Atkins crumbles, other diets appear in its wake

• Some are eating like French women --- who never get fat, according to one best seller.
• Or they're taking their cues from celebrities like Suzanne Somers.
• This week's bankruptcy filing by the late Dr. Robert C. Atkins' old company provide fresh evidence of the low-carb diet's demise, a downward spiral that began early last year.
• But no single new diet has filled the void.
• Chapter 11 filings by Atkins Nutritionals Inc. on Monday came about a year and a half after books like "The Atkins Essentials" rode the best seller charts, bread makers were back on their heels and Burger King introduced a Whopper without a bun.
• But Atkins has been in decline since February 2004, said Harry Balzer, a food industry analyst at market researcher NPD Group.
• Balzer claims Atkins was one of those demanding diets that simply ran its course, going from fad to fade like so many others before it, including the Scarsdale and the cabbage soup diets.
• By September 2004, surplus low-carb products were being shipped to food banks in Appalachia.
• People who watch diet trends say there's a lull right now --- what Dr. Christine Gerbstadt of the American Dietetic Association calls a "slump in diet trends."
• Also on the Times' best seller list is "French Women Don't Get Fat," in which Mireille Guiliano argues that the French are able to eat croissants and chocolate without ballooning because they take time to savor flavors and eat judiciously.
• On Amazon, the No. 18 book Tuesday was "The 3-Hour Diet" from Jorge Cruise, who recommends timing meals and snacks to lose weight.
• Also popular is "volumetrics," which promotes eating filling foods with fewer calories, like fruits and brown rice.
• Many point to recent government dietary guidelines, which emphasize fruits, vegetables and whole grains --- and watching calories.