Dukan Diet – “The French Atkins?”
A couple of months ago news of a diet from France coming to America had the websites buzzing. It’s here, and (unless I missed something) it didn’t make much of a big splash. The “Dukan Diet” was tagged “The French Atkins” for it’s low carb, high-protein, multi-step approach. Dukan’s has some differences from Atkins, so lets see what they are, and what people are saying.
Disclaimer-I didn’t read the book. I’m basing this off of what I’m reading from the Dukan website, and from news accounts and reviews. I’m not going to say for sure that the program is great or terrible just based on what I’m seeing online.
In general, the Dukan Diet is low carb, low fat, and has 4 phases to work through. Dukan says you can eat what you want as long as you stick to his list. Here’s an unofficial copy of Dukan’s 100 foods list. (It’s interesting to read the comments too.) This diet is basically a high protein diet that has some ways to lower calories and help keep people feeling full (like oat bran).
From the New York Times-
…For years, critics have dismissed the Dukan diet as a warmed-over version of early Atkins: a simple protein-centric method that divides foods into good and bad categories and relies on the claims of a medical doctor who is long on enthusiasm and short on scientific research.
Asked about Atkins, Dr. Dukan acknowledged that it was a source of inspiration. “I am built on the shoulders of Weight Watchers and Atkins diets,” he said. But he criticized Weight Watchers for its emphasis on quantity sizes and calorie counting, and Atkins for allowing unlimited consumption of fat. “I have a lot of respect for Atkins,” Dr. Dukan said. “He was a legend in his time.” But now, he added, “Atkins is dead.”
His own diet’s high-protein, low-fat approach is organized into four phases: attack, cruise, consolidation and stabilization…
Four Phases, and something missing:
What’s the deal with all these phases? Getting the right food in the right amounts shouldn’t be a phase. Your body doesn’t know what phase you are in, your mind does. These phases seem like ways to encourage behavior changes, but I don’t like them. I would rather know what works long term and not have the pressure to fit some plan. To be fair, phases are nothing new. There is something to them when you are talking low carb, but you only need two-very low carb, and minimal carb.
The main thing I see missing, and it’s an issue for Atkins as well, is some clarity on healthy vs unhealthy for a specific food item. For example, in the above food list, it has pre-cooked ham, chicken, and turkey slices-very popular in Europe-just go there and look at any breakfast at the hotel. Ever try to read the ingredients on the package of that stuff? They look like a syllabus for an organic chemistry class. Beware. Lean, fresh protein is far more healthy that deli slices, even if protein and calories are the same. This diet doesn’t seem to even pay attention.
Paleo/Primal diets will tell you right away about getting healthy lean protein. It does matter. Dukan just seems to be helping to step through bad food choices to find the least bad.
Oat Bran?
What’s the deal with oat bran? Dukan’s site has a graphic to show how it can help you feel full. Eat some oat bran, and drink a lot of water. The other benefits are questionable. Leave oats for the horses. Diets need to support the right blood chemistry, and should not have to be modified to add expanding goo in your gut to help you feel full so you eat less!
Atkins vs “French Atkins”
Low carbers that are Atkins fans won’t like Dukan because Dukan is a bit more low fat. In this view, it’s fat that helps you feel full, and fat doesn’t make you fat-carbs do. This approach can have issues too, because you have to know your fats. Piling on the bacon simply does not work for everyone, no matter what the proponents tell you.
I didn’t see any references to the glycemic index on what I read about Dukan so far. Dukan seems to just have a list of what is OK to eat, and phases to tell you when. It makes you wonder if any research at all went into this diet, or is it all just herding people into a structured high protein plan-which anyone could do really.
A Stupid Critic:
Dukan’s plan may be just a simple way to get people to eat low carb, and high protein (which will get results), but I’ll take it over the stupid ideas that come from Kathleen M. Zelman, writing about Dukan for WebMD.com.
From WebMD-
…You’ll certainly lose weight on The Dukan Diet because it cuts calories drastically. The lack of carbs also helps keep hunger at bay. But the bottom line, experts say, is that this eating plan does not include all the nutrients you need for good health…
…Protein is an essential part of a healthy diet, but it cannot stand alone. A truly healthy diet includes all the food groups — vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and low-fat dairy and healthy fats along with lean protein. Your body needs the nutrients these foods provide…
Another asshole repeating the food group thing! Please! Whole (or processed) grains are not food. The food groups are a lie. You don’t really need dairy either-which Dukan has a lot of!
Summary:
The Dukan Diet is a variation of Atkins. A high-protein, low carb diet, in general, will work. Do you need this plan to tell you that? No. Does it have the technical detail to really help you develop a new way of eating that is the most healthy? No. Can you lose weight on it? Yes.
Links:
Dukan Diet (Official US Site)
Dukan Diet 100 Foods List (Unofficial)
Message Board Discussion on it (This is where I read about it first)
Typical stupid review from a CW (Conventional Wisdom) site
I don’t think I’ve ever left a comment on any diet review in my life. But, wait. You didn’t try it. Did all your research from news sites, web sites and other comments. And haven’t read the book? This is an opinion piece, not a review. And a rather unsubtle point towards a Paleo/Primal diet, to boot.
Yes. That is why I posted a disclaimer in the beginning.
Reviews ARE opinion pieces!
This is basically a low carb/Primal/Paleo site anyway, because it’s about understanding how to eat right and be healthy, which should not require any plan with a brand name. Nature provides. The hard part is turning that into what to eat and who to believe.
You don’t hear lions sitting around going “I’m doing Leo’s Low Carb. I eat a gazelle and then take a nap…” I don’t see why humans need a branded way of eating either.
From Coogee Australia. Are fresh herbs allowed in the attack phase?
Steve, it’s required because we’re overloaded with too many choices than are natural for our bodies and more ‘scientific’ advice than is helpful.
I am giving this ‘diet’ a go but with my own decisions such as aiming for grassfed and mostly green. I don’t eat dairy or grains either.
I don’t like your review but I like the lion analogy. Ducan diet did help me loose 18 pounds but I’ve eaten so much meat that I now want to be a vegetarian. I’m enjoying the thought of becoming one:)
Buns-
Many sub optimal diets work in the beginning because what they are replacing is so bad.
Vegan is not healthy. Humans are omnivores.
The diet that will win out in the long run is Paleo.
Seems interesting and logical way to eat. I’m pretty sick of meat though so I might need some few weeks to want it again. I also recently saw sick, fat and nearly dead documentary and it made me think about how much my taste buds love raw fruit and veggies but I rarely make time for juicing even though I spent 200$ on a really good juicer.
I saw that documentary and looked into it a bit. I dont trust it. They are trying to show that everything went right for only one reason. Things are never that simple!
Somethings which you may not have considered, the Dukan is signifiacntly different from Aitken’s because it also provides a long term plan for keeping the weight off once you move to a ‘normal’ eating regime.
As for the deal with the oatbran, yes it fills you up but also helps with your health. Oatbran contains fibre which helps avoid constipation and is also brilliant at lowering cholesterol.
You’ll note the protien only phase is extremely short. It helps with quick weight loss and motivation (as a result) without being long enough to cause major issues with vitamins and minerals, although Dukan does suggest taking supplements for these in the early stages of the diet. I do think that eating that amount of protien, encourages you to eat less because it’s just not so easy to keep eating the same thing.
I’m a psychologist (not in a dietry related area) so the question I’d ask is why people put weight on in the first place. For me, it’s because I love food and the variety of food out there. The regime and knowing it’s not forever has meant this is the first diet I’ve stuck to. Although can’t wait until I’ve reached the point where I can have treat days