Rating some top-selling diet books

You finally made the commitment and you're ready for a diet -- but what's next? Before you rush out to get the latest diet book, make sure you know what you're getting.

Nutritionist Leslie Beck joined Balance Television host Dr. Marla Shapiro to discuss the pros and cons of four of the most popular diet books out on the market.

Beck rated the four best-sellers using a five-star system that breaks down as follows:

1 star = if the diet contains healthy foods or is nutritionally adequate
2 stars = if it's easy to follow and not cumbersome in terms of measuring
3 stars = if it educates about portion sizes and menu planning
4 stars = if it is sustainable over the long term
5 stars = if it also promotes exercise and other important factors associated with weight loss success

As such, Beck's five-star rating is about making a lifestyle change, not a quick-fix success.

The Atkins Diet

Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution by Dr. Robert Atkins

"This diet...is a low-carb diet," Beck explained. "For two weeks you basically give up carbohydrate foods. That means no dairy products, no fruit, no sweet vegetables and no starchy foods like grains, cereals, pasta, that kind of thing."

It promotes high animal-fat foods such as meats, creams and butters, Beck said. After the induction phase it's called ongoing weight loss where people gradually add back in five grams of carbohydrates every week. That's the cumbersome part, she explained. You constantly have to be counting all the carbs in your diet.

"Some of the drawbacks of this diet are that it's not sustainable in the long term," Beck said. "Eventually people will be adding back in carbs and what I've seen in my practice is people are doing that with high-fat foods as well. We know that a long-term intake of meat may increase the risk of colon and prostate cancer and there are experts that are very concerned that if you follow this diet for a long time, you're not getting fruits, vegetables, fibres, antioxidants, you may increase your risk for heart disease."

Beck's rating = 1-1/2 stars

The South Beach Diet

The South Beach Diet by Arthur Agatston

"It's a healthier version of the Atkins Diet," Beck said. "For two weeks again you're in induction; so no carbohydrate containing foods. But what this diet does after those two weeks is promote low glycemic index -- the healthier carbohydrates that take longer to digest, things like fruits, dairy products, whole grains."

It doesn't, she said, promote foods that are high in animal fat. Instead it suggests things such as fish, chicken and healthy fats.

"From that standpoint it's much healthier (than the Atkins Diet), it contains mostly healthy foods, it's easy to follow. The drawbacks of this diet, I found, is that it doesn't really educate very well about portion size when you add back in those healthy carbs, or menu planning as well."

Beck's rating = 3 stars