Robert Atkins (nutritionist)

Robert Atkins
Born	Robert Coleman Atkins (1930-10-17)October 17, 1930 Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
Died	April 17, 2003(2003-04-17) (aged 72) New York City, New York, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Michigan, Ann Arbor Cornell University
Occupation	Internal medicine Cardiology
Years active	43
Organization	Atkins Nutritionals
Known for	Atkins diet
Notable work(s)	Dr. Atkins' Diet Revolution (1972) Dr. Atkins' Superenergy Diet (1977) Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution (1999)
Spouse(s)	Veronica Atkins (1986–2003)

Robert Coleman Atkins (October 17, 1930 – April 17, 2003) was an American physician and cardiologist, best known for the "Atkins Nutritional Approach", or "Atkins Diet", a popular but controversial way of eating that requires close control of carbohydrate consumption, emphasizing protein and fat as the primary sources of dietary calories in addition to a controlled number of carbohydrates from vegetables. Although the success of Atkins' diet plan, weightloss books, and lifestyle company, Atkins Nutritionals, led Time to name the doctor one of the ten most influential people in 2002,^[1], and although numerous controlled, peer-reviewed scientific studies of the diet, beginning in the 1950s, have found the diet to work better than the low-fat, calorie-counting regimen, Atkins's critics in the medical and fitness communities continue to criticize his approach to weight loss.

Early life

Atkins was born in Columbus, Ohio, the son of Eugene and Norma (Tuckerman) Atkins. At the age of twelve, his family moved to Dayton, Ohio, where his father owned several restaurants. As a young teen, Atkins held various jobs, including a position selling shoes at the age of 14 and a later gig on a local radio show. Upon graduating from the University of Michigan in 1951, Atkins had thoughts of becoming a comedian and spent the summer as a waiter and entertainer at various resorts in the Adirondacks.^[2]

He soon decided to pursue a career in medicine, however, and received a medical degree at Cornell University Medical College (now known as Weill Cornell Medical College) in 1955. After completing an internship at Strong Hospital in Rochester, New York and finishing his residency in cardiology and internal medicine at hospitals affiliated with Columbia University, Dr. Atkins specialized in cardiology and complementary medicine, and went on to open a private practice on the Upper East Side of New York City in 1959.^[3] He married his wife Veronica when he was 56.^[4]

Diet

During the early years of his medical practice, stress and poor eating habits led Atkins to gain a considerable amount of weight. In 1963, at a weight of 224 pounds (100 kg), he decided to go on a restrictive diet based on the research of Dr. Alfred W. Pennington, who recommended removing all starch and sugar from meals. The article exploring the study of Pennington's work, titled "A New Concept in the Treatment of Obesity", was published in the October 1963 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association by Edgar S. Gordon, Marshall Goldberg, and Grace J. Chosy, and advocated for the complete elimination of sugar from the diet and a marked increase in both fat and protein.^[2] Atkins found immediate and lasting success on the plan, and began advertising its effects to his patients. While working as a medical consultant for AT&T, he even managed to help 65 patients there reach their ideal weight with his low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diet program.^[5]

In 1965, Atkins appeared on The Tonight Show to promote his weight loss plan and the diet he recommended was subsequently published in Vogue in 1970.^[6] The popularity of the plan with the magazine's female readership caused a surge in popularity for both Atkins and the magazine, and his dietary regimen was known for many years as simply "The Vogue Diet". Atkins finally published his meal plans along with his own findings based on patient research in the book Dr. Atkins' Diet Revolution in 1972.^[3] The book became an instant bestseller selling in millions of copies and led Atkins to release a series of cookbooks, health guides, and diet products in the coming decades.^[4]

The success of Atkins' commercial diet products also allowed the doctor to open the "Atkins Center for Complementary Medicine" in Manhattan, a holistic medicine center advocating alternative medicine practices. By the early 1990s, the center employed 87 people,^[7] and reported treating more than 50,000 patients.^[8] In 1998, Atkins also founded the nutrition and supplements company Atkins Nutritionals to promote his high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet, and the brand grew to include not only diet-controlled carbohydrate, low-glycemic food products, but also a variety of lifestyle items that generated a revenue of over $100 million.^[9][10] By this time, Atkins had revised his approach to allow for more flexibility and variety in the weight loss plan and had published Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution in 1992, which again became a bestseller selling more than 15 million copies nationwide.^[2]

Controversy

In his dieting approach, Atkins suggests that the "carbohydrate is the bad guy", and through extensive research, he claimed that it caused the body to overproduce the hormone insulin, a condition called hyperinsulinism,^[11] which metabolizes blood glucose and thus makes people feel hungry.^[4] Many doctors and nutritionists decry this explanation as an oversimplification of the metabolic processes, however, and argue that Atkins' claims that human beings did not evolve to properly digest carbohydrate are unsubstantiated, particularly because, they claim, the human diet has relied on carbohydrates to supply energy for thousands of years, with meat and dairy consumption being only sporadic.^[12] Further, they discredit Atkins' notion of "hyperinsulinism", claiming that the state he describes is better known as type 2 diabetes, a disease that is brought about by obesity and not being the root cause of it.^[12]

Critics also pointed out the potential for long-term health problems associated with a diet low in fiber due to the program's restrictions on fruits and vegetables in the early weight loss stages. A balanced diet, they argued, should not require a person to supplement its meals with vitamins and other supplements.^[4][12] Atkins admitted that he could not fully explain the remarkable weight loss achieved by those who followed his eating plan, and he never published his conclusions in a peer-reviewed medical journal. Other nutritionists studying the effects of low-carb dieting overall suggest that the extreme weight loss might be unrelated to the restriction of carbohydrate and is instead related to the natural calorie restriction that comes with the feeling of increased satiety in a high-fat diet.^[12]

Despite the obvious criticism however, Atkins' work inspired a whole new tendency in dietetics with many other companies releasing low-carb diets and low-carb foods as well.^[13]

Heart attack

Atkins suffered a cardiac arrest in April 2002, leading many of his critics to point to this episode as proof of the inherent dangers in the consumption of high levels of saturated fat associated with the Atkins diet. In numerous interviews, however, Atkins stated that his heart attack was not the result of poor diet, but was rather caused by a chronic infection.^[9] Atkins' personal physician and cardiologist, Dr. Patrick Fratellone, confirmed this assertion, saying "We have been treating this condition, cardiomyopathy, for almost two years. Clearly, [Atkins'] own nutritional protocols have left him, at the age of 71, with an extraordinarily healthy cardiovascular system". According to reports on CNN at the time of Atkins' convalescence, Dr. Clyde Yancy, a cardiologist at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and a member of the American Heart Association's national board of directors reported that "despite the obvious irony, I believe there is a total disconnect between [Atkins'] cardiac arrest and the health approach he popularizes".^[14] Atkins was obese while alive, estimated at 40 to 60 pounds overweight during later years of his life, had a history of congestive heart failure, and weighed 258 pounds at the time of his death ^[15].

Death

On April 8, 2003, at age 72, a day after a major snowstorm in New York, Atkins slipped on an icy pavement, suffering severe head trauma. He spent nine days in intensive care before dying on April 17, 2003, from complications from his head injury.^[16] Atkins' work inspired a whole new tendency in dietetics, and many companies released low-carb diets and low-carb foods.^[13] After his death the popularity of Atkins' diet waned, with the other low-carb diets eroding its market share, and questions being raised about its safety.^[13] In 2005, his company Atkins Nutritionals filed for bankruptcy. It was subsequently purchased by North Castle Partners in 2007 and switched its emphasis to low-carb snacks.^[13] In 2010 the company was acquired by Roark Capital Group.

Books

• Atkins, Robert C. The Essential Atkins for Life Kit: The Next Level Pan Macmillan, 2003. ISBN 0-330-43250-8
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' Diet Planner M. Evans and Company, 2003 | Vermilion, 2003. ISBN 0-09-189877-3
• Atkins, Robert C. Atkins for Life: The Next Level New York: St. Martin's Press, 2003. ISBN 1-4050-2110-1
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution New York: Avon Books, 2002. ISBN 0-06-001203-X. | Vermilion, 2003. ISBN 0-09-188948-0
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution M. Evans and Company, 2002.
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' Age-Defying Diet St. Martin's Press, 2001, 2002
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' Vita-Nutrient Solution: Nature's Answers to Drugs Simon and Schuster, 1997
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' Quick & Easy New Diet Cookbook Simon and Schuster, 1997
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' New Carbohydrate Gram Counter. New York: M. Evans and Company, 1996. ISBN 0-87131-815-6
• Atkins, Robert C, Gare, Fran Dr. Atkins' New Diet Cookbook M. Evans and Company, 1994 | Vermilion, 2003. ISBN 0-09-188946-4
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution M. Evans and Company, 1992
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' Health Revolution Houghton Mifflin, 1988
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' Nutrition Breakthrough Bantam, 1981
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' SuperEnergy Diet Cookbook Signet, 1978
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' SuperEnergy Diet Bantam, 1978
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' Diet Cookbook Bantam, 1974
• Atkins, Robert C. Dr. Atkins' Diet Revolution Bantam, 1972

Biography

• Rogak, Lisa (2005). Dr. Robert Atkins: the true story of the man behind the war on carbohydrates. Robson. p. 230. ISBN 1-86105-887-X. 

References

External links

• Atkins Nutritionals
• Larry King interview
• BBC Obituary: Dr Robert Atkins April 17, 2003
• Snopes on Doctor Atkins' death
• The Smoking Gun on Robert Atkins Medical Examination
• Robert Atkins at Find-A-Grave