By Rachel Schwab

From low-carb ice cream and low-carb pizzas to bunless burgers wrapped in lettuce, some dieters are wondering how far will this low carbohydrate diet go?

According to low-carb diet Web sites, for a low-carb diet to work, the dieter must cut out virtually all carbohydrates from their diet and increase the protein and fat intake. Foods like pasta, bread and rice are infinitely taken out of the diet, while unlimited amounts of meat, cheese and butter are encouraged, which is why the low-carb craze claims to be so luxurious.

This diet has literally taken the nation by storm by offering many variations of the low-carb diet, ranging from Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution, South Beach Diet, Carbohydrate Addict's Lifestyle Plan and Life Without Bread. The World Wide Web also offers many chat rooms and postings which give advice to the beginner or life-long low-carb dieter. Atkins Advice gives specific counsel to the low-carb dieter for staying motivated throughout the diet.

Joe Barnard, a senior at Utah State University majoring in business education, started his version of a low-carb diet three months ago and said he enjoys the diet because he never seems to be hungry and doesn't crave the foods he used to when trying other diets.

"With the low-carb diet I can eat until I'm full and I never feel like I'm starving myself," said Barnard. "I also never crave carbohydrates like I did before."

According to Daniel Haney, AP Medical Editor, a new study shows that people on a low-carb diet can actually eat more than those dieter's who are on the standard low-fat plans and still lose weight.

Scott Shully, chef-owner of Shully's Catering Inc. in Thiensville, Wisc., told The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he has no problem with this new low-carb craze.

"I keep scratching my head and wondering what's next," he said. "These low-carb, high-protein diets give me a wonderful opportunity to wrap Nueske bacon around a beef fillet steak. I couldn't do that before. We also can offer rich cream sauces and hollandaise sauces. Things that were taboo before are now greatly accepted."

On the other hand, some breadmakers, like Albert Hasse, president of the Whitefish Bay-based Breadsmith Franchising, said his company has seen a slight dip in sales this year and also told The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel his company is starting to make their own low-carb breads.

"When you see popular diets that label a food group on the 'do-not touch' level, you're forced to recognize trends," said Hasse. "Sometimes these things spawn great creativity. We feel we're a great artisan bread brand and we want to accommodate our customers' diets."

Joni Walker, a low-carb dieter for two years, said there are times when she feels like trying something new, but still low-carb. There are many websites that provide new low-carb recipes that Walker said are "excellent meals and quite easy to make."

With the increasing popularity of low-carb diets, there is also increasing criticism of the diet, which raises questions and offers some potential drawbacks.

According to George Blackburn, director of the Center for the Study of Nutrition and Medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, uncomfortable side effects like constipation, fatigue, nausea and lightheadedness could be expected since protein diets can cause leaching of calcium from bones. Blackburn said there is also potential for bone loss along with potential stress on kidneys.

The most recent controversy about the Atkins low-carb diet is the death of Dr. Robert Atkins, founder of low-carb diet Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution. According to CNN, the Wall Street Journal said Atkins died in April at age 72 after suffering from a severe head injury after slipping and falling on an icy road, and remained in a coma until taken off life support. The Wall Street Journal said the medical report listed Atkins' weight at the time of his death as 258 pounds. According to the Body-Mass Index calculator, Atkins would have been considered obese.

According to The Washington Times, Dr. Stuart Trager, chairman of the Atkins Physicians Council, a group that promotes the Atkins diet, said Atkins was swollen so much at the time of his death that family and friends could barely recognize him.

Low-carb diets are currently catching the attention of national chain restaurants, which are coming out with their own low-carb or "Atkins Approved" menu items.

According to the T.G.I. Fridays Web site, "everyone should enjoy fun times and have a lot of food choices. That's why we've created a menu full of sharable appetizers and tasty entrées that are great for people who are following a low-carb lifestyle."

Subway also came out with its new low-carb wraps. Fred DeLuca, president and founder of Subway, said, "We are proud to be able to work with the nutrition experts at Atkins to bring yet another great choice to our customers who are looking to watch their weight. Our customers have requested more low-carb options on our menu, so we're pleased to offer these delicious wraps for them."

Kylee Winzeler, sophomore at Utah State University majoring in elementary education, said she tried a low-carb Subway wrap and was pleasantly surprised.

"I haven't tried the low-carb diet but thought I'd give the low-carb wrap a try. It definitely didn't have a cardboard taste like I thought it would at first, but it wasn't enough to make me want to try the diet and join the low-carb craze,", she said.

Whether the American people are advocates of the low-carb diet or not, there is no denying the overriding publicity and popularity the diet is getting, which leaves its dieters wondering if there will ever be an end to this low-carb craze.

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