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American Morning

Atkins Overweight?

Aired February 11, 2004 - 07:42   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: The late Dr. Robert Atkins always said that he followed the high-protein, low-carb diet he devised, but now medical reports speculate that the Atkins diet might have been to blame for some of his own health problems.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta is at the CNN Center with details for us.

Hey, Sanjay, good morning.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

A lot of discussion about Dr. Atkins -- some even referring to him as "Dr. Fatkins" -- a lot discussion about the details of the diet, a lot of discussion about the details of the man, and now debate about the weight of the diet guru.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA (voice-over): In life, Dr. Robert Atkins and his low- carbohydrate, high-fat diet were no strangers to controversy. Now, even in death, the details of his own health are being debated.

"The Wall Street Journal," citing a medical examiner report, says Atkins was obese.

Last year, the 72-year-old cardiologist was hospitalized after he fell on an icy street striking his head. He remained in a coma for nine days. Ultimately, life support was withdrawn.

And questions were raised. If the diet guru himself was overweight and possibly suffering from heart disease, what did that say about his famous diet? After all, he was the biggest proponent.

The Atkins folks are quick to try and set the record straight by releasing these images of Atkins just 10 days before he died. His doctors say he weighed 195 pounds. At death, though, he was 60 pounds heavier.

I asked Dr. Stuart Trager, chairman of the Atkins Physician Council, about this. He concedes Atkins may have been heavier at the time of his death, but that had more to do with his hospitalization and fluids rather than his diet.

And what about the heart disease? People have been concerned about the high-fat component of Atkins' diet. Atkins did suffer a heart attack in 2002, but said it was due to an infection of the heart, causing something known as cardiomyopathy.

DR. ROBERT ATKINS, PROPONENT OF LOW-CARB DIET: No, you don't catch an infection from my diet, but this was an infection.

GUPTA: Dr. John McDougal of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine says, maybe, but thinks the heart disease Dr. Atkins had was more likely due to his high-fat diet, which doubles the amount of free fatty acids in the blood, and can also lead to heart attacks.

Although the debate rages on, the doctor who invented the diet can no longer participate. So, perhaps it's better to focus on the details of the diet rather than the details of the man.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

And just to be clear here, Soledad, we're talking about this hospitalization period. After Atkins fell, slipped and hit his head, he was in the hospital for about nine days. You're given a lot of fluids at that time. Certainly, you can gain weight. Supposedly, he gained 60 pounds, according to the Atkins Council while in the hospital -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Well, you know, Sanjay, you're a doctor. Sixty pounds in not quite nine days, I mean, that sounds absolutely ridiculous, frankly.

GUPTA: Yes, you get a lot of fluids when you're in the hospital, especially if you're someone who has had a history of heart problems, as he did with the infection of the heart. Sixty pounds does sound like a lot. Typically, it's about two to three pounds a day. So, maybe 20 to 30 pounds over that time period. But, you know, we're just sort of looking at the numbers and trying to put them together -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Can I ask you a question about this heart infection and that being the cause of cardiomyopathy? I mean, is that possible that an infection could be what caused all of these heart problems that clearly Dr. Atkins had and clearly what his side says? Or is it -- or do you think, as a medical practitioner, that that's very unlikely?

GUPTA: Well, I think it is certainly possible. Here's how it lays out. When you talk about cardiomyopathy, which is a disease of the muscle of the heart, you're talking about some of the small blood vessels in the heart. Now, two things can cause those to become diseased. One is the same thing that causes heart disease, you know, the high-cholesterol, high0fatty diet. Another thing is the infection of the heart as well.

Dr. Atkins did have a heart catheterization of his heart about four or five years ago, looking at the big vessels, the coronary arteries, and those appeared actually pretty normal. But these small vessels, you really wouldn't be able to tell in someone like Atkins unless an autopsy was performed, and that was never performed. So, it's probably going to end up being a subject of some speculation -- Soledad. O'BRIEN: Yes, that will be a subject of speculation for a really, really long time.

GUPTA: Yes.

O'BRIEN: Sanjay, thanks a lot. Appreciate it.

GUPTA: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.






Aired February 11, 2004 - 07:42   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: The late Dr. Robert Atkins always said that he followed the high-protein, low-carb diet he devised, but now medical reports speculate that the Atkins diet might have been to blame for some of his own health problems.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta is at the CNN Center with details for us.

Hey, Sanjay, good morning.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

A lot of discussion about Dr. Atkins -- some even referring to him as "Dr. Fatkins" -- a lot discussion about the details of the diet, a lot of discussion about the details of the man, and now debate about the weight of the diet guru.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA (voice-over): In life, Dr. Robert Atkins and his low- carbohydrate, high-fat diet were no strangers to controversy. Now, even in death, the details of his own health are being debated.

"The Wall Street Journal," citing a medical examiner report, says Atkins was obese.

Last year, the 72-year-old cardiologist was hospitalized after he fell on an icy street striking his head. He remained in a coma for nine days. Ultimately, life support was withdrawn.

And questions were raised. If the diet guru himself was overweight and possibly suffering from heart disease, what did that say about his famous diet? After all, he was the biggest proponent.

The Atkins folks are quick to try and set the record straight by releasing these images of Atkins just 10 days before he died. His doctors say he weighed 195 pounds. At death, though, he was 60 pounds heavier.

I asked Dr. Stuart Trager, chairman of the Atkins Physician Council, about this. He concedes Atkins may have been heavier at the time of his death, but that had more to do with his hospitalization and fluids rather than his diet.

And what about the heart disease? People have been concerned about the high-fat component of Atkins' diet. Atkins did suffer a heart attack in 2002, but said it was due to an infection of the heart, causing something known as cardiomyopathy.

DR. ROBERT ATKINS, PROPONENT OF LOW-CARB DIET: No, you don't catch an infection from my diet, but this was an infection.

GUPTA: Dr. John McDougal of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine says, maybe, but thinks the heart disease Dr. Atkins had was more likely due to his high-fat diet, which doubles the amount of free fatty acids in the blood, and can also lead to heart attacks.

Although the debate rages on, the doctor who invented the diet can no longer participate. So, perhaps it's better to focus on the details of the diet rather than the details of the man.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

And just to be clear here, Soledad, we're talking about this hospitalization period. After Atkins fell, slipped and hit his head, he was in the hospital for about nine days. You're given a lot of fluids at that time. Certainly, you can gain weight. Supposedly, he gained 60 pounds, according to the Atkins Council while in the hospital -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Well, you know, Sanjay, you're a doctor. Sixty pounds in not quite nine days, I mean, that sounds absolutely ridiculous, frankly.

GUPTA: Yes, you get a lot of fluids when you're in the hospital, especially if you're someone who has had a history of heart problems, as he did with the infection of the heart. Sixty pounds does sound like a lot. Typically, it's about two to three pounds a day. So, maybe 20 to 30 pounds over that time period. But, you know, we're just sort of looking at the numbers and trying to put them together -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Can I ask you a question about this heart infection and that being the cause of cardiomyopathy? I mean, is that possible that an infection could be what caused all of these heart problems that clearly Dr. Atkins had and clearly what his side says? Or is it -- or do you think, as a medical practitioner, that that's very unlikely?

GUPTA: Well, I think it is certainly possible. Here's how it lays out. When you talk about cardiomyopathy, which is a disease of the muscle of the heart, you're talking about some of the small blood vessels in the heart. Now, two things can cause those to become diseased. One is the same thing that causes heart disease, you know, the high-cholesterol, high0fatty diet. Another thing is the infection of the heart as well.

Dr. Atkins did have a heart catheterization of his heart about four or five years ago, looking at the big vessels, the coronary arteries, and those appeared actually pretty normal. But these small vessels, you really wouldn't be able to tell in someone like Atkins unless an autopsy was performed, and that was never performed. So, it's probably going to end up being a subject of some speculation -- Soledad. O'BRIEN: Yes, that will be a subject of speculation for a really, really long time.

GUPTA: Yes.

O'BRIEN: Sanjay, thanks a lot. Appreciate it.

GUPTA: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.