Hey Rattler...I wasn't mad.
I just get tired of hearing people quote that because they heard someone else say it who heard someone else say it...etc. without checking FIRST to see if that is TRUE. It was known that he had a heart ailment totally unrelated to his low-carb lifestyle. But all the programs that have a vested interest in swaying someone AWAY from a low-carb diet LOVE to promote that statement. And so it spreads...another rumor.
Also from the comments here, I see most people don't know much about the Atkins approach or you wouldn't be making comments about eating a bunch of meat and not having any carbs. You do NOT have to 1) eat a ton of meat 2) eat a ton of fat 3) never eat any carbohydrates.
If you follow the program, you eat quite healthily--salads, veggies, meat, fish, dairy, fruit, high-fiber grains, etc. You most certainly DO eat carbs; carbohydrates are needed by the body and Atkins does not deny that. The point is more to REDUCE the consumption of carbs such as sodas, cookies, cakes, potato chips, breads, processed flours, loads of pasta, etc. The carbs you do eat are "healthy" carbs...high fiber grains, carrots, beets, corn, fruit, etc. You can also have sweets and junk foods--you just eat those types of high-carb foods in MODERATION. The key is: moderation of carbohydrates...not elimination.
The medical profession has become more accepting of Atkins approach to a healthy lifestyle and have begun to back it more as studies have not shown any significant adverse reactions to the diet WHEN ITS FOLLOWED PROPERLY. If someone chooses not to ever let a carb cross their lips and drink vats of fat, then I'm sure they are in for problems.
Again, usually the detractors know only of the diet what they heard from someone...who heard it from someone else...who heard it from someone else. I live the Atkins lifestyle and I eat quite healthily and have "bad" food when I want it. I just don't have pancakes with syrup for breakfast, hamburger and french fries for lunch, bag of Cheetos for a snack, baked potato and pasta salad for dinner and a thick slice of chocolate cake with a milkshake for dessert. In particular as you age and your metabolism slows down, meals like that WILL convert to extra pounds. When you are young, most people burn fat and calories MUCH faster so you can get away with more of the junk stuff. But obesity in children is becoming a national epidemic yet we stick McDonald's and Taco Bells in schools.
Everyone has a right to their opinion of ol' Dr. Atkins way...but get the facts first before you start to slam it.
BTW...just by virtue of the fact that some of you are saying "I'm sick of hearing low-carb this and that" goes to show you how many people have come around to this viewpoint are living it; the demand is there for consumers to know just WHAT they are getting in the foods they buy. Ruby Tuesdays restaurant has revamped their menu so that EVERY item on the menu has the calorie/carb/fiber/fat grams listed so they can accommodate just about any diet. Yay for Rubys!