What works for you? page

[Carrie B]

Hi, fellow apples!

First of all, I love this community - I stumbled upon MDA about a month ago and have been about 75% primal ever since (I've cut out grains completely, but still eat more sugar than I should in the form of 3-4 servings of fruit a day, and more dark chocolate daily than I should be eating). For me, it's all about mood and energy, not weight loss (I am one of those lucky people who has never been overweight despite a pretty high-carb diet - my nickname was Noodle growing up, because pasta was basically all I ate). I used to struggle with anxiety, but not anymore!! It really is incredible what cutting way back on sugar and grains can do.

I've been trying to pay attention to how my body reacts to certain foods. For instance, last week, after 3 anxiety-free Primal weeks of eating, I ate a sandwich on French bread and felt terribly anxious several hours later, so I know that white bread has a huge effect on my mood. I've eaten a little bit of corn here and there (in turkey/salsa soup) however, and not felt too different. I find I can't "overdose" on 85% Lindt, but put a bag full of 65% fair trade chocolate pieces in front of me, and I will devour a whole candy bar's worth. Tonight I tried to satisfy my sweet tooth with grapes, but they only ended up making me crave more sugar (leading to my consuming a lot of 65% chocolate...).

So I'm wondering - everyone (but especially women!), how do certain non-Primal foods affect your mood? Can you handle the occasional bowl of oatmeal, but not a baked potato? Do certain fruits activate, rather than satisfy, your craving for sugar (leading to mood swings and feelings of guilt)? I think it's good to pay attention to how our bodies react so that we can identify and avoid our triggers in the future.

Thanks!
-carrie

[belinda]

I haven't noticed food affecting my moods, but I had a piece (ok, two pieces!) of frosted cake last week and blew up like a balloon from bloating. I really can't get away with eating cake anymore.

[loafingcactus]

I cannot identify any one food affecting my mood, though my mood in general is different on low carb (primal or otherwise).

I am very aware of my food addiction issues. Like you, I've just had to identify what each food does to me and use that information to adjust my lifestyle. I have also found that it is not just the food item, but the situation. Which is not surprising since most addictions have a set of behaviors wrapped around them. So something that triggers an addictive response in a social situation may not at home and vice versa.

[cateydid]

I'm also pretty lucky when it comes to grains. I can eat whole ones like brown rice, barley, oats, etc., and be just fine. But bread and pasta seem to trigger overconsumption for me unless I pair them with lots of protein and fat. (Still, I'd never give up the odd piece of good bread—lavished with butter, of course!) So the only reason I avoid grains when I do is that there are more nutritious foods around. And spaghetti squash really is just as good as pasta, I've found.

Sugar, though? Nightmarish. I also have anxiety and whenever I have too much of a white sugar product I get jittery and manic and sad all at the same time, and I get a sugar hangover the next day. Even really sweet fruits like bananas, grapes, and pineapple just make me hungrier and hungrier and then I crash. There are some things I can't have in moderation, and sugar is at the top of that list.

[Bishop]

My anxiety is much lower. I'm not sure if it's increased fat or decreased grain making it better. Probably both.
Pasta and corn have always made me feel like garbage. As does sugar in certain forms.
Out if my favorite fruits, grapes are the high sugar one and can affect me, but I have gotten good at controlling it.
I dislike most carbs, but my weaknesses were always jasmine rice and sourdough bread. Now i only eat the occasional rice with takeout and I never ever buy bread. I always loved a good loaf of sourdough and would drown it in olive oil, but I would binge on it. It didn't matter that it was swimming in oil and I usually slathered it in Brie as well. It was just too good.
If I eat too much fruit or chocolate, I don't have the same anxiety as with other things.

[ShannonCC]

I haven't experimented with grains. I was gluten free a few years ago and I know that gluten is definitely bad for me. But this time around - cutting all grains instead of just the gluten ones - I feel SO much healthier. So I haven't had much of an urge to experiment.

Fruit though, I'm eating more now that the fruit season has hit here. I feel good and it doesn't make me crave or anything so I'm sticking with it for the summer (I tend to be a seasonal fruit eater so come fall I won't be eating as much anyway).

I do have a piece of 72% chocolate but even though it's got sugar, it doesn't make me eat uncontrollably. For me, it really was the grains and gluten that was the problem. NOT that I'm going to start eating entire bars of chocolate and sugary snacks, but one piece of chocolate seems to not be a problem (and is cool since back when I was eating grains, I wouldn't have been able to stop at 1 piece of chocolate).

[RitaRose]

I can't eat gluten, plain and simple, which is hilarious because I pretty much lived on it and thought I was fine. I strayed once and had the same problem as belinda. I blew up like a balloon. Not only was I very gassy (which I haven't been at all since starting Primal), but my weight and bodyfat went up literally overnight, and by a lot.

This past week, I also had a couple of Powerade Zeros because I was trying to replace some lost electrolytes quickly. I'm not sure what was the issue there (maybe food coloring, sucralose, something else) but I was incredibly moody, almost in tears until it seemed to clear my system. I drank it for 2 days, and I put on about a pound each day and my bodyfat went up by about 1/2% as well. Other than that, I was eating normally, so I'm assuming it was something in the Powerade Zero.

Regular sugar doesn't seem to be a problem for me, though I do generally avoid it just because there's no reason why I should be eating it. I eat apples and cherries and blueberries if I want something sweet, but I do admit to the rare Dairy Queen trip for a small hot fudge sundae (which is gluten free). That doesn't seem to impact me at all, but I don't do it very often anyway. There are just better things I could be eating.