Ex-vegan seeking advice page 2

[Griff]

Can I ask about any health improvements you have seen since you started eating this way?

Not much. Just that:

My migraines have disappeared. My IBS has disappeared. My diabetes is so far under control that my doctor says I am no longer a diabetic - I've cured it. My arthritis only bothers me when the barometer goes nuts; the rest of the time it doesn't bother me at all and I can walk across a college campus without pain. I'm no longer in a wheelchair. I've also dropped 100 pounds. My cholesterol is stellar, as is my blood sugar and blood pressure.

Other than that, not much.

I don't miss my ex-vegetarian ways. Even the sight of most CW-"healthy" foods makes me feel a little ill. I never eat them anymore.

[Fruitlover]

Hi Nion,

I'm so glad I posted about this, I am really really looking forward to hearing what wisdom you all have to share with me. :-)

The symptoms I described were not really consistent. I was still able to exercise (just not as vigorously) and maintain my yoga practice. It's more like, over the course of months, I noticed a ever-so-imperceptible-I-barely-noticed-it winding down of my energy. I still felt mentally very clear, had very stable emotions, and had a positive & joyous attitude.

Would love to hear more...

[Nion]

Hi Nion,

I'm so glad I posted about this, I am really really looking forward to hearing what wisdom you all have to share with me. :-)

The symptoms I described were not really consistent. I was still able to exercise (just not as vigorously) and maintain my yoga practice. It's more like, over the course of months, I noticed a ever-so-imperceptible-I-barely-noticed-it winding down of my energy. I still felt mentally very clear, had very stable emotions, and had a positive & joyous attitude.

Would love to hear more...

It hits everyone differently, as there's different types. It probably wouldn't hurt to get a blood test.
But it does sound exactly the same as when i had (Iron Deficiency Anemia)
My nails, skin and hair are still recovering. I was tired all the time, but if i ate red meat i felt better within hours! On my period i felt HORRIFYING


Iron deficiency anemia - PubMed Health

[aktres]

I went all the way with veg. As faaaaaar as you can go. Vegetarianism turned into veganism, which eventually (3 years ago) turned into the raw food diet. I did see dramatic health improvements on the raw food diet (complete erasure of moodiness, brain fog, blood sugar swings, nagging fatigue and annoying minor health complaints), enough to motivate me to keep on with it. My Raw Infatuation eventually led to a mostly fruitarian diet, with me completing a one month stint on all raw fruits and veggies, with no overt fats last summer.

I'm guessing, but I bet that the reason you felt so well when you went from vegan to raw foods is because you eliminated grains at that time.

[Fruitlover]

Hi Griff! Thanks for writing. You look great. Congratulations on all your success with this lifestyle.

I am so, so interested in what everyone is writing, really, but you have to understand that, probably until this moment, my mind has been completely closed to some of the ideas you're presenting.

CoyoteVick wrote: "you'll feel great with elevated blood sugar levels, until you stop eating simple sugars for a few hours. Then you'll crash."

That's the thing. Before I got into raw food 3 years ago, I had terrible issues with blood sugar (I didn't understand what this was at the time). During raw, when I began eating a lot of fruit, these issues went away completely. COMPLETELY. I enjoyed very stable moods and blood sugar and never again had one of those awful "all system alert" crashes I used to have when I would eat enormous meals of grains and beans and tofu.

I've only feared these problems returning recently, when I began trying to introduce more meat, which means more fat. In the past 2 weeks I have had three little incidents of blood sugar instability, resulting in a massive craving for carbs and a total disinterest in any fat intake, and I have assumed this was because I have been too lenient about mixing fruit and fat.

Would love to hear any advice/questions, and more about your days as a vegetarian. What made you stop that diet?

[Fruitlover]

CoyoteVick, please see my reply to Griff on page 2. I respond to your post...

[Fruitlover]

Hi Aktres,

It took me a year of mostly raw before I eliminated grains altogether. During my first year transitioning to raw, the only 3 cooked foods I allowed myself were brown rice, plain steamed potatoes, and steamed salmon. I ate plenty of brown rice, although nothing on the level that I used to before raw. I went ten months without no grains at all, then occasionally tried to eat brown rice, found it made me tired the next day, and so stopped. It's been a while since I had any brown rice. No interest in it.

What made you make this observation? I know how bad grains are, obviously.

[CoyoteVick]

Hmm... if, and I'm very skeptical this is the case, but if your blood sugar was stable on fruit, and the biggest symptoms was a loss of energy over time, then you're probably dealing with a lack of vitamins and minerals. Were you taking any kind of supplement? Because vitamin D, K, E, and several others really can not be found in non animal products, unless they are supplemented. And those are fat soluble vitamins anyway, which means even if you were supplementing with those vitamins, it wouldn't do you any good, because your body can't absorb those nutrients unless they are also eaten with fat.

I really think the only way you are going to get healthy is to fully embrace a paleo/primal diet, and stop eating fruit for several weeks. Keep your carbs under 100 grams a day. Eat vitamin and nutrient dense food, from animals. It's going to be hell detoxing from all that sugar, but it's for the best. You can wean yourself off slowly, but the best way is just to white knuckle through for a few weeks.

Your pancreas will thank you.

[Fruitlover]

Nion, so weird, the one thing that makes me feel instantly better to eat is grass fed steak (I won't eat grain fed). Within an hour or so, I feel more energetic, alert and calm.

I have, a couple of times, had this reaction to eating chicken, but it's more often made me tired the next day after eating it. Any clue as to why that would be? All this time, I've been assuming that it's high fat foods that make me lethargic. I can always predict feeling lethargic after eating a high fat piece of meat, other than steak.

[Fruitlover]

Thanks CoyoteVick. Yes, every symptom described is 100% accurate and true. Very, very stable blood sugar and moods.

However, staying on this diet for the long-haul has proven to be unwise because of the gradual loss of energy (nothing dramatic, very subtle) and the thin, brittle hair and nails. My intention has been to enjoy the best of both worlds (keeping my treasured fruit while eating some meat protein each day). However, as I've described, that's not working so well, due to (I'm assuming) the combo of fat of fruit.

The couple of times I've dipped my toe in the water with cutting back on fruit & potatoes have sent me fleeing with horror, because I get a clear taste of doom: it becomes obvious that doing this will, as you describe, make me feel like utter shit. Thus, I have been trying to tell myself not to do it, or anything that makes me feel that rotten can't be good for me.

I also, admittedly, have a couple of trusted longtime raw sources trying to "reason" with me...