Paleo Diet: Raw Paleo Diet and Lifestyle Forum
Raw Paleo Diet to Suit You => Omnivorous Raw Paleo Diet => Topic started by: Suiren on January 16, 2013, 10:33:15 pm
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I recently posted about hormone related issues and PMS. One thing that I thought was hormone related was my recent hair loss.
But now I had it stop several times for a few days, which makes me think it is not necessarily all hormones.
One day I got in contact with wheat on accident. I had ordered all meat but it seems the chicken was lightly coated in flour. I react to it Celiacs do. I get really sick, stomach pains, nausea, pains in joints and muscles, brain fog, acne, and the last time ai also noticed hair loss, after it had been gone for 4 days.
It stopped after 1 1/2 days and I started feeling more normal again too.
But I also had this when I did not eat any wheat, so I don't think it is only that. Maybe my body reacts to something else (the only "cheat" food I had when out was peanuts, but I have been on a very strict diet). It might also be a lack of something, I don't eat a lot of meat due to the costs, but I thought enough to be okay, once or twice a day about two to three pieces (not sure of the grams).
My PMS was better this time when I ovulated, like almost not there and my acne has improved dramatically since taking milk thistle, burdock root, DIM and chasteberry. My hair loss was reduced, but not stopped when increasing my Vit. D3 intake from 2000 to 5000 IU. Not sure if more Vit. D would help, it is a lot to take with supplements, but increasing it naturally never worked for me. That said, the hair loss was gone for a while on 2000 IU, so I don't think that alone is the problem either.
What else could be a cause for on and off hair loss?
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I and a few others have noticed some hair-loss after going rawpalaeo. This might be an unfortunate example of detox. The hair-loss reported seems always to be a case of overall, slight to moderate thinning in certain areas, rather than specific areas going completely bald.
Since hair-loss is not an issue for me and switching back to SAD diets involves a lot of health-problems recurring, I'm happy with my current situation re hair. However, if others have any suggestions, I'm happy to hear them, if they are of a natural, non-processed kind.
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Do you think it could appear almost a year later? I have been sticking to my diet pretty well since early 2012, with just rare cheating (back then I hardly reacted) and lately I have not cheated at all.
My hair was fine until late fall pretty much. I have lost a lot already.
I have been paranoid about getting in contact with any wheat/ gluten/ grains lately because I react to the tiniest amount of it. I can't even touch bread.
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I had never thought about the connection between hair loss and diet before, but now that you bring it up my hair has gotten noticeably thinner over the years since raw foods, particularly raw animal foods, came to dominate my diet. I personally don't have a problem with it. I dislike hair, and would be quite happy if my hair, minus perhaps my eyebrows and eyelashes, which service useful purposes, were to fall out.
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Umh... okay...I like my hair.
I read some People that eat a regular Paleo Diet experience hair loss with either low or high carb. Depending on the person.
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I'm fairly moderate in my carb intake, with most of it coming in the form of raw brain and fermented vegetables. Not sure how valuable that piece of information is, but I thought I'd offer it.
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Mine has been lower lately, I used to eat honey plus sweet potato plus carrots.
Not sure if the decrease could be contributing to it. I only eat honey now, about 3-4 tbs a day.
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Me also I lost a lot of hair :P. Realized it some weeks ago. Never had thin hair, never lost hair visible. Now I see my hair all over the place, on my coat and shirts????
I'm more or less raw for some years now, had never a problem with it. I thought it might be too much selenium. Coconut has a lot of it and I ate so much coconut all year. one coconut more or less per day.
Also I am very much on a seafood diet, eating loads of seafood everyday, also fish-eggs, clams, fishheads, things like this superhigh in selenium.
Or is it the low carb thing I try again and again and fail.
Everytime I go low carb it makes me thick and I lose a lot of musclemass.
It seems that my body is not able to thrive on low carb.
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Are you still experiencing hair loss right now?
I eat a lot of coconut flour pancakes (egg + coconut flour), about 4tbs. But it never caused me problems. Only thing I changed was that I have been eating less veggies, carrot, sweet potato bc it did not help weight gain.
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Are you still experiencing hair loss right now?
I eat a lot of coconut flour pancakes (egg + coconut flour), about 4tbs. But it never caused me problems. Only thing I changed was that I have been eating less veggies, carrot, sweet potato bc it did not help weight gain.
Coconut is very good for losing weight. Is that your goal? Why are you eating so much coconut?
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No, I am trying to gain weight so I eat my fat and carbs (butter and honey) on pure coconut bread. I did not know it causes weight loss. It is the only "flour" I can digest.
My problems may be related to my thyroid though actually. My doctor called with bad news and said I need to start on medication again.
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No, I am trying to gain weight so I eat my fat and carbs (butter and honey) on pure coconut bread. I did not know it causes weight loss. It is the only "flour" I can digest.
My problems may be related to my thyroid though actually. My doctor called with bad news and said I need to start on medication again.
Generally weight-gain problems happen with an OVER-active thyroid, not underactive. However, some people with a weak thyroid are very thin.
I would try combining your fats and carbs with either some vegetable matter (like celery), or with a little bit of lean meat or fish.
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I know, Hashi's usually gain fast. I think my problems with not gaining weight might be related to my past diet and the ability to absorb nutrients and calories might have been impaired. I have been doing better, I gained a little and have been maintaining on less calories after fasting just a little.
I am also taking herbal supplements to detox the liver.
So you think the coconut flour may be bad? I have been able to make raw flat breads from it in a dehydrator (takes ages)
I have been doing better on it than before and it helps me add about 4 eggs to my diet a day. I started gaining when I started eating lots of honey with it too.
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I know, Hashi's usually gain fast. I think my problems with not gaining weight might be related to my past diet and the ability to absorb nutrients and calories might have been impaired. I have been doing better, I gained a little and have been maintaining on less calories after fasting just a little.
I am also taking herbal supplements to detox the liver.
So you think the coconut flour may be bad? I have been able to make raw flat breads from it in a dehydrator (takes ages)
I have been doing better on it than before and it helps me add about 4 eggs to my diet a day. I started gaining when I started eating lots of honey with it too.
Coconut really speeds up the metabolism. I wouldn't recommend it to ANYONE who was having trouble gaining weight.
As an example, I am about 5'8" tall and around 140 pounds. when I was in Costa Rica, eating lots of raw coconut, I'm pretty sure I got down to around 110 pounds, or even a little less. I was still strong and felt good, but I was really thin.
In fact, there are a lot of diet books that use coconut and coconut oil as their main method of losing weight.
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i would take out the honey and replace it with more protein and some fats. i notice that when i eat anything that is sugary (honey, carrots, sprouted corn tortillas) along with fats during a meal overwhelms my insulin, my body inflames, i lose hair (although dairy like raw soured cream, does not seem to induce inflamation, only weight gain). i have been gradually cutting out almost all carbs, except from eggs, green leafy veggies, green olives, and lemon juice and feel better, more even energy, better skin, less hair loss, level mood. i even had a period after almost 3 years. when i have uped my carbs for a day or so my eyes get very dry, i have no energy, i feel like my skin is gritty and i seem to shed more hair get more little whiskers on my chin. supplementation with gelatin (and a few other nutrients for myself personally) has helped a great amount in growing back hair and keeping it. i also sprinkle my food with kelp powder, or eat raw dulse (frontier or maine coast brand) and add liberal amounts of salt, i am sure i am not iodine deficient at this point.
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Coconut really speeds up the metabolism. I wouldn't recommend it to ANYONE who was having trouble gaining weight.
As an example, I am
about 5'8" tall and around 140 pounds. when I was in Costa Rica, eating lots of raw coconut, I'm pretty sure I got down to around 110 pounds, or even a little less. I was still strong and felt good, but I was really thin.
In fact, there are a lot of diet books that use coconut and coconut oil as their main method of losing weight.
I never knew! Weird that I gained weight on it. Who knows, I might be fat without it ;)
It helped me consume a lot of fat without getting nauseated.
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i would take out the honey and replace it with more protein and some fats. i notice that when i eat anything that is sugary (honey, carrots, sprouted corn tortillas) along with fats during a meal overwhelms my insulin, my body inflames, i lose hair (although dairy like raw soured cream, does not seem to induce inflamation, only weight gain). i have been gradually cutting out almost all carbs, except from eggs, green leafy veggies, green olives, and lemon juice and feel better, more even energy, better skin, less hair loss, level mood. i even had a period after almost 3 years. when i have uped my carbs for a day or so my eyes get very dry, i have no energy, i feel like my skin is gritty and i seem to shed more hair get more little whiskers on my chin. supplementation with gelatin (and a few other nutrients for myself personally) has helped a great amount in growing back hair and keeping it. i also sprinkle my food with kelp powder, or eat raw dulse (frontier or maine coast brand) and add liberal amounts of salt, i am sure i am not iodine deficient at this point.
About how much fat, carbs and protein should one eat when wanting to gain weight?
A while back I had a thread here about not being able to gain weight and I was told that to gain I need some carbs. But I never knew how much exactly, so I worty I added too many carbs into my diet.
I thought honey was the kind of sugar that is okay. What amount would be okay anyway? So it could have spiked my insulin and have caused the inflammation I am dealing with possibly?
That would really suck if it was self inflicted.
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What part of raw paleo diet could cause hair loss? My hair is still intact, but I don't want to lose any part of it.
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What part of raw paleo diet could cause hair loss? My hair is still intact, but I don't want to lose any part of it.
I don't think it is my diet. It only started after 10 months into the diet.
My guess was it is related to postpartum hormones, since I got my period back and the body needs to regulate things again.
The right nutrition and vitamins keep the hair loss down a bit for me.
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But I never knew how much exactly, so I worty I added too many carbs into my diet.
I thought honey was the kind of sugar that is okay. What amount would be okay anyway? So it could have spiked my insulin and have caused the inflammation I am dealing with possibly?
That would really suck if it was self inflicted.
for me personally honey, especially 3-4 tbsps would cause high blood sugar and imflamation, i am super carb sensitive and really in any form they are not ok unless i am having extreme physical demands(riding bike/hiking upwards 20 miles a day, farm labor) and even then it is not something i would be able to tolerate daily. like i said before, if you do experiment with lower carb you will lose water weight, but you should be able to keep all fat and muscle if you keep fully hydrated with broths and lots of seaweeds/salts/potassium/cal/mag. add gelatin, multivitamin, fermented CLO. i went over it in the other post pretty throughly, you are the only one who is going to be able to figure out what works for you, but as far as im concerned, going lower carb (less then 50g a day) is a really excellent way to regulate hormones.
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I see. :) thank you! Where should I get the potassium, calcium and magnesium from?
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Are you still experiencing hair loss right now?
Yes I'm still loosing some hair I think -\
I don't eat so much coconut any more.
The hair loss might be caused by my extremely low weight.
My hormones are quite low, having Amenorrea for some time.
I change my diet every other day, I feel a bit lost.
Nothing seems to work. I always have to fight not to loose even more weight.
For some days now I tried low fat, moderate protein, high carb because I had so much inflammation in my body quite dangerous, and it did not stop.
But with all this carbs I have blood sugar probems, I'm bloated, have water retention and I'm always hungry :P
Today I tried just huge salads with lots of fish and oil. Oliveoil and Coconutoil and lots of spices.
Feel better like this.
Jesica, where can I find your post about low carb, keto you mentioned.
Can I go keto with fat manly from fatty fish, olive oil and coconut oil?
I have some problems with beef and wild boar fat (ever the highest quality) it always made me very thick after some time. I can not do a lot of eggs, gives me inflammation.
I thought I can be low carb because of this problems but carb based I can not live neither because I'm supercarbsensitive, diabetic I think
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oh my god, this is so frightening.
I just took my BG and it was 213 1/2 hour after dinner.
I had 3 huge salads today, lots of lettuce with onions, fennel, cabbage, carrots, leek, garlic, lemon with the peel and kohlrabi, with every salad ca 200 gr of Fish and Clams and lots of olive and cocosoel on top.
I felt so great and my belly is calm but BG is totally high.
It was the same last week with lots of macadamianuts and coconutoil and fatty fish and veggies. My Bg in the evening was 240 and in the morning still 130.
After it I cut out all fat and managed to stay under 110 all the time. Had lots of veggies, the green ones mainly, raw and cooked, with fatty fish in every meal.
I don't understand it??????????
Adora, what is going on here?
Sorry I don't want to change the subject here, l) Please help. I don't want to caramelise -[
Suiren, do you ever took your BG? I started now and I'm totally amazed. Might be the reason why I have such an issue gaining weight.
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I think it's normal that blood sugar is high after a meal.. you should measure it fasted in the morning to determine if there's some problem.
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I think it's normal that blood sugar is high after a meal.. you should measure it fasted in the morning to determine if there's some problem.
She did... she reported that her fasting blood sugar was 130. That is not in the right range.
Little Elefant, you apparently knew that something was wrong or else you wouldn't have tested your BG levels. If I were you, I would go to a doctor for blood tests and more information. Then you can decide whether you want to go it alone or use proper diet in addition to what the doctor advises. If you want the knowledge to help yourself, read Dr. Richard K. Bernstein's book, Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution.
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LittleElefant
I never measure my blood sugar. Last it was measured in pregnancy and normal.
I don't know anything on the subject really. I hope you can figure out what causes the spike. It is hard to imagine fat could do it...:/
So you don't get any fat from butter or suet? I think I could not keep my weight or gain if it wasn't for the butter. I have been more stable weight wise even though I now consume less calories.
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suiren/littleelefant have either of you ever had your cortisol levels tested? or any other hormones, estrogen, testosterone, dhea? do you feel high anxiety? find it hard to relax? feel like you respond dramatically to certain things? how are your sleep patterns?
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Yes I'm still loosing some hair I think -\
I don't eat so much coconut any more.
The hair loss might be caused by my extremely low weight.
My hormones are quite low, having Amenorrea for some time.
I change my diet every other day, I feel a bit lost.
Nothing seems to work. I always have to fight not to loose even more weight.
For some days now I tried low fat, moderate protein, high carb because I had so much inflammation in my body quite dangerous, and it did not stop.
But with all this carbs I have blood sugar probems, I'm bloated, have water retention and I'm always hungry :P
Today I tried just huge salads with lots of fish and oil. Oliveoil and Coconutoil and lots of spices.
Feel better like this.
Jesica, where can I find your post about low carb, keto you mentioned.
Can I go keto with fat manly from fatty fish, olive oil and coconut oil?
I have some problems with beef and wild boar fat (ever the highest quality) it always made me very thick after some time. I can not do a lot of eggs, gives me inflammation.
I thought I can be low carb because of this problems but carb based I can not live neither because I'm supercarbsensitive, diabetic I think
There was a period of time in my life when my weight was too low and I lost much hair. When I came to my senses I ate a lot of seaweeds and my hair loss was reversed.
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suiren/littleelefant have either of you ever had your cortisol levels tested? or any other hormones, estrogen, testosterone, dhea? do you feel high anxiety? find it hard to relax? feel like you respond dramatically to certain things? how are your sleep patterns?
Last I had it tested was when I was 19 and my doctor put me on the birth control pill.
I sleep pretty good, doze off within seconds and feel rested after about 7 hrs.
I think I am a little too relaxed at times - sluggish, but it has bettered with my diet change. No anxiety.
I just figured out that my iron supplements contain ferric instead of ferrous iron. I was taking Prenatal Vitamins until recently (ferrous fumarate), but then switched to German iron tablets.
When I noticed hair loss i first suspected iron, took my prenatals again for a few days to find for a German brand that is dosed higher (28mg).
My hair loss had stopped then, but later continued on the German iron tablets. I will have my ferritin levels tested thursday, along with other vitamins. Which ones would be most important?
I was told my insurance does not pay for having hormone levels tested ...wtf.
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Last I had it tested was when I was 19 and my doctor put me on the birth control pill.
These birth control drugs cause a lot of malnutrition and imbalances.
How long were you on them?
Are you still on them?
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Hi LittleElephant !
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These birth control drugs cause a lot of malnutrition and imbalances.
How long were you on them?
Are you still on them?
For about 7 years, but I haven't used it because of the bad effects since 2009. When I stopped I experienced hormonal problems for the first time, especially hair loss and I was also diagnosed with Hashimoto's and the Pituitary tumor.
I am not on any other birth control either, I don't want hormones or copper or any of that.
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These birth control drugs cause a lot of malnutrition and imbalances.
How long were you on them?
Are you still on them?
For about 7 years, but I haven't used it because of the bad effects since 2009. When I stopped I experienced hormonal problems for the first time, especially hair loss and I was also diagnosed with Hashimoto's and the Pituitary tumor.
I am not on any other birth control either, I don't want hormones or copper or any of that.
7 years of birth control pills seems to be the primary cause of your problems.
Maybe it will help if you told us the brand of birth control pills you used.
We can check on the experiences of others who suffered side effects.
Who knows, you might even be able to claim damages from the birth control pill manufacturer.
The primary hurdle is to be 100% RAW paleo diet with high quality foods and variety in the right proportions.
What do your smell instincts tell you?
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For about 7 years, but I haven't used it because of the bad effects since 2009. When I stopped I experienced hormonal problems for the first time, especially hair loss and I was also diagnosed with Hashimoto's and the Pituitary tumor.
I am not on any other birth control either, I don't want hormones or copper or any of that.
7 years of birth control pills seems to be the primary cause of your problems.
Maybe it will help if you told us the brand of birth control pills you used.
We can check on the experiences of others who suffered side effects.
Who knows, you might even be able to claim damages from the birth control pill manufacturer.
The primary hurdle is to be 100% RAW paleo diet with high quality foods and variety in the right proportions.
What do your smell instincts tell you?
I was on the german pill "Belara", the manufacturers name is Grunenthal I think. It has more progesterone than other products and the claims were it is beneficial for skin and hair. That is why my doctor wanted me to take it. I had some hair loss and skin problems. They went away and I never had proble while on the pill.
What do yous mean by smell instincts?
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Smell Instincts... I was referring to Instincto / Instinctive eating.
There is a section in this forum.
Eveheart and Iguana is into it.
Your body may instinctively know what it needs right now.
You can do this if you are 100% raw.
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Yes I know instincto! I think my instincts are mostly dead because my body only craves bad foods ;)
Sometimes fruit too, like apple, but rarely meat.
Last time when I tried eating more raw foods I had trouble absorbing them. Could this be because I am still healing? My problems were stomach pain and rapid weight loss.
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I would suggest you do the basic detoxes:
- colon cleanse
http://www.curemanual.com/detox-protocols-and-treatments/colon-cleansing/ (http://www.curemanual.com/detox-protocols-and-treatments/colon-cleansing/)
A foreign equivalent may be colosan or oxypowder or castor oil but they are not the same as our local Dr. Tam's Miracle Tea.
- kidney cleanse
http://www.curemanual.com/detox-protocols-and-treatments/kidney-cleansing/ (http://www.curemanual.com/detox-protocols-and-treatments/kidney-cleansing/)
Avocado leaves tea, Watermelon Fast, Coconut juice fast.
- liver flushes (5x spaced 1-2 weeks apart)
http://www.curemanual.com/detox-protocols-and-treatments/liver-gall-bladder-flush/ (http://www.curemanual.com/detox-protocols-and-treatments/liver-gall-bladder-flush/)
apple juice+lemon+olive oil / without the apple juice or lemon+egg yolks or coffee enemas
You may also look into vco detox if you are not allergic to VCO... it will resolve the candida / yeast issues in 3 days. Candida is a very common side effect of long term birth control pill use. Candida makes people crave sweets. I for example today would not be able to consume the 3-4 tablespoons of raw honey you could and I consider myself an omnivore.
http://www.curemanual.com/detox-protocols-and-treatments/stomach-healing-intestinal-cleansing-yeast-elimination/virgin-coconut-oil-detox/ (http://www.curemanual.com/detox-protocols-and-treatments/stomach-healing-intestinal-cleansing-yeast-elimination/virgin-coconut-oil-detox/)
Once cleansed, the body is able to absorb nutrients properly.
For example this young lady I just helped again for the 3rd time with colon cleansing and her GERD.
She was losing weight fast and sickly and in foul moods.
2 weeks ago she finished her colon cleanse, I met her lately and she's bounced back in weight with a happy glow.
And she's on SAD.
http://www.myhealthblog.org/2013/01/19/gerd-cure-testimonial-for-the-3rd-time-with-dr-tams-miracle-tea/ (http://www.myhealthblog.org/2013/01/19/gerd-cure-testimonial-for-the-3rd-time-with-dr-tams-miracle-tea/)
I will be posting a new testimonial of colon cleansing with my driver. I just did the interview this morning.
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If you have not been eating fermented foods, you might want look into them as they will immensely help you absorb nutrients. Home made and they are cheap cheap cheap.
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Regarding baby / toddler safety of breast milk when doing colon cleanses, liver flushes or vco detox... you might look into breast pumping and storing your milk in the refrigerator / freezer. During the liver flush day and the following day, throw away your milk. On vco detox, during the 3 days and the 4th day, throw away your milk. During the colon cleanse day and the following day, throw away your milk.
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I will look into them! Can I do the liver cleanse while i am taking herbs for cleansing the liver and blood? (Milk thistle, burdock root) they have helped me a lot in terms of PMS and skin.
Which reminds me, my liver levels were supposedly elevated during my last blood test. Could this be because of my liver detoxing?
Are any of the detoxes okay while breastfeeding? I get very little milk with a pump. Definitely not enough for a day. The pump does not stimulte ny milk letdown well and I have not been able to pump and store since 3 months postpartum.
As an omnivore, is it still possible to keep the carbs low and the calories high? I am trying to figure out which is the best type of RPdiet for me.
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>> I will look into them! Can I do the liver cleanse while i am taking herbs for cleansing the liver and blood? (Milk thistle, burdock root) they have helped me a lot in terms of PMS and skin.
Those supplements are fine with liver flushing.
>> Which reminds me, my liver levels were supposedly elevated during my last blood test. Could this be because of my liver detoxing?
I'm not familiar with those test results.
>> Are any of the detoxes okay while breastfeeding? I get very little milk with a pump. Definitely not enough for a day. The pump does not stimulte ny milk letdown well and I have not been able to pump and store since 3 months postpartum.
You can try the AVENT brand of manual breast pumps, my wife swore by them. Maybe they have cheap China copies today.
You can produce more milk by eating:
- Malunggay Leaves supplements (in capsules)
- Making beef soup stocks
- Eating raw live clams or souped clams
>>As an omnivore, is it still possible to keep the carbs low and the calories high? I am trying to figure out which is the best type of RPdiet for me.
Raw omnivore can vary from very high carbs to very low carbs. What is bad is too high fructose, bad is too high protein. There are starchier fruits and root crops. You also need to follow the seasons. Winter weather I heard should be minimal fruit to none... though I have no experience with winter. I do know it helps to eat warming foods. Check the internet for warming foods. The chinese may have a good list.
You might as well try Inclined bed therapy to optimize your sleeping http://inclinedbedtherapy.com/ (http://inclinedbedtherapy.com/)
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I DO have enough milk, but pumps don't work for all women because it is a different kind of stimulation than a baby suckling. I have tried different pumps, electric and manual. I might have to wait with the cleanses because it will take time to pump enough milk with my problem. My son does also not drink from a bottle so that is the next hurdle. :/
Atm I am eating low carb correct? (59 g). I used to eat more carbs with sweet potato and carrots added to my diet, and I wonder if my body was doing better on it? Not sure if it is related, but my problems started after going low carb.
Do you know anything about heart palpitations? It is getting more frequent and I wonder what it is...
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extremely low carb is not for everyone.
although in the last food list you gave, that was not low carb.
Heart palpitations? I would look more at hydration.
I'm not a fan of plain water.
I usually put drops of lemon in the water.
Also try a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in the water.
Don't drink tap water.
If you need salt, get the best salt, like from blood, from clams the seawater in them, fermented fish, himalayan salt, sea salt, etc.
If you have hydration problems really... you can try the water cure (it comes with salt). See http://www.watercure2.org/ (http://www.watercure2.org/)
(http://www.watercure2.org/images/wc%20pain%20billboard2.jpg)
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Yes I know instincto! I think my instincts are mostly dead because my body only craves bad foods ;)
Sometimes fruit too, like apple, but rarely meat.
You didn’t read GCB’s book (http://www.reocities.com/HotSprings/7627/ggindex.html), did you ?
Since Neolithic, modern, cooked and processed foods are excluded, there’s no such things as “bad” or “good” foods in the instincto theory. Everything depends on the amount and the current state of the person.
Our cravings are driven by memory. As we all have eaten cooked stuff for years, ours cravings are totally distorted and unreliable. Instinctive nutrition doesn’t rely at all on cravings; as a matter of fact they should be completely discarded, especially during the first years. Smell and taste are the only reliable indicators, and it works for everyone from the first day on.
It’s even always at work ever since birth, but it is fooled by processed, mixed, cooked, Neolithic (dairy, cereals) and modern stuff.
Meat can smell and taste very different depending on the kind, part, state of freshness, etc. I’m extremely attracted by gamy meat ; after it’s been aged hung for a month or two in my fridge it becomes really delicious for me.
Last time when I tried eating more raw foods I had trouble absorbing them. Could this be because I am still healing? My problems were stomach pain and rapid weight loss.
Trouble is caused by raw foods ingested in excessive amount or of a kind which shouldn’t be eaten at all by the person in her current state.
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GS
I think my carb intake was still under 70 and having been on much higher carbs before that might have still been a big change for me?
I never had heart palpitations though and I have been drinking water and herbal tea...it would surprise me if I was suddenly dehydrated?
Palpitations are also a sign of a thyroid underfunction.
Iguana
Thank you for explaining!
I have been reading about low carb paleo and thyroid like problems related to it and I wanted to know what everyone thinks:
Some people (a very small percentage of my clients) who jump into low carb from a very high carb diet will experience some thyroid-like side effects a few weeks or few months after switching such as fatigue, coldness in extremities, hair-loss or other problems.
In my experience, these clients are also ones who went low-carb for weight-loss reasons and often have an underlying hormone issue to begin with.
For a long time, I considered this slow-transition a problem, and was able to find some things (adding more natural salt into the diet, taking magnesium and gelatin, etc) that made the transitions easier.
While these supplements do help the transition, and I’d recommend them anyway, a recent article by Dr. Cate Shanahan helped me understand why some individuals experience these thyroid like-symptoms after going low-carb for a while and explains why the slow-transition might actually be the best thing for these people.
Dr. Shanahan explains that advanced thyroid testing will often reveal that these individuals have an extremely elevated reverse T3 level (rT3) and at this point, most doctors will prescribe T3 and think that the problem is solved. Dr. Shanahan explains the rT3 has the opposite effect of regular T3 and essentially makes the body think it needs to hibernate and prepares for such (weight gain, fatigue, brain fog, etc).
She goes on to explain that this phenomenon is similar to bears before hibernation, and this drop in rT3 caused when berries and other readily available carbs disappear creates the fatigue needed for hibernation. Unfortunately, for those of us not interested in hibernation, this can be a problem.
If you are part of the group that suffers from severe carb flu when you remove carbs, or if you’ve gone low-carb for a while and then started to lose energy and gain weight, it’s possible that your rT3 is elevated.
Fortunately, while suddenly removing carbs shocks the system, doing it gradually often helps the system adjust. Dr. Shanahan recommends that patients who suffer from these symptoms go low-carb slowly beginning with breakfast and slowly reducing overall carbs over a period of time.
From what I’ve seen with my own clients, this can be helpful and necessary, especially for those who already have an underlying hormone struggle or who have a severe reaction to removing carbs.
Source: http://wellnessmama.com/4352/is-low-carb-healthy/ (http://wellnessmama.com/4352/is-low-carb-healthy/)
....
they develop fatigue, sometimes accompanied by symptoms of low thyroid function including cold extremities, hair loss, and digestive problems. Only by consuming more carbs again can they reduce these symptoms.
Because their fatigue and other symptoms are classic for thyroid malfunction, many will get their levels tested,....
(http://drcate.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/rt3-trigger.jpg)
The reason low carbing triggers thyroid changes
In doing research on rT3, I ran into a fascinating article on a group of little-understood compounds called thyronamines (pronounced thigh-row-na-meens). The key to understanding rT3, and unlocking the relationship between carbohydrate consumption and thyroid function, may lie in these newly discovered compounds.
Thyronamines have powerful effects on energy metabolism
Studies performed in 2010 showed that injecting thryronamines into the belly cavity or brain tissues of experimental animals cause the following physiologic and behavior changes:
Impaired ability to utilize sugar as an energy source
Insulin resistance
Lowered basal body temperature
Weaker than normal heart contractions
A marked decline in activity (We can’t ask the lab animals, but presumably this would be induced by what we would describe as feelings of extreme fatigue)....
Source: http://drcate.com/going-low-carb-too-fast-may-trigger-thyroid-troubles-and-hormone-imbalance/ (http://drcate.com/going-low-carb-too-fast-may-trigger-thyroid-troubles-and-hormone-imbalance/)
Could this be my problem? I checked my food diary (my fitness pal) and until September, when I felt great and had no PMS or hair loss (my periods were better then too), I was eating more carbs, mostly around 100 g, and more sugars from honey and fruits. My thyroid was doing fine too.
Then I got tired of carrots and sweet potato, and trying to gain weight with them, and so I stopped eating them abruptly.
Maybe after getting off of carbs from grains and pasta, it was too abrupt of a change to go on low carb paleo a half year later?
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Iguana
Thank you for explaining!
You’re welcome.
I have been reading about low carb paleo and thyroid like problems related to it and I wanted to know what everyone thinks:
I don’t know. I just wonder what the “low carb” and “zero carb” ideologies have to do with a “paleo diet”. I fail to see any relation because the sorting of nutrients between protein, fats and carbohydrates is modern knowledge which our ancestors of the Paleolithic era had absolutely no idea about. Thus there was no way they could have any sort of “zero carb” or “low carb” diet. They must have eaten whatever they found that smelled and tasted fine — not excluding a transmission of information between them (elder and younger) for a quicker learning of which stuff were the most palatable, where and how to get them.
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Iguana
I agree, the only reason I ever looked into it was for weight gain, because I was hoping to gain a few pounds on Paleo when eating more carbs.
The way I was eating felt good to me, although my instincts are warped, because I crave a variety and naturally sweet foods (my son does too, he likes meat but wants a lot of fruits and sweet, flavorful veggies, herbs and roots. He never had any standard food and we always offered plain.
I hated fruits prior to eating Paleo, that has changed. I also hardly ate meat and I like it much better now. Maybe my instincts will eventually start working.
Anyhow, going from high carb SAD to low carb Paleo within six months might have not been a good idea? Way back people would have never encountered the problem of transition, I assume their carbs levels varied a bit, nothing drastic, which was normal to their bodies and it did jot cause problems?
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Iguana
I agree, the only reason I ever looked into it was for weight gain, because I was hoping to gain a few pounds on Paleo when eating more carbs.
The way I was eating felt good to me, although my instincts are warped, because I crave a variety and naturally sweet foods (my son does too, he likes meat but wants a lot of fruits and sweet, flavorful veggies, herbs and roots. He never had any standard food and we always offered plain.
I hated fruits prior to eating Paleo, that has changed. I also hardly ate meat and I like it much better now. Maybe my instincts will eventually start working.
Anyhow, going from high carb SAD to low carb Paleo within six months might have not been a good idea? Way back people would have never encountered the problem of transition, I assume their carbs levels varied a bit, nothing drastic, which was normal to their bodies and it did jot cause problems?
It would have been ok if instinctive.
I tell you, our alimentary instinct is our senses of smell and taste and it is always at work for everyone ever since birth. The problem is that it doesn’t work properly with mixed (for example, lemon juice on oysters is something completely artificial), cooked, processed and “new” foods such as dairy and heavily selected products, the worst being wheat.
Sweet foods are no evil as long as they are natural and raw. We’ve just got to be aware not to eat too much of the most heavily and artificially selected fruits, but no problems at all with roots, tubers, sugar cane, real raw honey (from bees not fed with industrial sugar - difficult to find), wild or almost wild fruits.
If I can dare an advice: if you are really too thin and want to gain weight, forget about gaining weight quickly, steer away from focusing on it. Just eat whatever raw paleo food you like, as much as you like. Accept that you might perhaps initially loose some weight in the short run: it’ll make you able to gain weight in the long run. It’s somehow like we have to invest money in an enterprise to make this enterprise profitable in the future.
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If I can dare an advice: if you are really too thin and want to gain weight, forget about gaining weight quickly, steer away from focusing on it. Just eat whatever raw paleo food you like, as much as you like. Accept that you might perhaps initially loose some weight in the short run: it’ll make you able to gain weight in the long run. It’s somehow like we have to invest money in an enterprise to make this enterprise profitable in the future.
I actually did that last September and stopped eating carbs from carrots and sweet potato. A month later I started shedding hair, developed acne and my PMS have been bad ever since. Maybe it contributed to my current problem.
I did gain some weight on a low calorie diet, but I suppose it is because I am hypothyroid now.
I think it will be hard to find the reason for my problems...there are so many possibilities it is making my head spin.
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I actually did that last September and stopped eating carbs from carrots and sweet potato. A month later I started shedding hair, developed acne and my PMS have been bad ever since. Maybe it contributed to my current problem.
I did gain some weight on a low calorie diet, but I suppose it is because I am hypothyroid now.
I think it will be hard to find the reason for my problems...there are so many possibilities it is making my head spin.
Could switching to low carb have caused your problems?
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Could switching to low carb have caused your problems?
That is one thing I am suspecting. I posted some things above regarding how low carb can affect the thyroid and hair.
I don't know how to reverse it though. I read one needs to eat an insane amount of carbs for a little until symptoms subside, but that sounds extreme.
If it is my thyroid, it would take time to regulate...that I don't have unless I want to continue feeling shitty for longer and go bald in the process...
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I wonder if you can remember what you substituted your calories with when you dropped the carbs? Really healthy egg yolks, liver, and other organs like heart, good back fat, oily fish, seaweed for minerals bone marrow, are good foods for hair. Excess protein or not enough good fats are not good foods for hair growth. (again) most who try low carb are eating too much protein.
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I think it will be hard to find the reason for my problems...there are so many possibilities it is making my head spin.
Such an approach is rather hopeless. It is parallel to the flawed way we, homo sapiens sapiens, pretend to understand and master the natural world, either external (environnement) or internal (medicine) and which leads to a vicious circle of ever bigger evils. Complexity of nature is overwhelming, “cause and effects are distant in time and space in complex systems, while at the same time there is a tendency to look for causes near the events sought to be explained. Attention is drawn to the symptoms of difficulty rather than the underlying cause. (…) the root cause of the existence of the problem is not addressed (e.g. lack of upfront knowledge and resources, lack of understanding of system interactions and emergent system properties).” *
When left alone after having been disturbed by an external factor, natural systems have a tendency to return to their stable, initial state. That’s called homeostasis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homeostasis). Just leave your body alone in the natural conditions it is best adapted to and it will self heal, or at least tend to self heal, in the best possible way. That means clean air, water and food, outdoors physical activities, favorable psychological atmosphere, absence of all intellectual and ideological interferences in food choices.
That’s a complete change of paradigm, isn’t it? ;)
* Ronald J. Ziegler, Complexity Reduction in Automotive Design and Development, University of Michigan, 2005
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I wonder if you can remember what you substituted your calories with when you dropped the carbs? Really healthy egg yolks, liver, and other organs like heart, good back fat, oily fish, seaweed for minerals bone marrow, are good foods for hair. Excess protein or not enough good fats are not good foods for hair growth. (again) most who try low carb are eating too much protein.
I added more fat and meat! My protein intake was about 110g a day. Not sure if that is too much?
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I added more fat and meat! My protein intake was about 110g a day. Not sure if that is too much?
100 g is the good for breastfeeding mothers. 110 g is in the right range. Your body will process excess protein as if you are eating carbs, which would have a minimal impact in this small amount. I would encourage you to start trusting your own body instead of asking people who can only generalize their answers. You will learn a lot from your body if you let it be your teacher.
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Iguana
I wish I could see it like that! In my experience some things did not self heal when I left them alone. I tried to relax about my symptoms from Oct. to recently, and haven't really stressed about it. But now that things are getting worse instead of better I feel I need to look into this.
I don't even know what diet is good for me...I have problems on everything it seems.
I have a question for everyone regarding starches btw.:
I added sweet potato and carrots to raise my carbs a bit. My energy levels improved and I did not have hair loss for two days, which does not mean it will stop soon I, think. Just that there is some sort of reaction when raising carbs.
But now my problem is that sweet potato and carrot cause me extreme bloating. I look legit 7 months pregnant after eating them and it is painful bloating all the way up to under my chest. I might have had slight bloating from it last year, but nothing like that.
What would be bloat-free carb alternatives. I can only think of fruit but I was hoping here would be something less sweet?
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100 g is the good for breastfeeding mothers. 110 g is in the right range. Your body will process excess protein as if you are eating carbs, which would have a minimal impact in this small amount. I would encourage you to start trusting your own body instead of asking people who can only generalize their answers. You will learn a lot from your body if you let it be your teacher.
My body said that it feels better with a little more carbs for now, but I just ran into another problem of not being able to digest them. I can never win it seems :/
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Iguana
I wish I could see it like that! In my experience some things did not self heal when I left them alone. I tried to relax about my symptoms from Oct. to recently, and haven't really stressed about it. But now that things are getting worse instead of better I feel I need to look into this.
I don't even know what diet is good for me...I have problems on everything it seems.
Have you let your body choose alone the proper raw paleo foods it needs and have you eaten it in the exact amount needed at the moment? Didn’t you disturb it by eating this or that because your thought or you read somewhere that it’s “good for you”? Didn’t you eat some food that we are unlikely to be well adapted to such as dairy, processed or cooked stuff?
I have a question for everyone regarding starches btw.:
I added sweet potato and carrots to raise my carbs a bit. My energy levels improved and I did not have hair loss for two days, which does not mean it will stop soon I, think. Just that there is some sort of reaction when raising carbs.
But now my problem is that sweet potato and carrot cause me extreme bloating. I look legit 7 months pregnant after eating them and it is painful bloating all the way up to under my chest. I might have had slight bloating from it last year, but nothing like that.
What would be bloat-free carb alternatives. I can only think of fruit but I was hoping here would be something less sweet?
Do you eat them plain, unseasoned, unmixed, unprocessed and only as long as they are tasty? Do you have a problem with sweet fruits?
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Too much fruit causes me problems (fructose malabsorption)
I ate the sweet potato cooked and unseasoned.
And yes I have tested out many different things to see what suits me best. Don't we all do that because we either read about it or had a good experience?
I think only very few people started eating RPd because they had a sudden instinct that told them to eat raw meat.
I decided to change my diet after reading about RPD.
And I do eat mostly cooked. While I know humans did not start out eating cooked foods, I grew up eating this way, and any abrupt changes seem to cause me problems.
Way back in time people would have never been faced with this obstacle.
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I think only very few people started eating RPd because they had a sudden instinct that told them to eat raw meat.
Lol I'm one of those people. I was eating the specific carbohydrate diet, and I thought to my self "how can I make this diet better?" "Animals don't cook, I wonder if I can eat raw meat."
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My body said that it feels better with a little more carbs for now, but I just ran into another problem of not being able to digest them. I can never win it seems :/
you will get it right. it takes time, trial and error.
It takes longer if no successful raw paleo dieter is there with you 24 hours a day mentoring you.
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Too much fruit causes me problems (fructose malabsorption)
I ate the sweet potato cooked and unseasoned.
Yes, too much is too much!
Sweet potatoes can be very tasty raw, I often eat some.
And yes I have tested out many different things to see what suits me best. Don't we all do that because we either read about it or had a good experience?
Yes, I agree and it’s normal, but the very good news is: “what I like best at this moment is the best for me now” — as long as the stuff is raw, paleo and unprocessed, of course. So, if we don’t like something, it’s a mistake to eat it because it is said to be “good for the health”.
And I do eat mostly cooked. While I know humans did not start out eating cooked foods, I grew up eating this way, and any abrupt changes seem to cause me problems.
Way back in time people would have never been faced with this obstacle.
I don’t know, but it seems that for many people it is unfavorable to have a largely raw diet still including cooked food. Thus the body seems to be uncertain what to do, whether to “detox” or not and is placed into a wobbly condition. You can shift progressively if you feel it’ll be better, but it’s probably unwise to linger too long in a half cooked – half raw condition.
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I don’t know, but it seems that for many people it is unfavorable to have a largely raw diet still including cooked food. Thus the body seems to be uncertain what to do, whether to “detox” or not and is placed into a wobbly condition. You can shift progressively if you feel it’ll be better, but it’s probably unwise to linger too long in a half cooked – half raw condition.
I eat mainly cooked food, with some raw food. I typically eat one raw meal per day, of 8 oz meat 1 oz suet, and various raw fruits and veggies. While I don't think it's optimal. I haven't noticed any negatives from it. And it's definitely better than an all cooked diet.
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Yes, some people are doing fine that way. Each case is different, each person is unique. How long have you been doing that?
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Sorry I don't have time to reply. My liver enzymes came back high as well as antibodies and my doctor suspects auto-Immune hepatitis since i tested neg. for all other types.
My doctor is quite concerned and might want to hospitalize me if my tests tonight come back high too....not sure what the danger is....
My question is: does anyone know if a liver/ body detox could be causing my levels to be high? I am using milk thistle for the liver and then burdock root, vitex and DIM.
My acne is gone and my skin better than ever, I just had my period and it was almost completely normal! No PMS, weird blood or irregular....so it must be working.
I am not sure if I should tell my doctor about the detox in detail.
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yes you should tell your doctor! milk thistle has an amazing cleansing action on the liver, and i would bet thats why your enzymes are high. mine have come back high in the past, and i have actually really irritated my liver with lots of alcohol and binging on nut butters/olive oils in the past, you can heal your liver, its very very resilient! do you eat any raw liver?
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yes you should tell your doctor! milk thistle has an amazing cleansing action on the liver, and i would bet thats why your enzymes are high. mine have come back high in the past, and i have actually really irritated my liver with lots of alcohol and binging on nut butters/olive oils in the past, you can heal your liver, its very very resilient! do you eat any raw liver?
I haven't eaten any yet, but we found a good source.
My doctor said to keep taking milk thistle, he was fine with it.
What can olive oil do? I used to supplement with olive oil.
My levels a week ago:
P ANCA 1:60
X ANCA 1:60
Gamma GT 355+
GOT ASAT 338 ++
GPT ALAT 361 ++
Someone said that is late stage of liver failure??? Wouldn't I be sick then? I also read of levels as high as 900, so I am sure they were wrong.
Today my levels were much better. So no hospital for now :) We will test again in teo weeks.
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What is DIM? I'm using the other herbs you mentioned, and hoping to see improvement in my cyclic regularity.
I would ask your MD what he wants to do to you in the hospital, that you can't do at home. You may not be as excited about his "life saving" treatments as he is. Also, you may be able to do much of the same stuff at home. Rest, increase fluids, mostly water or water down whatever else you're drinking. NO ALCOHOL! Low sugar, and don't force fat, eat more bitter greens , and the liver would be great. Not forever just 7-10 days, or until your sick of it, to let your body rest. Try to avoid preservatives. I would substitute the lunch meat with the liver while you rest. I had liver sausage, it was great raw and lightly cooked. I like having mostly raw with a little cooked. I have had nasty detoxes, but my body has found a balance and it is easier socially. I want to look up recipes, it was pastured pork liver with pork fat, ground it up with salt, onion, and think sage. I added frozen greens and made a broth, that I liked lots, and my daughter and her boyfriend ate it too, but didn't have seconds :(. Liver is also good with butter and lemon. I just warm the butter enough to soften and dip the marinated small slices of liver into the butter. I think dandelion and parsley are healing and building for liver, maybe nettles too. Please check though, I'm not sure.
I'm glad your enzymes are lower, not sure why, did you change anything between tests, or did they just peak on their own? It is reassuring to be in the "normal" range.
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Well my numbers are still higher than normal, but much lower.
The difference was that I increased my carb intake.
I read a few articles where it said that low carb can affect the liver in some. I was suspecting that my liver has trouble detoxing because of a few symptoms like bad breath, dark undereye circles, bad skin, hormonal problems.
I stopped eating the lunch meat a little bit ago, and I ordered liver from a good source. I think my doctor wanted to make sure my liver doesn't fail? He said something about liver failure too.
DIM is a supplement made of cruciferous (? Sp. ?) vegetables which removes bad estrogens from the body. Another supplement for hormone regulation is calcium D glucarate. There was a testimoniql on robbwolf.com where this woman got PCOS, PMS and severe hair loss under control with the help of both supplements.
I am still losing hair, but my other problems have really bettered.
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How much did you increase carbs? Are you eating healthy carbs? Do you feel a change? better/worse. Maybe you should just keep doing what improved your labs for a week or 2 then cut back and see what happens.
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I just read this entire thread for the first time, start to finish, and there was some great advice given in it.
I noticed a couple of things (and please correct me if I am wrong):
1. You seem to waver a lot between being sure and being very unsure of what is "right" for you to eat.
2. You doubt your own ability to recognize healthy foods and you are asking other people to tell you what is healthy
3. When the doctor says your tests are abnormal, you become very afraid.
If these observations are correct, I have some advice that I hope is helpful for you: Take a deep breath, let it out, and smile! It's all going to be ok.
You are in charge of your own health and healing process!
Research is good, but with all those conflicting studies out there, it can get confusing. Instead of reading a bunch of websites trying to solve a particular problem, I would recommend finding and reading the RAF books that are most popular here. Then you can have a deeper, more focused understanding of what a raw diet really means and how to be a successful raw food eater. When you find your healthy diet, proper weight, energy, and normal test results will follow.
Don't let your doctor's fears scare you. You always have a choice about going to the hospital, taking medications, even scheduling appointments. You don't have to if you don't want to. A common opinion among raw foodies is that the hospital/meds should always be your absolute last resort, because they will make your situation worse in the long run.
It sounds like you already keep a food diary, which is great. It also sounds like you are paying close attention to how you feel after eating different types of food--also great.
If you are going to ask for really specific advice on the forum, I think it would be helpful if you give a very clear description of what you eat. You might even post some of your recent food diary entries. That way nobody will give advice based on false assumptions about what you do or don't eat.
One more thing to watch out for: nobody can say what your exact needs are except you. And, your dietary needs can change very rapidly--you can have different needs in the morning than at night, in the summer compared to winter, on your menstrual cycle compared to the rest of the month, etc. This is why it's so important for you to get a book--or several books--devoted to teaching people how to listen properly to their bodies. ie, a RAF book.
If reading isn't your thing, maybe you can find a RAF health practitioner who you can work with one on one!
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Great post, Suoaei! You wrote it better than I could have myself. :)
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Suoaei
I appreciate your advice, but I think you really did misunderstand what I wrote. Let me explain:
1. You seem to waver a lot between being sure and being very unsure of what is "right" for you to eat.
being fairly new to this diet still (1 yr), I simply experience trial and error. I test different things out and then decide if they are for me. Sometimes I simply not sure if they are or are not for me.
2. You doubt your own ability to recognize healthy foods and you are asking other people to tell you what is healthy
Of course, if I would leave it up to my senses, I would still be eating bread and pasta. Only through learning from "others", did I find out the science behind certain foods. I don't have all the studies and info available. And it is easier asking a specific question here.
3. When the doctor says your tests are abnormal, you become very afraid.
I seemed very afraid? This is what I wrote:
My doctor is quite concerned and might want to hospitalize me if my tests tonight come back high too....not sure what the danger is....
My question is: does anyone know if a liver/ body detox could be causing my levels to be high?
Someone said that is late stage of liver failure??? Wouldn't I be sick then? I also read of levels as high as 900, so I am sure they were wrong.
I doubted the danger and instead suspected my levels are high because of the detox. I also stated I don't feel sick and that I think they are wrong to say I am experiencing liver failure.
My mother actually got upset at me when I told her that because she thinks I am not cautious or afraid enough... ???
If these observations are correct, I have some advice that I hope is helpful for you: Take a deep breath, let it out, and smile! It's all going to be ok.
Research is good, but with all those conflicting studies out there, it can get confusing. Instead of reading a bunch of websites trying to solve a particular problem, I would recommend finding and reading the RAF books that are most popular here. Then you can have a deeper, more focused understanding of what a raw diet really means and how to be a successful raw food eater. When you find your healthy diet, proper weight, energy, and normal test results will follow.
:) Since I was experiencing a lot of symptoms, and diet and kicking back wasn't helping, I took action to find the root of the problem.
This way I have already greatly improved MOST of my problems...by researching "like crazy".
I find researching specific things more efficient than reading through book after book. Since I was trying to solve problems right now, I was not interested in other things for the moment.
Had I not researched I would probably still be eating low carb, which does not seem to be good for me at the moment, because when I stopped...my heart palpitations stopped, my chest pain got better, my fatigue lifted, my carpal tunnel and joint pains bettered and a little bit after that my thyroid and liver came back better.
Thanks to the herbs my PMS is almost gone...I went from extreme pains to an almost normal period with red blood instead of black goo, my acne, that was pretty severe for a little is also gone, and my hair loss at least lessened.
I would be in a horrible state right now, if I would not have figured some things out -\. Doctors can be of help, but they did not figure this out for me.
I actually think it is good I did all this, because now I get to relax and feel good about what I have achieved through intense research and question asking. ;D
You always have a choice about going to the hospital, taking medications, even scheduling appointments. You don't have to if you don't want to. A common opinion among raw foodies is that the hospital/meds should always be your absolute last resort, because they will make your situation worse in the long run.
Well, you don't know this, but before coming to this forum I quit my meds because I wanted to see how much I can heal naturally. I am not on medication right now. It was suggested to me numerous times (since 2.'12), and for various reasons I declined.
I also breastfeed a toddler. Another reason I have been avoiding medication. I personally would only go back on thyroid meds, if there was a risk of me causing more harm to my thyroid because I am not taking medication (I have the kind where my body attacks my thyroid).
It sounds like you already keep a food diary, which is great. It also sounds like you are paying close attention to how you feel after eating different types of food--also great.
If you are going to ask for really specific advice on the forum, I think it would be helpful if you give a very clear description of what you eat. You might even post some of your recent food diary entries. That way nobody will give advice based on false assumptions about what you do or don't eat.
I did on another thread and have made changes accordingly! (I cut out (organic) lunch meat f. ex.)
One more thing to watch out for: nobody can say what your exact needs are except you. And, your dietary needs can change very rapidly--you can have different needs in the morning than at night, in the summer compared to winter, on your menstrual cycle compared to the rest of the month, etc. This is why it's so important for you to get a book--or several books--devoted to teaching people how to listen properly to their bodies. ie, a RAF book.
If reading isn't your thing, maybe you can find a RAF health practitioner who you can work with one on one!
Doing so much research which requires reading, I guess you could say reading is my thing ;). Sadly I think it will be hard to find such a health practitioner here...
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How much did you increase carbs? Are you eating healthy carbs? Do you feel a change? better/worse. Maybe you should just keep doing what improved your labs for a week or 2 then cut back and see what happens.
I went from about 40-60 to about 90-110. I am not eating rice or potatoes, just carbs from fruit, carrots, tubers, zucchini etc.
I noticed tremendous improvements:
Had I not researched I would probably still be eating low carb, which does not seem to be good for me at the moment, because when I stopped...my heart palpitations stopped, my chest pain got better, my fatigue lifted, my carpal tunnel and joint pains bettered and a little bit after that my thyroid and liver came back better.
Thanks to the herbs my PMS is almost gone...I went from extreme pains to an almost normal period with red blood instead of black goo, my acne, that was pretty severe for a little is also gone, and my hair loss at least lessened.
I would be in a horrible state right now, if I would not have figured some things out . Doctors can be of help, but they did not figure this out for me.
This is why i won't go back on low carb for now. I don't know if it is for me, and if it is I will have to transition very slowly next time I suppose. I will learn more about it. I read that low carb can affect the thyroid and liver in people who already have an underlying problem. So testing things out be too risky atm.
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This is why i won't go back on low carb for now. I don't know if it is for me, and if it is I will have to transition very slowly next time I suppose. I will learn more about it. I read that low carb can affect the thyroid and liver in people who already have an underlying problem. So testing things out be too risky atm.
Good choice. I personally feel LC/ZC is over hyped on this forum (as well as others). Nothing wrong with eating some carbs if you can tolerate it.
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Well my numbers are still higher than normal, but much lower.
The difference was that I increased my carb intake.
Quite a few people reported hair loss, hypothyroid, cold extremities, skin rashes, dry eyes, constipation and/or other issues on Very LC, which resolved with adding some carbs back to their diets. Underlying thyroid problems is a common issue that LC can reveal or exacerbate, so it's not surprising that it was a problem for you given your Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.
I argued in the past that the "Zero Carb" label should be discarded from the forum subsection title as worse than useless, and your experience is yet another testament for doing so.
There are apparently very divergent views on what to do re: Hashimoto's, I don't know who's right, and I don't have Hashimoto's myself and thus haven't tested anything, but these were interesting blog articles on the topic:
http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2011/05/iodine-and-hashimotos-thyroiditis-part-i/ (http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2011/05/iodine-and-hashimotos-thyroiditis-part-i/)
http://chriskresser.com/selenium-the-missing-link-for-treating-hypothyroidism (http://chriskresser.com/selenium-the-missing-link-for-treating-hypothyroidism)
YMMV, so I would proceed cautiously and do your own research.
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Da Boss88, Paleo Phil
Yes, there is so much contradicting information on carbs out there. And even more people that experience problems on a low carb diet, very often hair loss as well. These problems can't be ignored.
When I eat the way I want (but still Paleo) I will consume too many carbs to be low carb, because if available I will consume lots of fruits, a good amount of veggies and tubers. And probably less fat and meat. So maybe it is not natural for me. At least at the moment, considering I was still eating rice and potatoes a little over a year ago.
Interestingly, some people claim they eat a paleo diet, but feel better with potatoes, white rice and some raw dairy...I haven't looked into it much though.
On a side note, very weirdly I do not react to SAD foods anymore. I used to get severe reactions to most of the foods I avoided. But this weekend I ate some cake at my grandmothers birthday party and also had coffee and I had no problems whatsoever. This seems really weird to me...
Not that I want to eat this way now, I just find it weird.
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Maybe your body is telling you that low carb is not for you at this time.
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Suiren - I feel much better, zc. I had problems when I transitioned to zc before, but this transition, was Ok. I don't understand what the difference was. You always do what's best for you, and I'll reciprocate, but we already were doing that ;). Love, love, love your hair, btw
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On a side note, very weirdly I do not react to SAD foods anymore. I used to get severe reactions to most of the foods I avoided. But this weekend I ate some cake at my grandmothers birthday party and also had coffee and I had no problems whatsoever. This seems really weird to me...
Not that I want to eat this way now, I just find it weird.
A lot of Paleo dieters who do well report that their immune system calms down over time, including mine. Similarly, some, though not all, people with severe food allergies/intolerances reportedly have even had them completely resolve and find they can eat even the junkiest foods (not that I would recommend that) without noticeable reactions after undergoing helminthic therapy, which is supposed to calm down the immune system.
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Suiren - I feel much better, zc. I had problems when I transitioned to zc before, but this transition, was Ok. I don't understand what the difference was. You always do what's best for you, and I'll reciprocate, but we already were doing that ;). Love, love, love your hair, btw
Thank you! I will try to regrow my hair when the hair loss stops like I did last time. It just sucks that I keep going through this and whenever I think I am fine now and my hair looks great I lose hair again. This is the third time. Although the second time was postpartum, so I can't complain much about that.
I think some will just need time transitioning. Maybe my body needs to sort itself ut first before I make any more changes. Afterall I have only eaten full Paleo for about a year (before that with rice and potatoes)
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A lot of Paleo dieters who do well report that their immune system calms down over time, including mine. Similarly, some, though not all, people with severe food allergies/intolerances reportedly have even had them completely resolve and find they can eat even the junkiest foods (not that I would recommend that) without noticeable reactions after undergoing helminthic therapy, which is supposed to calm down the immune system.
Interesting. So that might mean that my immune system is doing better now?
I think the detox might have helped with that. Given the issues with my thyroid/ liver/ gallbladder I think my body ha a hard time detoxing prior to that. The acne also seemed to be a sign of toxins piling up.
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Interesting. So that might mean that my immune system is doing better now?
It's difficult to say, but my guess is that you've reduced the stress on your immune system and body by adding carbs back to your diet, rather than experienced a rejuvenation of your immune system. If you went back to VLC/ZC, my guess is that your symptoms would return, due to the underlying issues like Hashimoto's.
The acne also seemed to be a sign of toxins piling up.
There are multiple possible factors in addition to immune system hypersensitivity/dysfunction. The main factors in my case appear to be zinc deficiency and imbalanced and/or deficient microbiome. If I eat lots of carbs I get zits. If I cut back on the carbs or add zinc, the zits go away. I suspect that if I had better zinc levels and a balanced microbiome, then I wouldn't get zits from carbs. The Microbiome aspect is a guess based on other aspects of my medical history in addition to the acne tendency, and the fact that gut microbes are reportedly particularly important in processing carbs.
Zinc and other nutrients are also important for avoiding or repairing leaky gut syndrome:
"Nutritional deficiencies and leaky gut
There are several micronutrient deficiencies that the authors found to be associated with gut barrier function, specifically vitamin A, magnesium, zinc, vitamin D, and calcium. Vitamin A, zinc, and magnesium all help maintain tight junctions in the intestine and regulate endothelial differentiation in the gut, while vitamin D stimulates intestinal lining renewal and resistance to damage by modulating the immune system. Vitamin D and calcium play a joint role in maintaining the intestinal barrier by supporting the ATP-dependent pumps in the intestinal cells. In obesity, intake of these micronutrients is typically low, so deficiencies could play a significant role in exacerbating leaky gut conditions, especially when combined with intestinal dysbiosis and poor dietary choices. Therefore, having good intake of these micronutrients could be protective against the development of leaky gut and the inflammation and eventual obesity it can cause."
My guess is that I'm also somewhat chronically deficient in Mg and vitamin A, though it's less easy to tell than with zinc. Leaky gut syndrome can contribute to autoimmunity and acne.
Chronic stress can also exacerbate all these issues. In the modern world, chronic stress is one of the most omnipresent and difficult to avoid/manage/ameliorate health-undermining factors. I find that cryotherapy, spending time outdoors in the sun and cold, quality sleep, meditation, music, friends/family, etc. help.
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my hair has gotten thicker and grows much faster now. my nails as well. The speed of growth really picked up after adding dairy.
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Did tick and strong horns grow on your forehead also?
>D ;D
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hopefully those will come soon.
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my hair has gotten thicker and grows much faster now. my nails as well. The speed of growth really picked up after adding dairy.
I am eating raw butter daily. Is that dairy enough or is it missing benefits?
I usually avoid dairy. I am not sure if it is good or bad for me at the moment. If I get any benefits from it. But I would like to give raw cheese another try when I have some more things sorted out.
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I think my hair loss stopped btw. I have been losing a normal amount for over a week. I am too scared to celebrate it just yet though....
I also noticed a lot of regrowth. Some from about 3 months ago, and some barely 1 month old. I look like a hedgehog. Now I have regrowth from 2010 somewhere around my back length, from my postpartum shed around my shoulders plus the short frizzies. I look awesome. Like I got electrocuted .