Type 2 Diabetes – Do Commercial Diet Plans Really Work for Diabetics? 
What’s not to love about a fast weight loss diet like the Atkins plan that lets you eat bacon? High-protein diets go in and out of fashion about every 10 years. First popularized in the United States just after the Civil War, diets that are high in protein and fat and exclude carbohydrates, nearly always result in fast weight loss. Why do you lose weight quickly on a high protein, high fat diet? That’s because you only need to eat 1,200 calories less to lose 3 or 4 pounds (1.4 to 1.8 kg) of water weight. High protein diets kill your appetite because, even if you love to eat meat, you probably don’t love to eat just meat. In just a day or two you will have deprived yourself of 1200 calories or 5040 kj and you will have lost 3 or 4 pounds or 1.4 to 1.8 kg. And, to be fair, people can lose weight and keep it off on high-protein and low-carb diets. They just don’t usually lose very much. In fact, people don’t lose much weight long-term, on any of the popular commercial weight loss programs. Here are the statistics: 1. Atkins: The February 26, 2009 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine published a study finding the average Atkins dieter weighed 13 pounds (5.9 kg) less six months after starting the program, and 9 pounds (4.1 kg) less after following Atkins for a full two years. 2. South Beach: The average South Beach dieter loses 14 pounds (6.4 kg) in the first 12 weeks, but gains 6 pounds (2.7 kg) back over the next 18 months, with a long-term weight loss of 8 pounds (3.6 kg). 3. Nutrisystem: Referring only to a low-glycemic index diet and not referring to Nutrisystem by name, an Israeli study found that Nutrisystem dieters weighed an average of 6 pounds (2.7 kg) less two years after going on the program. 4. Slim Fast: The average Slim Fast dieter weighs 2 pounds (.9 kg) less a year after going on the diet. 5. Weight Watchers: The average Weight Watchers dieter goes off the program and weighs one pound more twelve months after starting the plan. And what about the cost of these plans? These results tell us that you’ll spend an average of $1,000 to lose a pound or half a kilogram… except while you are on Weight Watchers, when you’ll pay to gain weight. Nonetheless, many dieters manage to lose 30, 40, 50, or even 100 pounds and keep them off. They just learn the way to weight loss that helps them keep their blood sugar levels in check… which is the real secret to weight loss for the person with Type 2 diabetes.