Diets? Just pop an Atkins pill instead

AT the height of its popularity, the Atkins diet encouraged millions of slimmers to ditch bread and potatoes.

Now it could be due for a resurgence – but without the greasy fried breakfasts for which it came to be known.

British scientists hope to harness the benefits of a high-protein diet in a pill, after expressing concerns about the fat content of Atkins-style regimes and the fact they are difficult to stick to.

Eating lots of protein – found in foods such as meat and eggs – is believed to trigger hormones which make us feel full.

Atkins, popular with celebrities including Jennifer Aniston and Renee Zellweger, took off in the late 1990s, advising followers to cut carbohydrates and eat more protein instead.

Inventor Dr Robert Atkins said the body would then learn how to burn its own fat stores for fuel.

A chemical produced in the gut when we eat high-protein foods, called phenylalanine, was studied by researchers from Imperial College London.

They found that this reduced levels of ghrelin, the hormone which tells us when we are hungry, and ramps up another hormone called GLP-1, which is responsible for making us feel full.

Kevin Murphy, professor of endocrinology and metabolism at Imperial, said: ‘All foods stimulate these hormones, but for some reaterm, son protein seems to have a greater effect on GLP-1 release than other types of nutrient.’

He added: ‘I think people do not stick to high-protein diets, and there is evidence they might not be great for you in the longer so if you could exploit this in a pill that would be the ideal.’

The study on rodents found that those given phenylalanine over a week lost weight. The hormones produced are thought to make dieters need less food to feel full.

However, a high-protein diet has been linked to some problems, including kidney damage and changes in blood fat levels.

The latest findings, to be presented today at the Society for Endocrinology’s conference in Brighton, could lead to dieters no longer having to eat lots of protein to get the benefits.

Experts said the next step would be to establish that phenylalanine has the same effects on humans as it does on mice.

‘Protein seems to have a greater effect’