WHAT'S IN AN ATKINS MEAL BAR?
ATKINS MEAL BARS - FAR FROM HOMEMADE™
Information updated April 2024
Mr. Lowe is the official spokesperson for Atkins products. Among the many television commercials he has shot for them, there is one with him promoting the Atkins Bars.
Atkins is based on the plan created by Dr. Robert Atkins (1930-2003), a Cardiologist who, according to the Atkins Web site 4/24, “Saw that eating right, not less, improved his patients’ health.”
Q: WHAT IS ATKINS NUTRITIONALS, INC. IDEA OF EATING RIGHT? Let’s look at what’s in an Atkins Cookies & Crème Protein Meal Bar. (Source: Atkins Web site 4/24)
WHEN YOU SEE THE WORD "Crème" >> It's a red flag in terms of ingredients because c-r-e-m-e means it is not real cream or it would be spelled as "cream". Note the difference in the spelling below for Julie's Organic Cookies & Cream with an “eam” at the end.
ATKINS COOKIES & CREME BARS ARE FAR FROM HOMEMADE™ with multiple commercial ingredients we never use at home.
Note that Soy Protein Isolate is the first ingredient in this and many Atkins products >> an ingredient which Harvard Medical School advises we stay away from. (Source: Harvard Health Publishing of Harvard Medical School April 2024)
THE ATKINS WEB SITE HAS HIGLY QUESTIONABLE + MISLEADING PRODUCT INFORMATION. According to the Atkins Web site description of their Meal Bars: “They're all made with quality ingredients” and “Made from the freshest ingredients”.
Yet, all of Atkins Meal Bars are banned at Whole Foods Market and contain numerous commercial ingredients we never use at home.
Q: Are these “quality” and “freshest” ingredients?
ALL ATKINS MEAL BARS ARE BANNED AT WHOLE FOODS MARKET: Here’s a look at Atkins Cookies & Crème Bar through a Whole Foods Market filter >> Whole Foods has a list of banned ingredients which they cite as “unacceptable in food”. This Atkins bar has two ingredients which have been banned by Whole Foods >> Polydextroes and Sucralose. (Source for banned ingredients: Amazon Whole Foods Web site 4/24)
Q: Even if you know nothing about him, does this seem like a meal replacement option that Dr. Atkins — or any doctor — would acknowledge as the “freshest ingredients” and “eating right”?
Q: HOW ARE ONLINE CLAIMS SUBSTANTIATED? The Atkins Web site states their bars are made with “the freshest ingredients”. How could their ingredients ever be considered “the freshest ingredients”? How does Atkins Nutritionals substantiate this claim?
A: They don’t have to. No one is monitoring online claims.
Q: If Atkins Meal Bars are made with “the freshest ingredients” why did Atkins Nutritionals, Inc. add an FDA-recognized preservative to Atkins Strawberry Shortcake Bar?
Q: WHAT DID DR. ATKINS MEAN BY ‘HIGH QUALITY PROTEIN’?
A: Dr. Atkins promoted a low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet. In his book, Age-Defying Diet Revolution, Dr. Atkins describes what he means by 'High Quality Protein' >> "such as red meat, poultry, seafood and eggs.”
The protein in Atkins Bars comes, not from sources which Dr. Atkins cited as High Quality, but from commercial-grade, processed ingredients like Soy Protein Isolate and Whey Protein Isolate. According to the FDA 2024, 94% of U.S. Soybeans are GMO.
Dr. Atkins also touted the benefits of eating as many vegetables as possible and avoiding things which require detoxification.
Q: WHY DO ATKINS’ MAIN MEAL REPLACEMENT BARS HAVE DESSERT FEATURES? Atkins Nutritionals makes Meal Bars with flavor profiles like Double Fudge Brownie and Vanilla Caramel Pretzel.
Q: Do you think Dr. Atkins would design main meal replacement bars that were analogs of indulgent dessert treats?
Q: Are the ingredients in this product a reflection of the consumers' needs or the corporation's needs?
Discover food + beverages whose ingredients are Closest To Homemade in 275+ categories. Neither money nor products are ever accepted to appear on the Closest To Homemade list.
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