Comparing Atkins and Balance Energy Bars :: Health Nutrition Diet Exercise Essays

Comparing Atkins and Balance Energy Bars   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many are fascinated by the various diets in society; people want to lose weight by finding a reliable method that will ensure results. Two common diets include the Atkins Diet and the Zone Diet. Both of these have energy bars that contain the nutrients need to meet the diets specific requirements. In the article â€Å"Glycemic and Insulinemic responses to energy bars of differing macronutrient composition in healthy adults,† by Steven Hetzler and Veonsoo Kim, a study was conducted that compared the different energy bars. The study looked at equal proportions of these bars to see their effects on glycemic and insulinemic levels. This paper will be focusing on the differences between the Atkins and Balance Energy Bars and the effect they have on glycemic and insulin.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Atkins Diet contains a low amount of carbohydrates, whereas the Zone Diet has the components of a 40% carbohydrate, 30% protein, and 30% fat breakdown. The energy bars associated with these diet influences the glycemic and insulin levels in the body. By having a reduction of glycemic and insulin levels in the body affects a diet. By having low glucose levels this will ultimately lead to weight loss. This happens either through the removal of carbohydrates or by substituting low glycemic index carbohydrates for higher ones. In doing this the higher level of insulin will be reduced, for example high blood cholesterol levels will go down.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To test the insulin and glycemic levels the energy bars contain the study had 20 healthy adult participants. They were split into groups receiving 1 of 5 test meals; 1 being low carbohydrates, 2) moderate carbohydrates, 3) high carbohydrates, 4) white bread, and 5) chicken breast. Chicken breast was the negative control since it contains no carbohydrates, whereas white bread was the positive control. Test meals 1) with the low carbohydrates, include the Atkins Energy Bar, and test meal 2) includes the Balance Energy Bar.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In order to see the levels of the glucose and insulin after consuming the bars blood samples were taken and analyzed. In this experiment the Atkins energy bar produced the lowest glucose results.