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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/13/2008 8:00:36 AM | lab25 - thanks I think you are definately right, I have decided to elimate gluten from my diet (when I know its in things, because its in so many things even soy sauce enless you get tamari!) Anyway, I feel much better. I am also avoiding simple sugars, finding it difficult to deal with the social pressures and being away from home (ie: going out, parties, etc) because so many food products that you can get at a restaurant, store or party has hidden sugar. Its no wonder that are whole country is fat - there is freaking sugar in everthing! Thanks for all those who listed helpful suggestions.
To the person who suggested I was acidic -I did buy some PH strips and I am indeed more acidic- 6.0 so I will be checking into adding more alkaline foods into my diet. I read the list of alkaline and acidic foods and its rather funny but in general I tend to enjoy eating and crave those alkaline foods and avoid the acidic ones (I guess my body know's whats best afterall.)
I do think its time for a thyroid check as one suggested as I do have some signs of a sluggish thyroid.
thanks all!  | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/13/2008 11:32:57 AM | | I think I can relate a little to your situation. I'm in my 40's and having a tough time getting my body to drop some weight - you look good - I need to drop a good 25 pounds. I've managed to drop 10 lbs but it took me year - now it's been months and no new weight loss but at least I'm not gaining. It is frustrating because I have to go so slow to see any results. One definite improvement: I've taken simple sugars out of my diet and saw an almost immediate increase in my energy level so that's definitely a good idea. I don't have much good advice to offer, but I just wanted to say, I can really understand your frustration. Keep sane, it looks like you are on the right path. | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/13/2008 12:57:39 PM |
I have had issues with hypoglycemia but did not test positive for diabetes. I know my hormones are not completely right (PCOS) but there seems to be no cure for this (except loose weight- ha ha!)
I see that no one picked on this, so I would like to add some insight.
If you have PCOS that means that your hormones are not "not completely right", but majorly messed up...losing weight will certainly help, but because your hormones are totally out of whack it is very difficult to lose weight.
However, there are certain medications that should help by improving the sensitivity of your cells to insuline (have you ever checked if you have insuline resistance?), such as metformine (or glucofarge). There are other things that could help with PCOS, but I don't want to go into detail here.
It is of utmost importance to find a good endocrinologist and an OBG who will work with you to fine tune your diet and help with hormones. Doctors who blow you off by saying that "it will fix itself when you lose weight, and/or have kids" are morons. If this is the advice you got, drop them and find someone who will treat you seriously.... untreated PCOS can easily lead to diabetis/infertility/many other complications... so, make sure to find a good doctor.
No carb diet is not quite an option, but low carb is something that is often (successfuly) used in treatment of PCOS. Have a look at this wesite... it's a good starting point:
http://www.pcosupport.org/
Lots of advice that you got on this thread is good in ordinary circumstances, but those do NOT apply to you because of PCOS... bear that in mind.
Feel free to email me if you have more questions and best of luck to you.
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/15/2008 5:07:34 PM | RedCass- thanks for the tip I will check out that site right away!
Update - I have for the most part elimated wheat and gluten from my diet, and all sugars except those from fruits and agave nectar or stevia for sweetners (as they do not raise glycemic index) this has made a vast improvement on how I feel and the best part is those hypoglycemic episodes are no loner as well as fierce hunger is now gone. I have begun eating and drinking more alkaline foods and water. Yes to answer your question I am insulin resistant but thus far doctors haven't helped me manage that part except to say avoid sugar - okay sure easier said than done. I still eat a little bit but maybe one cookie when someone brings them into work, or skip my fruit snack if I get invited for dessert with friends (like I did this week.) It seems like its the combo of the sugar and the gluten that's the 1,2 punch that was making my life a rollar coaster! | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/15/2008 6:21:20 PM | QUOTE:
Have you had your thyroid tested? Hypothyroidism can make it difficult to lose weight. Thyroid problems are much more common for women than for men. And they can happen at any age.
As for processed foods, don't eat any. NONE. NADA. ZILCH.
Jack LaLanne said: "If man makes it, don't eat it. " Words to live by.
I agree with this post. If your thyroid is "underactive" it is very difficult to lose weight. Same with gluten. I think your diet is quite good, and now that you don't do gluten, the weight should start to come off.
I would juice dark green vegetables. Sweeten with apple juice or carrot juice. That will give you the nutrients that you need, and I would also suggest more fibre.
Jack LaLanne is a juicer, and he is in his 90's, so juicing is beneficial to health.
To offset the insulin resistance, avoid the things that cause insulin resistance. The main culprits are Wheat, Dairy, Refined Sugar, and Corn.
If you do all that, and still can't lose the weight, get your thyroid checked. | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/15/2008 9:42:45 PM |
I have for the most part elimated wheat and gluten from my diet, and all sugars except those from fruits and agave nectar or stevia for sweetners
You probably are not going to be happy to read this... but, even fruits should be taken sparingly and mostly restricted to the ones with low levels of carbs (for example, no bananas... ever).
I am insulin resistant but thus far doctors haven't helped me manage that part except to say avoid sugar - okay sure easier said than done.
It's not just sugar... carbs in general are the "enemy"... Processed, simple carbs are the worst... but, all the carbs should be kept real low.
I would urge you to look for a doctor who will treat this seriously.
Find an endocrinologist or OBG who specializes in PCOS and talk to them... if left untreated PCOS can easily create much more serious problems than just dealing with weight. And, dealing with weight will be much easier if you are treated properly...
Exercise also helps with keeping your insuline level under control, so try to keep it up at least few days a week.
Best of luck to you:)
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/16/2008 12:49:57 AM | I have begun eating and drinking more alkaline foods and water.
When your alkaline food and water get to your stomach with its pH of around 1-3, what do you think happens?
I will give you a clue- pose that question to most first year high school students and see what their response is. Now contemplate that response and get back to us. I eagerly await your response. I will give you a clue- it contains the words 'an acid neutralises a base'. | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/16/2008 4:27:17 AM | I have read through this whole thread, and I have to say, redcassandra has it right. I have a lot of the same problems as the OP, and the dizzy spells are due to blood sugars being out of whack. I am insulin resistant, and I am on a high protein, low carb diet.... as prescribed by my dietitian. BUT... I have to eat more often.... that is what helps me avoid those dizzy spells.
It is not just the sugars that are bad for you.... carbs are also an "enemy" as redcass points out... your body converts simple carbs into sugars before they even leave your stomach.... and sometimes while still in your mouth, depending on the carb. There is an excellent website maintained by John Hopkins (I think) called endocrineweb... google it, it deals with ALL issues relating to endocrine problems. | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/16/2008 9:16:54 PM | This might sound a little out there, but it's another option that nobody has mentioned.
See a neurologist. I know it seems crazy, but if all these ridiculous diets, "working out" several times a week, etc. doesn't seem to help, and you do not have thyroid problems, diabetes or low iron, there could be something much different happening here.
For the record, it's my understanding that hypoglycemia is difficult to diagnose. and i'd be sure to consult several physicians/enicrynologists before settling for such a diagnosis. It would be a shame to alter your lifestyle to cater to this reality, when it wasn't necessarily true. I only say this because I had dizzy spells at one point, combined with pretty much all of your other symptoms, and was falsely diagnosed with hypoglycemia, slowing down my ultimate diagnosis of something much more serious, by several months.
When you see the endicrynologist, have them test your sodium/potassium as well. These two things are often overlooked by most people, but the problems a too low or too high level can cause are pretty brutal. Fatigue, dizzy spells, etc being quite common, but the more severe being coma or death.
Back to the neurologist...all of your problems could be caused by something in your brain, that has nothing or very little to do with your diet, so constantly altering it and participating in various detox methods, etc. might be a lost cause. Spend some serious time considering the less likely possibilities, before investing time and energy into altering what appears to be a pretty normal lifestyle, yet again.
When you do narrow it down, if it turns out to be something related to your diet, i'd strongly suggest meeting with a dietician weekly to discuss a plan that is best for YOU. It's great that everyone here has a suggestion on what you should eat and what you should drop, but always keep in mind that their ages, sex, lifestyle, body type, metabolism, etc. vary from your own and that what works for one person might not be what's best for another.
Oh and, if you're serious about the gym and "working out" a treadmill isn't going to change your body overnight. You should also invest some of your time and a little money in a personal trainer. Some people can do all the cardio in the world, and it's not going to help. (most people, as a matter of fact.) If you want results..if you want to strengthen your body, heart, and build muscle where there is fat, you should seriously consider hitting the weight room. Some women are just bigger than others, but it's best for your health to spend time doing cardio AND weights. Get a trainer...they will help design a program for exactly what you want.
Best of luck!
Please do update further on your results! | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/17/2008 6:10:02 PM | Mystral and redcass - did you get nausea on those low carb diets? moods swings, or low energy to the point of barely being able to function? That's why I said that I have to eat some carbs. I start out okay but the more time goes by the worse I feel on those low carb diets. Carbs are not my friend - its true but I feel even worse without them entirely.
lucretia21 - a brain problem -ugh. What kind of problem did you end up having. You know my mom told me the same thing (she's a nurse) but then she decided I was depressed - lol (I am not depressed) but you know moms  | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/18/2008 12:09:23 AM |
Its no wonder that are whole country is fat - there is freaking sugar in everthing!
The Country is fat because people dont exersise
food is irelivent its energy for your body you eat 2 much you dont exersise it turns that energy into fat
exersise regulary to have a healthy body weight and insides 2 ! | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/19/2008 3:20:56 AM | Wheat (esp. refined flour), Milk/Yogurt, and refined sugar are the 3 common fat-loss stoppers! (they actually cause an allergic response in the body by causing it to produce too much mucus, changing the PH of the body making it more acidic, and a variety of symptoms from constipation to acne)
Cut out those 3 things and you'll lose fat. It's likely that you didn't lose fat on your 21 day fast because your body went into "starvation mode" and began to hoard fat. The human body is designed to survive, not to fit into size 4 jeans! A good exercise program is also essential, but diet is paramount. If you're not losing fat, something is definately wrong in the diet department. See a personal trainer. | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/19/2008 10:57:32 AM | I would definitely have your thyroid checked, and not by your GP... Go to a endocrinologist, for 8 years my GP told me my thyroid was fine, as the tests they took, did always come back in the "normal" range.
I knew something was wrong, and made an appointment to see the specialist. She took more intricate tests of the levels of the thyroid, and found that the medication I was put on 20 years ago, was way too high, and it was doing what I was originally put on medication for... My thyroid had shut down (again) due to being over medicated.
As for the no carb/low carb diets... it's my experience from family and friends... that the Atkins or similar type diets only work well with the certain blood types that do well with less carbs...
I'm one of them... I'm "O" blood type, I do great on the low carbs diet... no bloating, lots of energy.
My son who is an "A" blood type... needed adequate grains/carbs to fuel him for energy, he was also a very cranky bear without his carbs...
There is much truth to the book "Eat Right For Your Blood Type", I do not follow it word for word, but found it great to set up some guide lines that I have found beneficial, but step out of them occasionally...
If your serious about this, please do have your thyroid levels check by a specialist... I thought in my "gut" there was something wrong with "why I wasn't loosing more weight", I worked out hard for 6 months, ate a very healthy diet, and still I wasn't losing as I knew I should have been. I remember the doctor showing me what my levels were, they were something like .72 when they should have been .12... and yet with the other tests, my GP said and showed me the levels were "normal". | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/19/2008 3:46:00 PM | .............................................................................................
The country is fat because people dont exercise
Chances are the thyroid hormones are out of whack, from the caffeine and bad diet as was pointed out earlier. | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/19/2008 9:29:24 PM | I think you've probably figured it out by now, but my mom was in the same boat.
She ate VERY healthy, exercised religiously etc....
Turns out she's gluten intolerant. As such by eating gluten (most grains, malt...) it kills all the microvilli in your intestines and so your body doesnt absorb the proper nutrients, essentially you end up storing fat.
Since her diagnosis, she has maintained the same eating habits, minus the gluten, and has dropped an immense amount of weight!!
Hope that helps. | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/20/2008 4:48:43 PM | I am going to against the mob, and say forget about dieting.
Im 175 lbs lean. I eat like a pig and exercise sporadically. I chug beer and caffeine as if there were no tomorrow.
The problem with food, is that the human body requires alot of various things. And alot of it are only effective if taken in combination. Who are you to say what you need for your body nutrition wise?
Can you imagine that carbohydrates actually impact your nervous system and ( depending on which carb) can promote its growth? And if taken with proteins can actually limit the impact of said carbs. Its alot of scientific diatribe if you want to look deep into it.
But the point is that dieting is complex. Like exercise, you gotta vary the routine. Or else you body only becomes good at an exercise . If you throw it just salad, the body will become good at digesting salad. The body, like the mind, is meant to be used for infinite purposes. Restraining it to one specific thing screws up its design of purpose.
I vary what i eat every meal. And i vary my exercises every time. My body is not stuck in a routine, so it stays on top of things. | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/20/2008 5:04:33 PM |
lucretia21 - a brain problem -ugh. What kind of problem did you end up having. You know my mom told me the same thing (she's a nurse) but then she decided I was depressed - lol (I am not depressed) but you know moms
My particular case is not likely to be yours, as mine turned out to be a tumor. I was actually thinking of something different than happened to me, as a result of the cancer.
Long story short, I was having seizures. They're not all "grand mal" or "epileptic seizures" where you can foam at the mouth, lose control of your body, etc. Complex partial seizures, like the ones I was having, can affect the body in much more subtle ways.
It can be directly responsible for many of the symptoms that you've described. I wouldn't be too worried about it, but seeing a neurologist, if these new tricks don't work is certainly the next step that i'd be taking. So many non-digestive issues could be causing this sort of stuff to happen | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/21/2008 4:51:26 AM | I am going to against the mob, and say forget about dieting.
Im 175 lbs lean. I eat like a pig and exercise sporadically. I chug beer and caffeine as if there were no tomorrow.
I vary what i eat every meal. And i vary my exercises every time. My body is not stuck in a routine, so it stays on top of things. Yeah, you look real good man. Muscular. I like that. I am doing it all wrong. All this time I thought disciplined diet and intense exercise was how someone got fit, strong and healthy. Apparently it is not that at all! I feel so foolish! I will turn a new leaf tomorrow!
Who are you to say what you need for your body nutrition wise? Big, strong, fit, able to carry your '175lb lean' around on my back for days at a time and more importantly educated. Who are you? | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 7/21/2008 6:42:56 AM | | i have a wheat intolerance, and I know some other people that do. But we lost weight over time, not gained. Doing the gluten free thing is great, but make sure you still get your carbs from whole grains like rice, potatoes, corn/cornmeal, and eat lots of beans;) | |
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| Calling all health nuts -- your advice please
Posted: 8/4/2008 8:17:04 PM | Hi,
I can relate to some of your symptoms. And I went to my natural doctors; they suggested going on the Eat Right for Your Blood Type Diet (popular book)...I would suspect from you symptoms, that you, like I, am a Type O - which means you do better eating Proteins/Meats/Fish/Chicken and Veggies; very few carbs, other than what you get in the veggies. Some veggies like potatos and corn are out; sweet potatos in. Check out the book or Google the title. I gave up coffee, too. I was addicted. This really has helped. Basically low glycemic level foods. It gets easier as you go (week 7 here).
Also, find out if you have parasites; they can wreck havock with your digestion and weight fluctuations. Wish you luck...keep trying; don't give up!
ps..also taking a digestive enzyme called V-gest..which focuses on amylase, which helps digest carbs. Helped immensely! Have other things to suggest if you're intersted. | |
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