Here One Day, Gone the Next

For a few brief months, it was low carb nirvana out there. Lots of big name companies poured money into R&D to crank out reduced carb products of every imaginable type, from cheese puffs to bread. But as suddenly as many of these entities had gotten into the field, they just as quickly got back out.

I'm sure they concluded the market demand just wasn't as strong as they hoped, but they were wrong. Too bad they didn't consult with dedicated low carbers before launching their products. We could have helped them avoid several fatal mistakes. We could have told them:

1. If you're going to create a low carb product, it had better really be low carb. I'd rather go without bread than have a small, mediocre piece that costs me 9 grams.

2. Don't try to "mainstream" your products. I'm not going to troll down the chips aisle, looking at every bag in the hope that one will have the magic "low carb" words on it. Since I started eating this way five years ago, I've become a perimeter shopper. Other than cooking oil, vinegars and a few other items that are typically buried in the middle of aisles, I find what I need on the outer aisles -- meat, vegetables, fruit, eggs, cheese. I have no desire to immerse myself in full strength cake and brownie mixes in the hope that a low carb version would lurk nearby. Conclusion: If I don't see your product, I'm not going to be able to buy it. Put low carb products on the perimeter, grouped together.

Before their products could find an audience, they pulled the plug, wrongly concluding the products would not succeed. Then, they scurried back to the lab to make still more varieties of low fat tripe. Their loss, our loss. So stupid.

How would you rather spend your money?
When people hear that I follow a low carb diet, they often remark, "It's too expensive. I can't afford to buy the kinds of foods you need to eat."

It's all about choices. Choosing to be obese carries with it its own special costs that often take the form of more frequent doctor visits and more prescription medicine. For some, it may mean a breathing machine to combat the effects of sleep apnea. Even clothes cost more in the bigger sizes, partly because there's more fabric, but perhaps also because sellers know the larger customer doesn't have much choice.

My family medical history isn't all that rosy. My dad had a quintuple bypass 8 years ago and suffers from high triglycerides. He has to work hard to keep his cholesterol in check. My mom has high blood pressure. My older sister is on cholesterol medication. Several of us are plagued with hypoglycemia. As I get ready to turn 50, however, I'm on no medication for such ills. My blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose levels and triglycerides all look good after five years of low carbing, and there are plenty of others who have been able to say goodbye to various prescription meds after they've shed weight by reducing carb consumption.

I believe the low carb lifestyle can be lived economically, but even if it couldn't, I would much rather invest in my health with wise food choices, than pay the price of conditions and diseases caused by obseity.

Cancel the funeral services for Low Carb!
Some members of the popular press think it's time to say the last rites for the low carb way of life. Not so fast, chumps. Those of us who have shed weight, gained energy and improved our lives (and our blood chemistry) by shunning sugar and counting carbs are not about to re-embrace the low fat or low calorie regimes of the past that left us feeling cranky, deprived, and chubby.

When I first went low carb five years ago, there were so few choices, so few products. I wasted a lot of money on recipes that bombed badly and yearned for some of the foods that would allow me to continue making some of my traditional favorites. Now, there are yummy tortilla chips, great pasta (we used Dreamfields last night to make mac and cheese as a side dish), wonderful breads, marshmallow dip, ice cream, heavenly chocolates. In the old days, it was common (but unwise) for many people to do low carb for a few days, then "splurge" on other foods. It's hard to even be tempted to stray these days when it's possible to whip up a low carb creme brulee, or make a dirt cake in a clay pot using ground low-carb sandwich cookies, fresh whipped creme, CarbWatchers chocolate cake, and some sugar-free chocolate pudding or mousse made with part cream, part water.

When friends and colleagues come over for a meal, their response to the fabulous feast is invariably "This CAN'T be on your diet" or "This can't be diet food" as they enjoy the spaghetti squash carbonara, tortilla pizzas, chocolate souffle. Actually, that's precisely what it is. The simple truth is that low carb, when done right, can be delectable, delightful, and pleasing to both the eye and palate.

If you're stuck in the "meat, fish, chicken and egg rut," crawl out and join us at our virtual table where we practice low carb the way Dr. Atkins intended -- as the diet of kings!