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Lex's Journal
Nicola:
I posted some questions to Dr. Groves; to find peace of mind but I don't think that I will ever find that - life would become to boring? I am glad, that we have people like Lex - working on a plan and keeping things simple and clear. We must not fear life - but respect :)!
Hi Nicola
It is quite wrong that carbs are needed to metabilse fats. This was a mantra developed in the 19th century. There is no basis for it whatsoever. If there were, how would Maasai and Inuit live? They don't eat any plant material at all, and, while they may get a little from the meat and milk they eat (glycogen and lactose), that's a tiny amount compared to the much greater amounts of fat they eat.
On the brain's reliance on glucose:
In the past was the belief that the brain couldn’t function properly without glucose. However, a study published in May 2003 showed that the brain can use ketones made from fats just as other normal cells do.[1] It was also shown nearly 70 years ago that ATP is delivered from the liver to the brain by red blood cells.[2] So there is absolutely no need to worry about the brain being starved of energy if we cut carbohydrates out of the diet.
References
1. Takenaka T, et al. Fatty acids as an energy source for the operation of axoplasmic transport. Brain Res 2003; 972, 1-2: 38-43.
2. Hockerts T, Hingerty D. Medizinische 1937; 289. Cited by Werner E. Mschr f Kinderheilk 1960; 1: 5.
Ketosis is not defined by ketone bodies found in urine; that is ketonuria. Ketosis is a condition where there are raised levels of ketone bodies (acetone, acetoacetic acid and beta-hydroxybutyrate) in body tissues. Ketone bodies are formed naturally from the breakdown of fats. As the calorific value of my diet is about 75% fat, I must be 'in ketosis'. The fact that I have one piece of fruit a day is not relevant.
Regards
Barry
Author: Natural Health and Weight Loss
Co-producer: Be Slim Without Dieting (Video / DVD)
http://www.second-opinions.co.uk
http://www.diabetes-diet.org.uk
http://www.cholesterol-and-health.org.uk
lex_rooker:
Nicola,
I have no quarrel with Dr Groves and his assertion that he is in ketosis. My original post on the Saturated Fat Forum was just to point out that Dr Groves definition and Mary's definition of ketosis are different so you can't compare them. Which one is correct? Who knows - I certainly don't. The best I can do is monitor the way I feel and adjust things accordingly. If I find that something isn't going as well as expected then I'll make a change just as I found that I seemed to do better with some salt added to my diet. Doing what works best for me is more important to me than following some strict dietary rules made by someone who doesn't really know any more about diet than I do.
Mary, Kata, and I are doing experiments where we collect a lot of actual data (bg, ketones, etc) which we try to analyze to come to a reasonable conclusion. We also make changes very slowly so that we have time to observe the more long term effects of a change - often weeks or months. Most people just go by how they feel when they get up in the morning and have no actual data to back up what they say. This is not to imply that Dr Goves falls into this category. He is a professional and has many years of experience so I have no reason to doubt what he says. I just have to know what his definition of the various terms he uses are before I can understand his point of view verses another person's point of view. Also, you will find Dr Goves, (like Mary and Kata) is very consistent with his recommendations and advice. Compare this to AV who changes his mind on things more often than I change my socks.
Hope this helps,
lex
lex_rooker:
Summary of Lex’s Experiment After 2 Weeks
Baseline diet was 68%Fat/32%Protein (145gF/145gP) all from animal sources and followed for 2 years. Diet changed to 80%Fat/20%Protein (195gF/90gP) from the same animal sources. Organ meats comprised approximately 20% of diet and any Carbohydrates would come from that source. No supplements other than approximately 1g of salt added to food per day. Only one meal is eaten in the late afternoon. Food portions were adjusted to keep Calories consistent at approximately 2,000 per day.
68%F/32%P 80%F/20%P
Baseline 14 Days
BG Daily Avg 106 88
BG Hi/Low Range 90/120 75/105
BG rise after meal 25 15
Urine Ketones 0-Trace Mod/Lg
Resting Heart Rt 58 68
Weight 162 159
BMI 21.4 21.0
%Body Fat(calipers) 11.09 10.77
Obviously the duration of the change is very short at 2 weeks so many of the measurements are quite dynamic where the baseline readings were very stable.
Average BG has dropped about 15 points.
Hi/Low daily BG range has dropped a corresponding 15 points
Ketones have risen dramatically from less than trace to large
Resting heart rate has also increased by 10 BPM
Small drop in weight and BMI as well as body fat.
Ketones stay consistently high and usually measure Large but will occasionally drop to Moderate sometime during the day.
Baseline BG curve was very consistent, rising after my daily meal to a maximum of about 120 then dropping to 106 for many hours before dropping to minimum low 90s just before next meal,
Current BG curve is very dynamic. BG rises to a maximum of 105 or so after meal, then drops slowly through the night to a minimum usually in the mid to high 70s in the early morning, then rises and fluctuates between the mid 80s to low 90s throughout the day and then the process starts over again.
I eat at the same time every day and the high BG reading about 3 hours after my meal is consistently 15 points above BG reading taken just prior to eating the meal. The reading before the meal seems to vary between 80 and 90 so BG tops out between 95 and 105.
Baseline BG rise measured 3 hours after the meal was 25 points. The reading before the meal was usually between 90 and 95 so BG topped out between 115 and 120.
Comments would be greatly appreciated,
Lex
Satya:
--- Quote from: lex_rooker on June 16, 2008, 12:14:09 am ---Summary of Lex’s Experiment After 2 Weeks
[snip]
Resting Heart Rt 58 68
[snip]
Resting heart rate has also increased by 10 BPM
Small drop in weight and BMI as well as body fat.
[snip]
--- End quote ---
Hi Lex,
I hope you won't mind me quoting you in snippets as I have. This resting heart rate rising has me intrigued. Both numbers are nicely low, but I wonder if you feel any different with the higher RHR. And then I wonder what your blood pressure is and how that has changed. Do you have a cuff? If not, I think you should get one or get it checked every few months or something.
Otherwise, I am fascinated by your report and consider the higher fat to be the answer to great health.
Oh, one more question: What is your activity level like? I may have asked this before, but I won't assume anything. Please include your basic exercise plan if you have one.
I will be reading your replies. My sister is visiting for the first time in over a decade, so I may not be as quick to answer in the coming week or so. However, I will exchange with you when I can and I thank you for reporting on these changes in diet and the resulting physiological changes. Good stuff!
lex_rooker:
Satya,
I understand from others that have converted to a very high fat diet, that the rise in heart rate is temporary. The theory is that I'm dumping large amounts of fatty acids in the blood that weren't there when eating at the lower fat level. The body will treat this as a windfall (just killed a woolly mammoth and have lots to eat for a few weeks then it's back to famine again) so it doesn't create the hormones to keep everything under control especially since high fat is not life threatening like high glucose is. After a few weeks of high fat levels in the blood, the body will start to manage it better and the heart rate will return to its previous level and sometimes lower. They say the heart responds this way because fatty acids are the heart's primary fuel. The higher heart rate does not bother me but I did notice it.
I don't exercise for the sake of exercise. I do walk a good bit but again not exclusively for exercise. It's just that I'd rather walk to the market, postoffice, bank, etc when I have the time. I don't dawdle but then it's far from a power walk. It's 1 mile to the nearest market and the postoffice is two miles away, therefore when I walk it's between 2 and 4 miles round trip. I do this between 1 and 3 times per week.
When I started this dietary adventure 5 years ago my BP had crept up to 145/95. For the past 3 years or so eating a paleo style diet my BP has stabilized around 110/70 give or take a few points. I'll keep an eye on it and if I see any changes I'll add this to my "monitor" list.
Lex
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