Peas Are Not Evil

Starchy vegetables are Rung 8
of the original Atkins Carbohydrate Ladder

One day, I stopped by The Lighter Side of Low Carb’s Facebook fan page and noticed that Cleo had posted a picture showing what her personal USDA plate looked like:

She had 3 strips of bacon, an egg, and 3 peas smiling up from the plate.

While most of the comments shared how they would personally alter the foods in the photo (I would have added another egg and more peas, myself), the one comment that caught my attention said:

"Peas are evil.”

It's a common practice within the low-carb community to demonize foods not listed on the Atkins 2002 Induction menu chart. I don’t know how or when the idea that starchy vegetables are evil began, but it definitely is not true.

What Does Dr. Atkins Say?

Just to make sure that I wasn't all wet, I checked my 1972 Atkins book, but Dr. Atkins advice was completely different:

“…additions are interchangeable and flexible. You can make any of these additions any week that you choose. I could be very arbitrary and specify exactly what you may add each week. It would be simpler, much less confusing, and with less possibility for error. But I don’t impose that rigidity on my private patients, so why should I do that to you? I am so committed to making this a livable lifetime diet that I am letting you select your own variations, within the rules set up by your biological rule book.

PUT BACK WHAT YOU’VE MISSED MOST. The idea is simply to gradually return to your diet first what you missed most. You may not choose to put back any of the small carbohydrate additions I’ve suggested. You may prefer something different that you will pick out of your carbohydrate gram counter. Custom-tailor the diet to suit your life-style.

All that matters is that you add back to your diet a little carbohydrate at a time, and that you stop adding carbohydrate when you’ve reached your CCL.”

Rigidity didn’t come from the original Atkins Diet.

Nor did it come from the versions published in 1992 or 1999.

In those mid-evolution books, Atkins Induction was even more lax than it was in the 70s because dieters had the option of tossing out the Induction menu, and eating anything they wanted, provided they didn't go over 20 total carbohydrates per day (not net) for the first 2 weeks.

Dr. Atkins Changed His Diet Plan in 2002

In 2002, Dr. Atkins introduced the Carbohydrate Ladder.

This ladder specified which foods were best to add back, and in what order, to help with blood glucose control. At that time, Dr. Atkins believed the glycemic index was correct.

Even so, he still did not make the carb ladder a rule. What he said was this:

“Look at ‘The Power of Five’ on pages 150-151 for other suggestions of foods you can add to your daily menu. Most people find it best to add back foods in a certain order – what I call the Carbohydrate Ladder.

Note that few people will be able to add back all these food groups in OWL. Those on the second half of the list tend to rank higher on the glycemic index and are more commonly introduced in Pre-Maintenance. Following this order tends to minimize blood-sugar surges that could reactivate cravings.”

Unfortunately, the glycemic index was created using people who did not have metabolic syndrome (insulin resistance), pre-diabetes, or even diabetes, so it’s of little use if you’re interested in minimizing blood-sugar surges.

In my personal experiments on myself, I have found no correlation between the number of carbohydrates I eat at a meal, and the amount of blood glucose that’s still in the bloodstream one or two hours later.

The Carbohydrate Ladder Does Not Demonize Peas

What I find interesting about this carbohydrate ladder is the actual foods Dr. Atkins lists.

If you hang around low-carb individuals for a while, sooner or later, you’ll hear them demonize most of these foods - especially:

• peas
• corn
• beans
• whole grains

In fact, if a newbie dares to admit they ate something from this list, they are likely to get told that what they ate isn’t allowed on a low-carb diet.

So what are these foods that Dr. Atkins recommends?

1. more salad and other vegetables on the acceptable foods list
2. fresh cheeses (as well as more aged cheese)
3. seeds and nuts
4. berries
5. wine and other spirits low in carbs
6. legumes
7. fruits other than berries and melon
8. starchy vegetables
9. whole grains

Sounds like what used to be called a natural, whole foods diet.

Since starchy vegetables are the 8th rung of the Atkins Carbohydrate Ladder, peas are not evil, and saying so can give newbies and even oldies a distorted picture of what a low-carb diet actually is.

The real Atkins’ Diet is about finding your own personal level of carbohydrate that will allow you to keep losing body fat most weeks.

And while some of Atkins theories and beliefs haven’t withstood the test of time, nor scientific testing, his diet continues to be an excellent starting point for most individuals.

Listen to his advice and personalize the low-carb foods you choose to fit into your lifestyle, according to your likes and dislikes.

While it may be quite accurate to say “peas are evil for me,” that judgment doesn’t hold true for everyone.

I’ve lost over 100 pounds on some form of a low carb diet, and I’ve done it eating:

• corn
• corn tortillas
• peas
• mixed veggies
• winter squashes
• and other starchy vegetables

If I’d had to stick with only the vegetables listed on Atkins Induction, I would have never come as far as I have.

The New Atkins For a New You

It’s my current understanding that the most recent low-carb diet supported by Atkins Nutritionals, Inc. doesn’t talk about the carb ladder at all. I've also heard that it limits added dietary fats to 1 tablespoon of good fats (like olive oil) per meal.

It raises the consumption of veggies to something like 6 cups per day on Induction and attempts to move folks in a more realistic direction of understanding serving portions.

However, most low-carb dieters who entered the fold with the 2002 version of the Atkins Diet reject most of those new ideas. Like the individual who left a comment about Cleo's plate graphic, they have no problem screaming "peas are evil," even though it isn't true.


The version they grew up with works for them, so that’s the diet they want to keep following. 

Nothing wrong with that. 

I just wish that more of them would extend the same courtesy to those of us who entered the fold with the 1970 and 1992 versions because it can be quite lonely sitting out on that limb.