Blood

[swestrup]

I just got a call from my doctor. Since I had to go see her to have her endorse my passport application, I had her check my blood. Folks have been saying how bad Atkins is for the cholesterol, and while *I* hadn't been able to find any medical literature that pointed that out, I thought it better to be safe than sorry.

I just got back my results. My last blood work (before I was on Atkins) said I had perfectly normal cholesterol. Since then, it has gone up marginally but is still in the 'healthy' range. The proportions have changed a bit though. The Bad Cholesterol has dropped while the good has climbed. The doctor says that first is probably due to me losing a lot of weight, while the second is probably due to me losing my job (making me more sedentary).

There's no evidence that the Atkins has had much of an effect on my cholesterol levels, good or bad, and all my other readings -- blood sugar, liver, kidney and thyroid function -- all are perfectly normal. I hope that helps to allay any fears folks have had about what my diet is doing to my health.

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/_grey_knight/]

That is also good news - two today, you are on a roll!

(Never thought there would be a kidney problem, there has been no documentation showing that too much protein will adversely affect the human body. Now, lack of fiber is a whole 'nother topic!)

[swestrup]

Yeah. Early on in Atkins (during induction), its often necessary to take a fiber supplement, but after you start eating more varied foods, the need goes away.

[xipetotec.livejournal.com]

Well that's the problem is that people think induction IS the Atkins diet. They think you're supposed to sit there and eat a pound of bacon and cheese for every meal and maybe a steak for dessert. They don't realize that Dr. Atkins also recommended lots of vegetables and salads and even some berries and sugar free whip cream for dessert once you're on maintenance!

[pphaneuf.livejournal.com]

Too much proteins isn't really a problem, I'd think (well, within some reasonable limits, I suppose). A problem some persons have had with Atkins is that the low-carb diet favours a different cellular pathway to getting ATP, which, unlike the usual pathway, generates acetone as a by-product.

Some people have problem with even small amounts of acetone in their system, although most people can deal.

I've heard that some people push the diet to "no carbs" rather than "low carbs", and you could actually smell the acetone in their breath. Sounds charming, but hey, they seem to survive too (although I'd rather have as little acetone in my body as possible, thank you very much!).