Atkins Diet Tips

When it comes to the Atkins diet, most people understand the premise that participants can consume just about any food that they want, given it is low in carbohydrates. Unlike other diets, Atkins does not restrict the amount of other important foods and nutrients that an individual can consume. In fact, other than regulating the number of carbohydrates consumed, Atkins encourages the consumption of just about everything else.

Essentially, the Atkins diet is a low carbohydrate, high protein and fat diet. Most of the protein consumed by an Atkins dieter comes from sources of meat such as fish, beef, or pork. However, there are other ways for an Atkins dieter to acquire the protein that Atkins encourages.

One of the best sources of protein for an Atkins dieter is through the consumption of various types of nuts. Nuts can be both beneficial and problematic for an Atkins dieter. On one hand they do represent a great source of proteins, but on the other hand some nuts also pack a great deal of carbohydrates into their very small packages. Any Atkins dieter who looks to nuts and seeds as a way of obtaining protein should be careful to choose only those nuts and seeds that are low in carbohydrates. Since proteins, oils and fats are allowed by the Atkins diet, the main concern for a dieter in relation to eating nuts should be the amount of carbs they contain.

For an Atkins dieter, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts, and almonds represent nuts with some of the lowest numbers of carbs. For each 2 tablespoon serving, pecans contribute 0.6 grams of carbohydrates, while walnuts contain a total of 1.1 grams of carbohydrates for every 2 tablespoon serving. A 2 tablespoon serving of hazelnuts contributes just 1.2 grams of carbohydrates, while 2 tablespoons of almonds contain just 1.4 grams of carbohydrates. Other nuts that are low in overall carbohydrates include macadamia nuts, peanuts, and pine nuts. Overall, cashews, chestnuts and pistachios represent the nuts with the highest counts of carbs, with chestnuts typically containing the highest overall totals of carbohydrates, regardless of the serving size being used.

When it comes to the carbs contained in certain types of nuts, the best advice that an expert will provide is not so much to avoid eating certain ones, but to limit the amount that is eaten. After all, there is something to be said about the old adage that states that “too much of a good thing is not good”. Nuts may in fact be good for an individual’s health on any level. They may provide an Atkins dieter with an excellent source of protein, but the best advice for any Atkins dieter when it comes to including nuts in their diet is to control the portions. Most diet experts recommend that dieters pour out their measured amount of nuts onto a container then put the rest of the nuts away. Most of the time, people who get too many carbohydrates from nuts do so because the container is easily accessible to them.

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