CarbSmart!

I take a few minutes out from my frenzied race to the deadline for 500 Paleo Recipes to make an excited announcement:

Carbsmart, with which I have had a relationship for well over a decade now, is announcing today a change in mission and business model. CarbSmart will no longer be a retail site. Instead, we will focus on information and lots of it -- everything from the latest research to success stories to product reviews. I will be expanding my role of Managing Editor, including recruiting new writers in our quest to become the largest and most trusted source of low carb information on the internet.

Here's the official press release:

CarbSmart Announces New Direction to Reach Wider Audience, Expands Online Magazine

Sparks, NV (PRWEB) April 16, 2012 CarbSmart, the leading resource of information about the low-carb lifestyle and popular online retailer of low-carb products, is tightening its focus in order to bring the low-carb, diabetic, and Paleo lifestyles to more people who will most benefit from them.

On April 13, 2012, CarbSmart closed its online store and turned its focus to reaching millions more people with its message about the benefits of the low carb lifestyle. “We’re building a supportive community of people who successfully live the low carb lifestyle and help others learn how easy it is to do,” says company founder and president Andrew DiMino. The company’s goal is to reach 5 million new readers within the next 12 months by delivering honest, reliable information about how to live a healthier life through the low-carb, diabetic-friendly approach to healthy eating.

During its 13-year history, CarbSmart has helped nearly 15 million people worldwide benefit from and adopt the low-carb lifestyle. “We’ve helped people from all walks of life learn how to eat healthier and achieve their ideal weight the low carb way,” says DiMino. “However, there’s more to be done and we’re ready to take the company to the next level to do it.”

The next level is to bring news of the low-carb lifestyle to everyone who can benefit from it. This is critically important according to DiMino who points out that in spite of the many diets and exercise programs now available, obesity is not beating a retreat. Instead, obesity is steadily on the rise with more than 35.7 percent of the U.S. population today considered obese compared with only 28.1 percent in 1999 when CarbSmart first opened its online store.

In addition, Type 2 diabetes is increasing at alarming rates. More than 11 percent of adults and one in every 400 children have diabetes. And 35 percent of the population in the United States is at risk of diabetes with more than 25 percent of adults 65 and older already having diabetes.

The company’s decision to close its online store and focus on building a strong, supportive, online community was the result of a lot of thought and research. DiMino, who admits to struggling with being overweight his entire life, started CarbSmart after successfully losing weight on the low carb diet popularized by Dr. Robert Atkins. DiMino was so pleased with his success with the Atkins Diet that he determined to make healthy, low carb foods more widely available to others who were seeking a healthier way to eat and manage their weight.

“Providing low-carb products is only the first half of the equation to winning the war with obesity,” says DiMino. “The second half is helping people obtain reliable information, so they can make educated, informed choices about which products are best for them, how to make the right diet choices, and how to easily make the low-carb lifestyle part of their daily lives, even when they’re working or on vacation.”

Running an online store and publishing a magazine are two different businesses and one often took DiMino’s time away from the other. DiMino says he’s excited about pursuing his passion for helping people learn about and live the lifestyle that’s right for them, be it low carb, diabetic, or Paleo, so they can live healthier, happier lives.

CarbSmart has introduced its customers to thousands of products over the years and its online magazine has consistently provided detailed, up-to-date articles about low-carb products, diets, and healthy living tips. The magazine’s 800-article archive will continue to be available free to anyone who visits the CarbSmart (www.carbsmart.com) web site.

The transition from online retailer to online information source was a logical one, according to DiMino because it will allow him and his team to focus on building a strong online community where like-minded individuals can learn and share information about the low carb lifestyle and its benefits.

“CarbSmart Magazine will continue to regularly provide free, up-to-date and unbiased information about the low carb lifestyle,” says managing editor Dana Carpender, who is also a best-selling low-carb author and columnist. “We’re expanding our focus to cover such topics as how to be successful on a low-carb diet and how to control or eliminate diabetes. We also will continue to evaluate and report on the latest research and information about living a healthy life by eating low-carb, diabetic, and Paleo diets. We intend to report on how to eat healthy while traveling and provide readers with practical tips about how to incorporate healthy living into every aspect of their daily lives.” Carpender, who blogs regularly at HoldtheToast.com, adds that CarbSmart is developing video cooking demonstrations, webinars, and podcasts to provide information that will help the magazine’s readers achieve their healthy eating goals.

“We’ve partnered with the best low carb online retailers to ensure that our current customers will continue to have access to their favorite low carb products,” says DiMino. CarbSmart.com will earn money, not from sales of low carb foods, but from affiliate links posted on the site and in the magazine’s articles.

These partnerships will expand CarbSmart’s product base and make shopping faster and easier for the company’s current loyal customers and the magazine’s new readers.

Customers can still reach CarbSmart at 877-279-7091 or via email at customerservice@carbsmart.com.

Back to the manuscript!