LAWRENCE, Kan. — Dr. Mary Vernon of Lawrence, Kan., coauthor of The Atkins Diabetes Revolution, is headed to prison after a judge sentenced her to three and a half years behind bars for not paying taxes on nearly $800,000 in income.

Vernon, 62, also was the medical director for a number of Kansas nursing homes. Although Vernon may have been good at professing the benefits of following a low-carb diet, prosecutors said she was lousy at following federal law. She was convicted of evading tax collectors in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008.

The judge orderd Vernon to pay more than $299,000 in restitution. According to court records, Vernon has a history of toruble with the IRS dating back to the early 1990s.

Also in trouble with the feds, is naturopath Wesley Vernon Delport. He’s the owner of Abundant Health & Wellness in Springfield, MO. According to a federal indictment, Delport failed to report more than $4 million in income to the IRS.

The indictment accused Delport, who sells medical supplements, of attempting to hide his earnings in a bank account belonging to the Shammah Foundation.

According to the Feds, Delport created the foundation to “promote the kingdom of God, all righteousness and the principles of liberty and justice.”

The feds say Delport paid his personal bills from the foundation’s account. The feds also charged Alton Louis Vaughn of Greene County with helping Delport defraud the IRS.