Ultra Low Carb Dieting Dangers

**booklover** · January 5th, 2015, 05:05 PM

Ok, thanks. I read the article. I will feel better about adding a little more carbs in P4. I think when I deny myself too much, my body and mind crave it, and I go straight for the bread basket, which totally backfires on me. I believe oats and beans and lentils will feel like a boon of food added in my diet and I will be satisfied.

My hubby made some bean and beef sausage soup, which I normally don't eat, but I had a bowl about 2 weeks ago and was amazed at how little I could eat. The beans were SO filling! It felt intuitively right to me and I've wondered about it since. Thank you!

**ILuvKats** · January 5th, 2015, 05:06 PM

Interesting article, but unfortunately most of her info is old...1999, early 2000s. She is also mainly talking about the hormonal affects on highly active, thin female athletes. Whether that info can be generalized to folks like us,...well, even she says everyone is different.

Here is more recent, evidence based info based on 20 studies conducted after the early 2000s on the proven benefits of low carb diets.

http://authoritynutrition.com/10-ben...togenic-diets/

**grammy1952** · January 5th, 2015, 05:12 PM

Oh I'm not disputing the short term effects. We've all seen them. It's the long term effects that crop up that I don't like. I've seen them time and time again and have experienced them myself. I believe in regular low carb. just not keto or ultra low carb for very long.

The longest study your link lists was 12 months and the losses were not statistically significant at 12 months. Ultra low carb only works for a while.

Here's a newer post by Chris Kessler who is very balanced. http://chriskresser.com/7-things-eve...low-carb-diets

**grammy1952** · January 5th, 2015, 05:19 PM

Also most of those studies in your link just said low carb. there was no definition of how many carbs most of them had. I try to keep carbs at 75-100 which is still low carb but not ultra low carb. It's just healthier for the thyroid and adrenals.

**ILuvKats** · January 6th, 2015, 04:02 AM

The siesta plan is limited to a 28 day cycle. It is not recommended that you stay on it for very long. Most folks get bored with the food choices at about that point anyway. But both your and my studies point out that the beneficial carb count for individuals is a very individual thing, and can very even week to week. I've seen this time and time again in patients and in myself. I think putting a number on it, such as 75 to 100 is over simplifying the issue and perhaps making individuals who feel they need less because of PCOS or insulin resistance or triglyceride issues feel that they are harming some other body function such as adrenal function or thyroid function, when clearly they are not. My main point in all this is that there are benefits to be had from short periods of ultra low carb, intermittent fasting, fast metabolism diet, Simmeons protocol, etc, etc. I really think this whole thread should be in the boxing ring, not in the regular forum.

**grammy1952** · January 6th, 2015, 05:55 AM

It's in my subforum, not the regular forum. This is just more of what I tell people who ask me questions all the time. I wasn't talking about the Siesta Diet or anything other diet. I'm talking about general health things. Sorry you disagree with me, but I stand by what I've learned these past 7 years.

I went back and edited why I posted it.

**Ginger1** · January 6th, 2015, 06:59 AM

Originally Posted by grammy1952

Ginger, do you like sweet potatoes? Those are a good source of carbs. And things like winter squash. I love spaghetti squash!

I do eat sweet potatoes. And I do like winter squash. I think I will cook a sweet potato to eat with my chicken breast for lunch today. That plus a small salad should be perfect.

**booklover** · January 6th, 2015, 07:09 AM

Sure enough, they've gotten too scared of carbs in P3 again.

Am I remembering correctly that you now recommend a small amount of fruit in P3?

**grammy1952** · January 6th, 2015, 07:52 AM

Yes I recommend keeping in a couple of servings a fruit in P3.

**Jmmrr** · January 6th, 2015, 10:23 AM

interesting article, with even more interesting reports in the comments section of the article.

Just a bunch of random thoughts...I'm always surprised how different people's bodies react to different eating plans. I do very well with higher carbs and not at all well with low carb. I'm pretty sure I eat a lot more carbs and starches than most people on these boards in P4 and my body/weight likes it. But fruit makes me shaky, weak and hungry, and I don't like fruit. I'm extremely fortunate that I tend not to like the foods that my body reacts negatively to. Most people crave the foods they are sensitive to. Actual sugar doesn't affect how I feel, but it makes me gain pretty fast. Potatoes, beans, pasta, etc are my friends. But so many people feel just fantastic on a low carb diet, even if it is just for six months or a year. I've never felt anything but awful on low carbs.

The key to getting my hormones into better shape (although I still have difficulties) was to start eating fat. More than anything, I think my years of low fat, low cal dieting just about killed me. I wonder how much low carb with low fat is causing women's problems and it is the low carb alone that gets blamed? I think if you're going to do low carb, you've got to have at least a moderate level of fat and most women are severely fat phobic. I tend to connect my thyroid health more with what types and how many fats I am consuming, but I've never tried low carb for a long period of time to see what it does to my thyroid.

Mostly, I guess my conclusion is that not everyone will thrive on the same diet. And we must learn to listen to our bodies, listen over time, not just listen to what it is saying after a week or a month. I'm a big believer in a kind of balanced diet, a moderate diet that includes just about everything, although my version of moderate and balanced probably isn't everyone's and probably won't work for everyone.

**grammy1952** · January 6th, 2015, 10:37 AM

Yes very Weston A Price, right? I love that guy's vision for a healthy diet. The paleo people who are noticing the problems with ultra low carb eat a lot of fat though too. I did too. Many days I consumed 70-75% fat. Never less than 65%. I'm a little more moderate now and am eating way more veggies than I used to. Thanks for weighing in, jmmrr!

**Kansas** · January 6th, 2015, 03:53 PM

I didn't realize the 20 yrs
of low cal , no fat was destroying my metabo till I got here.

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