Atkins, proponent of high-protein diet, dies at age of 72

NEW YORK -- Dr. Robert C. Atkins, the weight-loss guru whose low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet was adopted by millions of people despite concern over its potential dangers, died Thursday. He was 72.

Atkins died at the New York Weill-Cornell Medical Center after suffering a severe head injury April 8 when he fell on an icy sidewalk, said his spokesman, Richard Rothstein. He underwent surgery to remove a blood clot from his brain.

Atkins first advocated his unorthodox plan -- which emphasizes meat, eggs and cheese and discourages bread, rice and fruit -- in his 1972 book, "Dr. Atkins' Diet Revolution."

When the book was published, the medical establishment was promoting a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet. The American Medical Association dismissed the Atkins' diet as nutritional folly and Congress summoned him to Capitol Hill to defend the plan.

Labeling it "potentially dangerous," the AMA said the diet's scientific underpinning was "naive" and "biochemically incorrect." It scolded the book's publishers for promoting "bizarre concepts of nutrition and dieting."

Despite this, Atkins' books sold 15 million copies and his diet attracted millions of followers. His philosophy enjoyed a revival in the 1990s with "Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution," which spent five years on The New York Times best-seller list. His most recent book, "Atkins for Life," has been on the Times' best-seller list since its release in January.

This year, his approach was vindicated in part by the very medical community that derided him. In February, some half-dozen studies showed people on the Atkins diet lost weight without compromising their health. The studies showed that Atkins dieters' cardiovascular risk factors and overall cholesterol profiles changed for the better.

"He was a trailblazer and pioneer in the field of alternative medicine -- not only driving and questioning public health issues but driving policies and science, too," said Colette Heimowitz, director of research and education for the Atkins Center for Complementary Medicine in New York.

Heather Jackson, a St. Martin's Press editor who worked with Atkins on his latest book, said he did not consider himself a diet guru.

"He considered himself a doctor," she said. "He believed that the nutritional approach he recommended was the way people should be eating for good health."

In an interview published this month in Business 2.0 magazine, Atkins said he was able to deal with criticism because of his unflagging belief in the diet.

"I want to eradicate obesity and diabetes," Atkins said. "I believe God wants me to do that."

Criticism of the diet lingered for decades, with many arguing that it could affect kidney function, raise cholesterol levels and deprive the dieter of important nutrients. Atkins said no study showed that people with normal kidney function developed problems because of a high-protein diet, and he never gave in to his detractors.

A large new study now under way could settle questions about the diet's long-term effects.

On the Atkins diet, up to two-thirds of calories may come from fat -- more than double the usual recommendation, and violating what medical professionals have long believed about healthy eating. Carbohydrates are the foundation of a good diet, most say. Eating calorie-dense fat is what makes people fat, they say, and eating saturated fat is dangerous.

To Atkins, the key dietary villain in obesity are carbohydrates. He argued they make susceptible people pump out too much insulin, which in turn encourages them to put on fat.

Fat in foods can be a dieter's friend, Atkins said, in part because it quenches appetite and stops carbohydrate craving.

A graduate of Cornell University's medical school, Atkins first tried a low-carb diet in 1963 after reading about one in the Journal of the American Medical Association. He said he lost weight so easily he converted his fledgling New York cardiology practice into a diet and nutrition clinic.

In 1999, Atkins established the Robert C. Atkins Foundation to finance diet research. It has sponsored research at Duke University, the University of Connecticut and Harvard.

Atkins Nutritionals Inc., which sells diet foods and supplements for the Atkins Center, had more than $100 million in revenue last year, according to Business 2.0. Its consultant, Stuart Trager, said Atkins' work would continue.

Atkins was hospitalized for cardiac arrest a year ago, but he said it was related to an infection of the heart and not to his diet. His fall came last week.

Atkins is survived by his wife, Veronica, and his mother, Norma, of Palm Beach, Fla.

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On the Net:

Atkins Center for Complementary Medicine: http://atkinscenter.com