The media reports debunking the Atkins diet led to a steep, second quarter sales decline at Natrol Inc. For the period ended June 30, Natrol’s revenues decreased 5.2 percent to $19.6 million, from $20.7 million in the second quarter of 2004. Net income for the Chatsworth-based maker of dietary supplements decreased to $291,000 from $769,000 in the same period last year. “The fall of Carb Intercept has been one of the sharpest product declines in the history of the company, making it both stunning and unusual,” said Elliott Balbert, Natrol’s chairman and president. Carb Intercept, a supplement that inhibits the enzyme that helps to digest starchy foods, was introduced in 2002. Sales grew in the next two years but plummeted in 2005 as the effectiveness of the Atkins diet and other no-carb diets came into question. Natrol noted that Carb Intercept nonetheless accounted for $900,000 in sales in the first half of 2005.
