Since Dr. Atkins died in 2003, his company has released Dr. Atkins' New Diet Recommendations for those who want to follow the Atkins' diet. The company went bankrupt in 2005 and during restructuring of the company, the organization placed an emphasis on having people use its protein bars and other dietary items to support the traditional Atkins' diet. Atkins' new diet recommendations haven't changed much from the original plan that came out in the 1970s. It still promotes meat, cheese and fat and disallows much in the way of carbohydrates. The diet still emphasizes protein over carbohydrates. What the diet now adds, however, are nutritional protein bars and protein shakes to a diet which is loaded in fried meats and eggs. In some ways the Atkins' new diet recommendations aren't that much different from those recommendations given to weight trainers and others who want to bulk up. Since muscles are made of protein, the addition of protein to the diet is important. What isn't in the diet of weight trainers is the degree of fat allowed in the Atkins' diet. Most trainers who deal with weight training recommend a lower fat diet with the use of protein shakes or protein bars to supplement the diet. The Atkins' new diet recommendations include a food pyramid which is quite a bit different from the usual food pyramid out there from nutritionists that has the meat and fat group quite a bit near the top of the pyramid. According to nutritionists, the general recommendations involve using a food pyramid in which the fat and meat group are the least types of foods that should be consumed in a normal, healthy diet. The use of shakes and protein bars in the Atkins' new diet recommendations are a diversion away from the original recommendations that include food which is not processed very heavily and is cooked very little. The protein bars and the protein drinks are heavily processed, which doesn't make them very healthy on the whole. Plus a person can consume a great number of protein bars in a day, increasing the total caloric intake. In the Atkins' new diet plan, sugars are to be avoided as much as possible, while eggs, cheese and meat products are the primary focus of the diet. Meals are usually three times a day but now the protein shakes or protein bars can be used as snacks or for people on the run, such as at work or in the car. There has been a lot of criticism of the Atkins' new diet plan as there has been criticism of the entire program since Dr. Atkins' book came out in the 1970s. Most of the criticism has come from cardiologists who feel that the high fat, high protein intake promotes hyperlipidemia and heart attacks. Those who have high cholesterol or high triglycerides would potentially worsen their entire condition by consuming a diet so high in fat and in fatty meats.
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