I'd tend to agree, Atkins has drifted pretty far from what it was good for.

Though honestly, I think it started to lose its way when it stopped being primarily an educator, through books, and instead became yet another corporate food entity. Money and profit not at all a bad thing, of course, but when you get into a world where income streams, profitability and the "next big thing" is your priority, you lose your way when your purpose was originally to educate and inform.

Dr Atkins basic work and original book was spot-on. Critics decry it as the "bacon&butter" diet, but honestly, even when I read it years and years ago, I totally remember the veggies and fruits in it. [Though it did warn against the high sugar fruits too often.] Atkins/low carb was really one of the early Paleo/Primal diets imho. At least one of the first I was exposed to.

And years later, if you take the time to keep following up, the fundamentals remain true - carbohydrates drive insulin drive fat storage. Period.

Ultimately, what you should eat is real food. Real meats, vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds [real dairy, too.] The further you get away from that, the more "processed" your diet, the worse it's going to be for you.

[And hat tip to probably the best book on healthy eating and lifestyle I've read of late - Mark Sisson's Primal Blueprint.]

Though I'll admit that at those times when I'm craving a processed candy bar-like substance or shake, Atkins, or other low carb processed junk food does fill that emotional/nostalgic/taste bud void, usually with slightly less detrimental effect than the full sugar bomb version. You just have to know what you're doing. If you're compromising, be aware of the compromise.

Free the Animal: Atkins: Lost Souls:

"The Atkins organization ("Nutritionals," et al) is, I believe, doing a tremendous disservice to the great work done by its pioneer, Dr. Robert Atkins.

Frankly: that company sells virtually nothing but processed crap. Bars & shakes loaded with soy, artificial sweeteners, unpronounceable, mystery ingredients, and other Bad Stuff®.

...Here's the ingredients for the baking mix: "Wheat Gluten, Whole Grain Soy Flour, Modified Wheat Starch, Unprocessed Wheat Bran. CONTAINS WHEAT AND SOY." And the penne pasta: "Enriched Semolina (Semolina, Niacin, Iron (Ferrous Sulfate), Thiamin Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin (Vitamin B2, Folic Acid), Modified Wheat Starch, Wheat Gluten, Wheat Protein Isloate. CONTAINS WHEAT."

Soy has no place whatsoever in the human diet (please see here and here). And, neither does wheat, or grains in general.

...You know what? I knew Atkins' basic approach worked as far back as 1990, 19 years ago. how many times did I try it and fail? Oh, at least a half dozen, and the most I ever went was maybe three months. The focus was all wrong: low carb. In other words, the focus is on a method and not a principle -- such principle being that we evolved to eat Real Food, and not wheat, soy, and a laundry list of artificial flavors, preservatives and who knows what all else. By focussing on method and not principle, you'll never fix the one thing that will keep most of you failing or miserable: hunger. There is no more sure, effective way to reset your hunger drive than with a natural diet. Atkins is doing its best to keep you on a modern diet, just one a bit lower in carbohydrate."