Atkins at a Glance

In 1972, the “Atkins diet” became the first ketogenic diet to gain widespread appeal for weight management 1. Over the past 50 years, the Atkins brand has helped millions of people achieve their personal weight loss and health goals. Dr. Robert Atkins, a trailblazing cardiologist, developed the Atkins diet from his study of published in the scientific literature, where he noticed that restricting carbohydrate fundamentally changed human metabolism. Moving forward to today, more than 100 clinical studies have been published on low carb diets. Dr. Atkins challenged the status quo weight loss methods of his time by proposing a nutritional approach based on eating right, not less. This led to a keto-based diet that reduced sugar and carbohydrates, while introducing an increase in healthy fats and fiber-rich vegetables 2. Today, our story continues with a mission: To make eating right a part of everyday life through our advocacy, education, innovation, and products.

There are over one million active registrants following the Atkins lifestyle—which is personalized to enable an effective, balanced approach to weight management 3. Between eight to ten million people buy our products consisting of nutritional bars, ready-to-drink shakes, confectionary treats, and snacks. These great-tasting products can be found in more than 145,000 retailers around the Nation so you can eat, feel, and live better.

Over 15 million copies of Atkins books sold

All Atkins tools and apps are free with no membership fees

Atkins offers over 1,600 low carb recipes

A customized nutrition plan and low carb lifestyle can help you reach your weight loss and health goals. Learn more about our meal plans and take our quiz to find out which one is right for you:
Atkins 20^®
Atkins 40^®
Atkins 100™

Our People: Nutritionists and Medical Experts

Colette Heimowitz, M.Sc.

Colette Heimowitz works directly with medical professionals, health influencers, and consumers to educate them about a sustainable way of doing a well-constructed low carb diet to promote health. Heimowitz is a NY Times best-selling author and brings a wealth of nutritional knowledge and experience as the Vice President of Nutrition & Education at Simply Good Foods Company. She has 20+ years of experience as a nutritionist, which includes the time she spent with Dr. Atkins as Director of Nutrition at The Atkins Center for Complementary Medicine in NYC.

Jonathan Clinthorne, Ph.D.

As the Director of Nutrition & Education at Simply Good Foods Company, Dr. Jonathan Clinthorne is involved in new product research and development, creating continuing education courses and establishing relationships with medical professionals. His research has been published in several top-tier journals including the Journal of Nutrition and Journal of Immunology.

Lani Banner

Lani Banner has her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and Dietetics and has been developing recipes for over six years. With a focus on low carb, whole food, and gluten free recipes that nourish the body while enticing the taste buds, Banner creates recipes that are trendy, easy, and delicious. Whether working on sweet treats to help stay on track with your Atkins plan, or family meals bursting with nutritious high fiber vegetables, her goal is to cultivate a healthy eating culture where we all have the resources we need to not only feed our bodies, but build our health.

Science Advisory Board Members

The Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) is a critical part of many food- and wellness-related organizations. It helps to support the scientific backing that all brands in this area need to uphold credibility and thereby the respect from thought leaders and influencers in the nutrition arena.

Colin Champ, M.D.

Dr. Champ is a clinician and physician-scientist in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Duke University Medical Center. His research focuses on how lifestyle changes, such as diet and exercise, can improve cancer-specific and general-health related outcomes and metabolic therapies to enhance the effect of radiation therapy on cancer cells. Dr. Champ joined the Science Advisory Board in 2020.

Kevin Fontaine, Ph.D.

Dr. Fontaine is Chair of the Department of Health Behavior and a professor in the School of Public Health at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He is also a psychologist specializing in the treatment of obesity at Johns Hopkins University. His research concentrates on the role of low carbohydrate diets and nutritional ketosis on inflammation, type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s, and cancer. Dr. Fontaine joined the Science Advisory Board in 2019.

Eric H. Kossoff, M.D.

Dr. Kossoff is a coauthor of Treatment of Pediatric Neurologic Disorders and the 6th edition of The Ketogenic and Modified Atkins Diets. He is certified by the American Board of Neurology and Psychiatry with special certification in child neurology, as well as by the American Board of Pediatrics. His work focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of various medical conditions in children through alternative methods, such as the ketogenic diet and a modified Atkins diet for children. Dr. Kossoff joined the Science Advisory Board in 2010.

Andrew Koutnik, Ph.D.

Dr. Koutnik is a Research Scientist studying the influence of lifestyle and metabolism on health, disease, and performance. He has spoken about his personal journey with managing type 1 diabetes using lifestyle and metabolic methods on TEDx talk, raising awareness on how these treatments can improve health modulation, disease prevention, and disease management. Dr. Koutnik joined the Science Advisory Board in 2020.

Andrew Mente, Ph.D.

Dr. Mente is a principal investigator for the epidemiology program at the Population Health Research Institute and has published 45 papers. He is currently working in the Population Urban and Rural Epidemiological study where his research focuses on understanding how essential minerals and dietary fatty acids in cardiovascular diseases impact populations around the world. Dr. Mente joined the Science Advisory Board in 2020.

Elizabeth J. Parks, Ph.D., R.D.

Dr. Parks conducts research in the area of metabolism. Lecture topics include the regulation of body weight and effects of dietary macronutrients on blood lipid levels. Her current research studies are investigating how the brain, intestine and liver interacts with fat to maintain energy balance and how the dysregulation of lipid metabolism in obesity leads to body-fat gain. Dr. Parks joined the Science Advisory Board in 2010.

Joanne L. Slavin, Ph.D., R.D.

Dr. Slavin’s research group conducts human metabolic studies, in vitro studies, and studies with more subjective measures of health effects of food intake. They work on physiological responses to dietary fiber, resistant starch, and other phytochemicals. Her group is particularly interested in the gastrointestinal effects of food intake. Dr. Slavin joined the Science Advisory Board in 2010.

Jeff S. Volek, Ph.D., R.D., F.A.C.N.

Dr. Volek is a Professor in the Department of Human Sciences at The Ohio State University and has published more than 230 peer-reviewed studies. His primary area of research is focused on physiological adaptations to low carbohydrate diets with emphasis on outcomes related to metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. He has authored/co-authored four books, including The New Atkins for a New You and The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living. Dr. Volek joined the Science Advisory Board in 2010.

Jay Wortman, M.D.

Dr. Wortman is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine. He has been working with low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet in both the research and practice setting for the past 10 years. One of his studies was the subject of the CBC documentary, “My Big Fat Diet”. He was the recipient of the National Aboriginal Achievement Award for Medicine in 2002 and the American Nutrition and Metabolism Award for Excellence in 2010. Dr. Wortman joined the Science Advisory Board in 2010.

Trustworthiness of Atkins Products and Content

The Atkins brand has over 50 years of experience educating the public about the benefit of low carb eating through research and studies. We have a team of experienced scientists in the nutrition field that review every article, including the blogs, published on the Atkins website. We keep an internal research library that documents and categorizes research that supports lower carbohydrate approaches to nutrition and health.

The Atkins brand has decades of experience designing delicious products that support the low carbohydrate lifestyle with high protein or fiber, and with no added sugars. We test our products at third-party laboratories to verify they have a minimal impact on blood sugar.

Our History

The Atkins lifestyle began in 1963 when Dr. Atkins challenged the status quo weight loss methods of the time and proposed a nutritional approach grounded on eating right, not less. His method was based on studies that showed carbohydrate restriction was a healthy alternative to calorie restriction as it provided weight loss results, without significant hunger 4.

These are some of the significant milestones in our history:

Atkins.com was created in 1996 with the purpose of educating consumers about the science supporting low carbohydrate diets.
The concept of net carb was first introduced in 2002 when research demonstrated fiber had a minimal impact on blood sugar in an updated version of the book Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution. This book remained on the bestseller list for 285 weeks, sold more than 15 million copies, and became the #1 Bestselling Avon paperback of all time.
The first randomized controlled trial demonstrating the safety and efficacy of the Atkins diet was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine in 2004.
In 2007, A-Z study was published, showing that Atkins was more effective for weight loss than other interventions.
The American Diabetes Association recognized low carbohydrate diets as a viable option for managing blood sugar in people with diabetes in 2018 5.

Today, we continue to make an impact on millions of people looking to reach their dietary and health goals through the Atkins lifestyle.

Our Mission

Our purpose is to improve global health by changing how people eat and their relationship to food in order to improve their overall health. Dr. Atkins believed that eating right—not less—could improve a patient’s health, reduce chronic issues, and aid in weight loss. Over the last 45 years, increasing evidence is revealing that Dr. Atkins was right. Atkins public health advocacy has played a significant role in updating dietary guidelines.

Controlling the things that the human body turns into sugar is the largest factor in eating right.The Atkins way of eating satisfies the body, creating greater energy, higher metabolism, and less stored fat 6. Through state-of-the-art research, education, and products, we offer people the tools they need to make the right food choices for their bodies.

We are committed to helping people reach their dietary and health goals through innovations, partnerships, and science. Ultimately, our goal is to make the Atkins way of eating right people’s primary healthcare.

Atkins in the World

Read more about the Atkins lifestyle and how it’s helping millions of people reach their weight loss and health goals: