Starting in the early 1970s, the good doctor penned 15 books extolling the benefits of a low-carbohydrate diet.

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Currently, Papalia is keeping close watch on people who are trying the high-protein, low complex-carbohydrate carb diet popularized by Dr. Robert C.

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He also modified his extremely low-carbohydrate or no-carb diet -- and focused on how much food he was eating.

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They are generally less sweet than sucrose (table sugar), so they are often mixed with very sweet artificial sweeteners like aspartame, sucralose and acesulfame potassium, to form a palatable substitute in low sugar, low carbohydrate, and diabetic or "diet" products.

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Indeed, it pays to remember that the first modern fad diet William Banting's low-carbohydrate regimen appeared in 1863, at the peak of Great Britian's imperial power.

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Nor does the market for low-carbohydrate products necessarily depend on the continuing success of the Atkins diet.

ECONOMIST: Dieting