone cream is appropriate for administration through the skin such as Progest. For virtually every women with these complaints, it's nearly complete relif relief without requiring HRT. I think 400 units of vitamin E is also appropriate. Audience: Is this diet safe for teenagers? Dr. Robert Atkins: The diet is safe for every overweight human being from the age of 18 months to 100 years. What is not safe is being overweight and not being on carbohydrate restriction. Dearest: Dr. Atkins, you've made an enormous contribution to nutrition and the health of millions of people, yet when speaking with you recently, I couldn't help but sense your frustation regarding the lack of acceptance of vita-nutrients as the "heart of the medical practice." Can you tell us what we as individuals can do to help you effect these changes? Dr. Robert Atkins: I would love a grassroots movement with an embodiment. I would like to really see diet revolutionaries hold either physical meetings or meetings just like and stand up and be counted and let the politicians know how many of us there are who are looking for freedom of choice in matters affecting our health and the health of our loved ones. When the breakthrough is announced, it will first appear on the Atkins Center website . Meanwhile, if there's anyone who can get together a group of 20 or more individuals who share this conviction, contact my website next week. Audience: Is it possible to bring milk back into the Atkins Diet? Dr. Robert Atkins: If milk is the first choice for addition to the diet ahead of vegetables, nuts, seeds, melons and foods I think more appropriate, then there would be a place for it on the pre-maintenance and maintenance diets. But I am always disturbed that milk is basically lactose, a sugar. Dearest: I'm blown away by the results you've achieved with Pantethine in reducing LDL (bad cholesterol) and tryglycerides. Why don't doctors recommend this before putting people with cholesterol problems on dangerous medication? Dr. Robert Atkins: I agree that megadoses of Pantethine are single best lipid control agent on the planet. However, none of the 8 studies proving it have ever been even given a mention in any textbook on cardiology, and I am a cardiologist by training. Therefore, the average professor of cardiology does not even know that this B vitamin exists. Dearest: Could part of the problem, Dr. Atkins, be due to the fact that there's not much nutrition education in medical schools? Dr. Robert Atkins: The fact that there is virtually no nutrition education in medical school is well-known. So too is it well-known that the pharmaceutical industry supports medical education. So too is it well known that most doctors only have one therapeutic option -- drugs. Audience: How does your diet fit with the ADA diet? Dr. Robert Atkins: Of course it is not clear whether we're talking about American Dietetic or American diabetic; however they both are the same -- high in carbohydrates and loaded with white flour. White flour is a known junk food and it should not be the basis of anyone's diet. The Atkins diet is an extremely low carbohydrate weight loss diet which, because it is so low in carbohydrate provides automatic weight loss and does not require eating less than your appetite dictates Dearest: Dr. Atkins, a worst-case scenario: the cupboard where you keep your vita-nutrients is threatened by fire. You have only enough time to grab three bottles of vitamins/herbs. Which three would you reach for? Dr. Robert Atkins: Basic Essential Oils, CO Q 10 and the blood sugar formula Audience: I take Isoptin for blood pressure and cannot seem to generate ketone. Is this medication stopping me? What is my alternative? Dr. Robert Atkins: Most pharmaceuticals interfere with the weight loss project. The one you mention is not notorious for doing so, therefore, it is more probable that either your carbohydrate intake is too high or your fat intake is too low. Because ketones are a function of the fat to carbohydrate ratio. Audience: What is the difference between chromium and chromiun picolinate? Dr. Robert Atkins: Chromium picolinate is simply the chromium salt with the greatest bio-availability. Dearest: Dr. Atkins, we'll take another question from the audience Audience: What else should I supplement the diet with, (I am taking Dieter's Advantage, Essential oils, Basic 3 and 1000 mg of Carnitine)? Dr. Robert Atkins: Weight loss will be facilitated by higher doses of Carnitine, 2000 to 3000 mg and a 150 mg of CO Q 10. Dearest: Dr. Atkins, thank you for spending this time with us in Power Surge, (keyword: ages and stages and and Power Surge on the Web, Thrive and AOL Live. Anyone interested in vita-nutrients for good health should read, "Dr. Atkins Vita-Nutrient Solution: Nature's Answer To Drugs" (Simon & Schuster). To lose weight and simultaneously improve your health, get a copy of "Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution." Dr. Atkins hosts his own nationally syndicated radio show, "Your Health Choices on WEVD from noon to 1 PM (ET). You'll find more information about it on The Atkins Center Web site . For more information about The Atkins Center for Complementary Medicine (in NYC) and Dr. Atkins product line of vita-nutrients, visit Dr. Atkins Web site or call 1-800-6-ATKINS. But, most importantly, a transcript of this auditorium will be available in the Power Surge Web -Library . Print it out and at your next visit, when your doctor puts a prescription in your hand, put this transcript in his :) Thank you, again, Dr. Atkins, for everything you've done -- and goodnight everyone :) Dr. Robert Atkins: Thank you for having me. Disclaimer: Every guest in Power Surge is a highly respected professional whose opinions are his/her own. An appearance in Power Surge does not constitute an endorsement of a guest's views. None of these transcripts may be reprinted or reproduced without the express permission of Power Surge™ and the respective guest. Read other transcripts by returning to the Library. Dearest aka Alice Stamm Power Surge Founder, Facilitator, Host Copyright©1994-2012 by Power Surge. All Rights Reserved.