What's out: The Atkins diet. What's in: The Cookie Diet?
Our fiscal belt-tightening may well cause turmoil in the ., weight loss, business. As America struggles with a 25% obesity rate, our waistline will continue to be a concern, but tempered by our newly-trim wallet.
Diet regimes that depend on pre-packaged meals, such as Jenny Craig, will be the first to feel the pinch (an inch). A 2005 Forbes study of the costs of well-known weight-loss plans pegged Jenny Craig at $137.65 per week. Other overweight progams were NutriSystem at $113.52 and the Atkins (low carb) Diet at $100.52. Weight Watchers, the program that, in my opinion, offers the best combination of a healthy diet and support, comes in fourth at $100.52.
So where can a well-rounded person turn for dieting on a budget? The cheapest program, according to Forbes, is the Subway Sandwich, aka Jared, Diet, at $68.60, Sugar Busters, $69.62, and Slim-Fast, $77.73.
A recent Consumer Reports study labeled the Atkins diet as worse that average for weight loss, while Jenny, WW, and Slim-Fast were better than average.
Among the whacky diets, one that stands out is Dr. Siegel's Cookie Diet. Dr. Siegel sells kits of cookies that supposedly suppress the eater's appetite, kind of a methadone for food junkies. Certainly the consumer loses some weight, from his wallet. A week's worth of the Doctor's cookies and vitamins will set you back around $60, plus shipping. That's a lot of double-stuff Oreos!
The budget-busting part of the most rounded diets, such as Weight Watchers, is fresh fruits and vegetables, and I expect to see many dieters turn to canned or frozen alternatives. For low-carb diets, as meat costs climb in step with grain prices, I expect fewer people will adopt this program, and those that do will be eating a lot more cheap cuts. If I could find an exchange-traded fund in goats, I might put some money there.
Or not. I have this sudden urge for some chips and instant-cheese-like-substance dip. Maybe I'll have a cookie instead.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-21-2008 @ 5:34PM
Susan Fisher said...
When everyone talks about weight loss programs, no one ever mentions TOPS, acronym for Take Off Pounds Sensibly.
It is a non-profit weight loss support group. Annual national dues are only $26 and monthly local chapters dues of $5.
They educate members with programs on nutrition & exercise and have a weekly weigh in, with a chapter meetings
acknowledging member accomplishments with awards and praise.
You follow your own diet and don't have to BUY into any type of food program.
It is the United States oldest weight loss support group that
celebrated it 60th anniversary last year.
I have lost close to 50 pounds in just one year with this groups support. More people should check into this!
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11-23-2008 @ 5:28PM
candice said...
i didn't know anything about this. thanks for the info!
11-22-2008 @ 1:41PM
Dr. Sanford Siegal said...
Whacky, huh? Well, I suppose when you hear a catchy term like "cookie diet" you can't help but assume that it refers to some "whacky" diet fad. But after 33 years and 500,000 customers, Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET is no fad. Actually, it's an accepted and successful approach that has been used by hundreds of doctors to control their patients' hunger and help them stick to their diets.
The cookies and shake mixes contain a protein formula that controls hunger without drugs. I developed it in 1975 and still mix every batch with my own hands in my Miami bakery.
By now, Dr. Siegal's COOKIE DIET has been thoroughly scrutinized and profiled in the media. On http://www.CookieDiet.com there are links to dozens of major news stories. If you're serious about this subject I encourage you to start your research there.
Sanford Siegal, D.O., M.D.
Miami, Florida
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11-23-2008 @ 5:32PM
Hungry Harry said...
Where does "South Beach" figure in here?
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11-26-2008 @ 8:39PM
DietWisely said...
Your best for dieting is NOT to follow any of these fads or expensive plans. Eating healthy is the key and actually quite simple its just sticking with it. There are no magic pills, shakes, teas, or diets. If you are a regular person with no medical condtions, there are 2 basic principles of losing weight. 1) Eat fewer calories 2) Excercise more. Also, since you will be eating less you want those calories to count and be packed with nutrition. Choose foods high in lean protein (chicken breast no skin, tuna packed in water) and high in fiber ad nutrients (soy beans, edamame, broccoli). You want to limit as much as possible foods high in fat in calories (like Pizza) and foods high in sugar (regular soda, cookies). If you do this you will lose weight. Always see a doctor before you start a program and don't try to lose weight too quickly, a pound a week is a good start but the further you get along it will be more like a pound every couple weeks as it gets harder to lose weight.
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11-28-2008 @ 6:26PM
majeanne said...
It is fascinating that people will still spend money to eat more than we need. When will the economic collapse change that - or will it?
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12-03-2008 @ 9:56AM
Carrie said...
I've been doing Atkins on and off for several years. It's funny that people call the diet a fad when even Dr. Atkins mentions why most people fail on "diets!" It's the fact that they return to their old eating habits once they've lost the weight, thus regaining what they've lost -- or even more.
A fad diet to me is one that isn't healthy for life. Eating diet cookies, meal replacement shakes, bars, etc. If one wants to really keep the weight off, they're going to have to follow the '"diet" the rest of their life. It's funny that the Low Carb lifestyle has gotten a bad rep; but if people would really take time to read the book and understand the science between weight loss and diet fads, perhaps their mind wouldn't be so skewed.
When I am following Atkins (there are different stages to follow - so you're not just eating meat and cheese), I'm eating a variety of meats: chicken, turkey, fish, hamburger, sea food, etc. When I decide to add fruits, I fill up on: strawberries, cherries, blueberries, oranges, apples, blackberries. I have large quanities of vegetables; such as: all lettuce greens, squash (winter and summer), sweet potatoes, peas, green beans, cauliflower, carrots, etc. And of course I add lucious cheeses to my dishes.
Like I said, there are different stages to Atkins. People look at the first few weeks of the diet and think that it's that limited for life. What ignorance. And what's even funnier is the fact that people buy into all the hype of the medical community shunning the Atkins diet when it's been proven medically that peoples blood pressure, cholesterol, insulin levels, candida, etc. have all improved while on the "diet!"
To me, Atkins, is a way-of-life. It's definitely not a diet. It's something to follow for adequate health and lifestyle.
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