Low-carb packaged foods lead dieters astray

Low-carb packaged foods lead dieters astray
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...w-carbs11.html

Nanci Hellmich
USA Today
Dec. 11, 2003 12:00 AM

An explosion of low-carb foods designed for people on Atkins-type diets is
contributing to diet failure. Experts staffing the Atkins customer
information service are getting calls and questions online from disappointed
dieters who can't understand why they aren't losing weight. The problem, the
experts say: Dieters are eating too many of these new low-carb protein bars,
muffins and brownie mixes, which are low in carbohydrates but often high in
calories. It is a trend that's similar to problems dieters faced in the
1980s and 1990s with eating too much low-fat processed food.

The low-carb market is booming:

.. Nearly 500 new low-carb products have been introduced since 2001,
according to Global New Products Database in Chicago.

.. There are more than 2,000 of these products on the market, says Dean
Rotbart, editor of LowCarbiz, a trade newsletter.

.. Sales of these products are expected to pass $15 billion this year, he
says. And in 2004, that number may reach $30 billion.

The popularity is largely due to the diets like Atkins, which slashes carbs
(found in sweets, potatoes, pasta, some starchy vegetables and many fruits)
and the South Beach Diet, which trims them way back for the first two weeks
of the plan. Millions of people have either tried or are following low-carb
diets. Even more are watching their carbohydrates without following any
particular diet.

Atkins' customer-support team has received questions from dieters who were
not losing weight on the diet because they were eating too many low-carb
products and not following the program, says Colette Heimowitz, a
nutritionist for the Atkins companies. "They cannot sacrifice their
vegetables for low-carb products. The products were formulated to make the
lifestyle easier, not as a substitute for healthy eating habits."

Even patients in cardiologist Arthur Agatston's office in Miami Beach,
author of The South Beach Diet, have gotten tripped up by eating too many
low-carb, high-calorie products, says Marie Almon, a registered dietitian
who works in his practice.
The products can be "diet sabotages," Almon says. Some people think if the
products are low in carbs, they don't have any calories. But they do. One
woman on the diet was treating herself, twice a day, to a piece of low-carb
cheesecake, instead of the low-fat cheese and celery stick that the diet
recommends.

Bottom line: Calories count, so count calories!

(A phrase that I think was first penned by Wayne C.)

Fitday.com is free, as are others.

Dean S. Lautermilch© ²ºº³ wrote:
:: Low-carb packaged foods lead dieters astray
:: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...w-carbs11.html
::
:: Nanci Hellmich
:: USA Today
:: Dec. 11, 2003 12:00 AM
::
:: An explosion of low-carb foods designed for people on Atkins-type
:: diets is contributing to diet failure.

[...]

In article , "Roger Zoul"
wrote:

Bottom line: Calories count, so count calories!

(A phrase that I think was first penned by Wayne C.)

Fitday.com is free, as are others.

Dean S. Lautermilch© ²ºº³ wrote:
:: Low-carb packaged foods lead dieters astray
:: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...w-carbs11.html
::
:: Nanci Hellmich
:: USA Today
:: Dec. 11, 2003 12:00 AM
::
:: An explosion of low-carb foods designed for people on Atkins-type
:: diets is contributing to diet failure.

[...]



I'd also point out that you don't get the same nutrients from the
processed things as you do from just plain ol' food.

That said, I *do* use the bars, for breakfast on occasion, when I'm
short on time, and need to travel. That's an average of 1 bar per three
weeks at this point.

--
Nancy Howells (don't forget to switch it, and replace the to send mail).

Nancy Howells wrote:
:: In article , "Roger
:: Zoul" wrote:
::
::: Bottom line: Calories count, so count calories!

:: I'd also point out that you don't get the same nutrients from the
:: processed things as you do from just plain ol' food.
::
:: That said, I *do* use the bars, for breakfast on occasion, when I'm
:: short on time, and need to travel. That's an average of 1 bar per
:: three weeks at this point.

I use the bars and other stuff, too. But I always count them in my daily
allotment of calories. I also count all carbs -- I don't subtract the SA
carbs.

In article ,
Nancy Howells wrote:

In article , "Roger Zoul"
wrote:

Bottom line: Calories count, so count calories!

(A phrase that I think was first penned by Wayne C.)

Fitday.com is free, as are others.

Dean S. Lautermilch© ²ºº³ wrote:
:: Low-carb packaged foods lead dieters astray
:: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...w-carbs11.html
::
:: Nanci Hellmich
:: USA Today
:: Dec. 11, 2003 12:00 AM
::
:: An explosion of low-carb foods designed for people on Atkins-type
:: diets is contributing to diet failure.

[...]



I'd also point out that you don't get the same nutrients from the
processed things as you do from just plain ol' food.

That said, I *do* use the bars, for breakfast on occasion, when I'm
short on time, and need to travel. That's an average of 1 bar per three
weeks at this point.

There ya go then. You're using the products the way they're supposed to be
used, occasionally when you have time constraints, not as the basis for
your diet. I bet the people most likely to eat the "products" all the time
are those that previously lived off of fast food and vending machines and
want to lose weight without actually changing how they live. I myself had
some low-carb tortilla type chips from the vitamin/healthfood store
yesterday when I was pressed for time on the way to work, but since May
that is only the second time I've bought a low-carb packaged product and I
don't plan on doing it often for the following reasons:

These products are expensive.
They don't taste as good as naturally low-carb foods such as cheese and
nuts.
They're still junk food!!!

--
-Michelle Levin (Luna)
http://www.mindspring.com/~lunachick
http://www.mindspring.com/~designbyluna

Dean S. Lautermilch© ²ºº³ wrote:
Low-carb packaged foods lead dieters astray
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...w-carbs11.html

Nanci Hellmich
USA Today
Dec. 11, 2003 12:00 AM

An explosion of low-carb foods designed for people on
Atkins-type diets is contributing to diet failure. Experts
staffing the Atkins customer information service are getting
calls and questions online from disappointed dieters who
can't understand why they aren't losing weight. The problem,
the experts say: Dieters are eating too many of these new
low-carb protein bars, muffins and brownie mixes, which are
low in carbohydrates but often high in calories. It is a
trend that's similar to problems dieters faced in the 1980s
and 1990s with eating too much low-fat processed food.

The low-carb market is booming:

. Nearly 500 new low-carb products have been introduced since
2001, according to Global New Products Database in Chicago.

. There are more than 2,000 of these products on the market,
says Dean Rotbart, editor of LowCarbiz, a trade newsletter.

. Sales of these products are expected to pass $15 billion
this year, he says. And in 2004, that number may reach $30
billion.

The popularity is largely due to the diets like Atkins, which
slashes carbs (found in sweets, potatoes, pasta, some starchy
vegetables and many fruits) and the South Beach Diet, which
trims them way back for the first two weeks of the plan.
Millions of people have either tried or are following
low-carb diets. Even more are watching their carbohydrates
without following any particular diet.

Atkins' customer-support team has received questions from
dieters who were not losing weight on the diet because they
were eating too many low-carb products and not following the
program, says Colette Heimowitz, a nutritionist for the
Atkins companies. "They cannot sacrifice their vegetables for
low-carb products. The products were formulated to make the
lifestyle easier, not as a substitute for healthy eating
habits."

Even patients in cardiologist Arthur Agatston's office in
Miami Beach, author of The South Beach Diet, have gotten
tripped up by eating too many low-carb, high-calorie
products, says Marie Almon, a registered dietitian who works
in his practice.
The products can be "diet sabotages," Almon says. Some people
think if the products are low in carbs, they don't have any
calories. But they do. One woman on the diet was treating
herself, twice a day, to a piece of low-carb cheesecake,
instead of the low-fat cheese and celery stick that the diet
recommends.

Goes to show... most people see low carb on the label and get
stupid and forget to read the rest of the label.

Also, as far as I know there is not standard for being low carb.
If a food normally contains 50 carbs per serving, and I reduce
it to 25 per serving, I can likely call that low carb and charge
twice as much for it, I believe P.T. Barnum had a quote that
fit, "Theirs a sucker born every minute." or something to that
effect.

LOL BJ

Roger Zoul wrote:
Bottom line: Calories count, so count calories!
(A phrase that I think was first penned by Wayne C.)

Or as I like to say: lowcarb junk food is still junk food.

--
jamie )

"There's a seeker born every minute."

Too bad the article doesn't also mention that the Atkins Nutritionals
decision to pretend that sugar alcohol carbs aren't carbs means that most of
the "low carb" foods aren't low carb by any stretch of the imagination. I
mean, folks, if the 17 grams in an Atkins Endulge bar makes it low carb,
then regular bread is low carb, too.

-- Jenny

Cut the carbs to respond to my new email address!
New photo: http://www.geocities.com/jenny_the_bean/jennypics.htm
Weight: 168.5/137
Diabetes Type II diagnosed 8/1998 -
HBa1c 5.2 10/03
Low Carb 9/1998 - 8/2001 and 11/10/02 - Now

http://www.geocities.com/jenny_the_bean
How to calculate your need for protein * How much people really lose each
month * Water Weight Gain & Loss * The "Two Gram Cure" for Hunger Cravings
* Characteristics of Successful Dieters * Indispensible Low Carb Treats *
Should You Count that Low Impact Carb? * Curing Ketobreath * Exercise
Starting from Zero * Do Starch Blockers Work? * NEW! Why the Low Carb Diet
is Great for Diabetes * NEW! Low Carb Strategies for People with Diabetes


"Dean S. Lautermilch© ²ºº³" wrote in message
...
Low-carb packaged foods lead dieters astray
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...w-carbs11.html

Nanci Hellmich
USA Today
Dec. 11, 2003 12:00 AM

An explosion of low-carb foods designed for people on Atkins-type diets is
contributing to diet failure. Experts staffing the Atkins customer
information service are getting calls and questions online from
disappointed
dieters who can't understand why they aren't losing weight. The problem,
the
experts say: Dieters are eating too many of these new low-carb protein
bars,
muffins and brownie mixes, which are low in carbohydrates but often high
in
calories. It is a trend that's similar to problems dieters faced in the
1980s and 1990s with eating too much low-fat processed food.

The low-carb market is booming:

. Nearly 500 new low-carb products have been introduced since 2001,
according to Global New Products Database in Chicago.

. There are more than 2,000 of these products on the market, says Dean
Rotbart, editor of LowCarbiz, a trade newsletter.

. Sales of these products are expected to pass $15 billion this year, he
says. And in 2004, that number may reach $30 billion.

The popularity is largely due to the diets like Atkins, which slashes
carbs
(found in sweets, potatoes, pasta, some starchy vegetables and many
fruits)
and the South Beach Diet, which trims them way back for the first two
weeks
of the plan. Millions of people have either tried or are following
low-carb
diets. Even more are watching their carbohydrates without following any
particular diet.

Atkins' customer-support team has received questions from dieters who were
not losing weight on the diet because they were eating too many low-carb
products and not following the program, says Colette Heimowitz, a
nutritionist for the Atkins companies. "They cannot sacrifice their
vegetables for low-carb products. The products were formulated to make the
lifestyle easier, not as a substitute for healthy eating habits."

Even patients in cardiologist Arthur Agatston's office in Miami Beach,
author of The South Beach Diet, have gotten tripped up by eating too many
low-carb, high-calorie products, says Marie Almon, a registered dietitian
who works in his practice.
The products can be "diet sabotages," Almon says. Some people think if the
products are low in carbs, they don't have any calories. But they do. One
woman on the diet was treating herself, twice a day, to a piece of
low-carb
cheesecake, instead of the low-fat cheese and celery stick that the diet
recommends.

"Jenny" wrote in message

Too bad the article doesn't also mention that the Atkins Nutritionals
decision to pretend that sugar alcohol carbs aren't carbs means that
most of the "low carb" foods aren't low carb by any stretch of the
imagination. I mean, folks, if the 17 grams in an Atkins Endulge bar
makes it low carb, then regular bread is low carb, too.

Give it a rest already. Atkins isn't the only one who lists out net
carbs, nor are they the first one either. None of the manufacturers
'pretend that sugar alcohol carbs aren't carbs'-- they make the claim
that sugar alcohols don't affect the blood sugar the same way as real
sugar does. And you know, they're right. The only one that comes close
to acting like real sugar in the blood **in some people** is maltitol
combined with chocolate. All sugar alcohols are not the same. Proven
in the link Carmen provided and you snatched up and repost to bolster
your prejudice, only it doesn't say what you want it to say.

At no time has any lowcarb manufacturer ever been under the obligation
to make "foods safe for Jenny" -- lowcarb does not equal diabetic safe
(or even Jenny safe) and never has. Childish resentment at a diet
business because you have be responsible for your own disease instead of
being coddled is sad and ugly. Grow up.

In article , "Roger Zoul"
wrote:

Nancy Howells wrote:
:: In article , "Roger
:: Zoul" wrote:
::
::: Bottom line: Calories count, so count calories!

:: I'd also point out that you don't get the same nutrients from the
:: processed things as you do from just plain ol' food.
::
:: That said, I *do* use the bars, for breakfast on occasion, when I'm
:: short on time, and need to travel. That's an average of 1 bar per
:: three weeks at this point.

I use the bars and other stuff, too. But I always count them in my daily
allotment of calories. I also count all carbs -- I don't subtract the SA
carbs.



Me, too, both.

--
Nancy Howells (don't forget to switch it, and replace the to send mail).