Beef v bagel in war of diets

It has been months since Tina Moore last bit into a bagel or a slice of toast. "Protein is good. Carbs are bad," says 41-year-old Moore, who altered her diet five years ago in a bid to lose weight.

Moore, the owner of a Kansas hair salon, is one of the millions worldwide seen as devoted followers of diet guru Robert Atkins, who recommends eating protein for those who want to rid themselves of unwanted weight and keep the pounds off.

The hamburger patty is good, the hamburger bun bad, according to the teachings of Dr Atkins, who has turned his philosophies into a dieting revolution, starting with his first book, Dr Atkins Diet Revolution, in 1972.

Atkins books - his latest, Atkins for Life, was published this year - routinely top best-seller lists. However, the popularity of Atkins' eating advice is fraying the nerves of some food companies who rely on the consumer appetite for carbohydrate-laden foods such as pastas, pizzas, cakes, cookies and cereals.

They claim Atkins is falsely disparaging food groups that serve as a foundation for Western eating - and that by teaching people to severely limit the use of flour-based products, Atkins is eating into sales of some bread and cereal products.

"Our industry has to do something, and soon. It is starting to become a mainstream belief that carbohydrates are bad," said Judi Adams, director of the Wheat Foods Council, a consortium of industry players that includes ConAgra, General Mills and Kellogg.

Part of the consortium's push will be in Washington, where health officials are starting talks on revisions to the 11-year-old Food Guide Pyramid.

Wheat Foods will be actively involved in defending the grains, Adams said.

The pyramid puts bread, cereals, rice and pasta as the foundation for healthy eating, recommending six to 11 servings a day. But some are pushing for changes that would move grains off the foundation, and cut back servings.

The Wheat Foods Council's strategy is a direct attack on Atkins: people who follow the Atkins diet increase their risk of health problems that include cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol, kidney damage and some cancers, it says. It also claims that Atkins' followers can also suffer headaches, constipation and bad breath.

The council says obesity is not specifically tied to carbohydrates but is the simple result of lazy overeaters.

According to a Government survey, consumer spending in 2001 for ready-to-eat and cooked cereals, pasta, flour, flour mixes and bakery products dropped from the previous year even as consumer spending for meat, poultry, fish and eggs rose for the third year in a row.

After decades of rejecting Atkins' theories, some new scientific research studies have started lending credence to Atkins' ideas.

Colette Heimowitz, director of research at the Atkins Health and Medical Information Services, says overconsumption of bread, cereal and baked products is partly to blame for overweight Americans.

- REUTERS