Those of us who have had success on a low carb diet are often confused when we see so much resistance to this way of life. It is hard not to be confused when so many of us lose weight, control our blood sugar, reverse heart disease and more. Forum poster Advantagec recently put his feelings about the situation on the Active Low Carb Forum.
"LC provides an effective way for most people to lose weight and maintain the loss with relatively little effort or discomfort. There is plenty of evidence that it works. There is plenty of evidence showing that flour, sugar and starches are detrimental to health.
So why is LC not the gold standard of weight loss? Why does the recommended "balanced diet" still include loads of carbohydrates?
Money.
Who profits financially when someone buys an Atkins or Protein Power book for 25 cents or a few bucks, signs up on a free message board and then embarks on a new way of eating? Nobody makes any significant amount of money from it.
On the other hand, look at the money involved in WW, Nutrisystem, weight loss clinics, and weight loss surgery. How about the lobbies for sugar and HFCS? All of that is big money. For those with financial interests aligned with these companies or industries, ineffective weight loss efforts are the gift that keep on giving. When WW helps a 25 year old lose those 30 pounds they have gained a customer for life.
The financial interests of a relatively small number of people stand in the way of the health interests of a huge number of people. It's a shame."
My comment to his post?
"The breakfast cereal industry alone is worth billions. I think they will do anything to keep people hooked on their tasty poison."
10 comments:
let's not forget the pharmaceutical companies....
AMEN!
Nearly every industry is dependent on our gorging on crap. From the agri-chemical industry to the medical-chemical industry (both unbelievably huge), to many of the agri-industries themselves (sugar, corn), to most of the base food industries (soda, packaged foods), and most of the retail food industries (fast food, restaurants), to all of the people whose livelihoods indirectly depend on lots of people needing medical help. It's overwhelming and I sometimes think the idea that we are going to somehow work through that is just impossible. I can dream, I guess!
And also, people like cake and will justify ANYTHING to "eat it too"
yep yep. i was going to point out the money they make on diabetes, heart attacks, cholesterol meds...
but i was beat to it ;)
my friend who is off of insulin due to low carb must infuriate them :)
As a customer of WW, I gotta say that WW does't just boast the balanced diet regime. They have the Core plan, which consists solely of unprocessed foods. AKA low carb. But other than that I completely agree with this article.
Oh, golly, I'm not sure all this is correct. If low-carb diets really worked, there would be a big low-carb industry out there making big bucks.
Oh. Guess what? Low-carb does work. And there is a big low-carb industry.
Atkins was among the first big low-carb successes, but there have been many others. And even traditional diet product manufacturers like Slim-Fast now have low-carb products. I don't see any big conspiracy. The low-carb products are out there, and doing well.
YES low carb does work, but doctors, nutritionist and government health officials keep telling everyone how dangerous it is. Of course they are completely wrong.
As for this "big low carb industry", true low carb doesn't rely on pre-packaged foods. It relies on fresh, wholesome natural produce and meat. Sure there are companies trying to cash in on those who do low carb, but Atkin's recently went through bankruptcy.
It is hard not to see this as a conspiracy even though I am not a black-helicopter-radio-waves-in-my-fillings-tin-foil-hat-wearer on a usual basis.
Let's not forget the militant vegan fringe's complicity in all of this. They need to read a neat little book released a while back... I think it's called 'Origin of Species' by a one Charles Darwin. As the old joke goes; 'My ancestors didn't claw their way to the top of the food chain for me to have to eat tofu!'
This is the first LC book.
Martinis and Whipped Cream
Sidney Petrie
“Eat as much as you're eating now, eat well, eat even between meals” but cut out the carbohydrates was the advice in 1966 from a book that sold well into the next decade.
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