Many have compared the South Beach Diet to the hugely popular Atkins Diet, the diet that allows dieters to eat fat and proteins while cutting back on such additives as refined sugar. But, the South Beach Diet claims to be different than the Atkins Diet in one major way: It’s better for your heart, at least according to the author of the South Beach Diet, cardiologist Dr. Arthur Agatston.

The South Beach Diet, like the Atkins Diet, has dieters drastically cut back on their intake of carbohydrates. That means many of your favorite foods will be off limits for both the first two weeks of the diet and permanently thereafter. Among those foods that you cannot eat, most notably during the first 14 days you’re on the diet, include fruit, cereal, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, corn, carrots, and beets.

Perhaps one of the biggest selling points of the South Beach Diet, despite its many restrictions, is the fact that Dr. Agatston claims that dieters can lose as many as 13 pounds during the initial two weeks of the diet with weight loss being between one and two pounds a week thereafter.

The biggest problem some experts have with the South Beach Diet is the fact that dieters can lose considerable weight in the first two weeks whereas it’s often considered much safer to lose approximately only one to two pounds a week. Still, many medical experts agree that the South Beach Diet ensures that dieters have all the foods they need for a well-balanced diet.

Unlike the Atkins Diet, the South Beach Diet bans all unhealthy fats while concentrating on good fats. There are three phases to the South Beach Diet:

#1) In the first phase of the South Beach Diet, which runs for two weeks, you are unable to each such foods, as mentioned above, as pasta, bread, potatoes, fruit, and milk. You are also unable to eat sugar, cookies, cake, and candy. You also have to steer clear of alcohol. Rather, you’ll eat eggs, cheese, chicken, fish and meat.

#2) The second phase of the South Beach Diet allows you to eat fruit, cereals that are whole grain, pasta, low-fat milk, and some breads. You’ll follow phase two of the diet until you hit your ideal weight.

#3) By the time you enter the final phase, you’ll already have hit your ideal weight, and your goal will now be to stay at that weight. In phase three, you can eat more protein, fruit, vegetables, whole grains, olives, olive oil, and nuts.

One feature of the South Beach Diet is your meal portions aren’t restricted. You simply eat the normal portion size, which is designed to fill you up. In addition, the South Beach Diet allows you to snack.

Before you start a new diet, including the South Beach Diet, consult with your doctor or a dietician. A dietician will be able to help you tailor the South Beach Diet to your exact nutritional needs. Diet experts point out that, especially in the first two weeks of the diet, most of your weight loss will be water loss, which could lead to problems such as an electrolyte imbalance. Be sure to discuss the diet with a medical professional before you start following it.