RE: Trying VLC for inflammation page

[jammies]

I have recently read several interesting papers studying the role of glucose signaling in immune activation. Today I was at a presentation showing that glucose signaling promoted a type of very inflammatory immune cell, where if you blocked glucose signaling that same cell would become an immune suppressive cell.

I have been low lectin primal for about 10 months, but I have not been low carb at all. Plenty of fruit, sweet potatoes and dark chocolate. I have improved my health and lost a lot of weight, but I still have some inflammation and fatigue. I think these recent papers are convincing me to try a very low carb version of primal. I think I need to strive to be in ketosis most of the time for this to work.

I would love some feedback from people who do low/very low carb. How is your energy? Do you see any changes in inflammation? Any advice?

I'm a little scared! I love to eat a wide variety of foods, and since I don't eat dairy or nightshades, I get nervous about getting any more strict. But I am determined to feel healthy one day so I'm going to try

[js290]

I've definitely concluded sugar burning is not healthy.

Can cutting Carbohydrates from your diet make you live longer? | Mail Online
BBC iPlayer - Discovery: Exchanges at the Frontier
The Blog of Michael R. Eades, M.D. » Tips & tricks for starting (or restarting) low-carb Pt II

I wouldn't worry too much if the extent of your carb intake comes from leafy veggies.

[jammies]

Wow - those were all really great....thank you. I'm actually kind of excited to try low carb now! Maybe low carb, low lectin primal will be the key for me

I wonder how bad the carb withdrawal will be coming from a primal diet instead of a SAD diet?

[Paleobird]

I stay in ketosis just about all the time. I'm doing it for a neurological disorder (seizures) but one of the side benefits was no more puffy ankles and feet. My rings have all magically gotten a size larger too.

[erikJ]

yup, inflammation was a big one for me. Sugar, Alcohol and wheat especially make me puff up like a balloon. I would really feel it in my wrists, Hips and ankles. Good to know about the Glucose signaling.

[jammies]

yup, inflammation was a big one for me. Sugar, Alcohol and wheat especially make me puff up like a balloon. I would really feel it in my wrists, Hips and ankles. Good to know about the Glucose signaling.

When you say "sugar" do you mean all kinds of sugars - fruit, sweet potatoes, etc? So you stay pretty low carb to stay "de-puffed"? Thanks!!

[Unshod Sarah]

Could your pain and fatigue come from food allergies? You can be very low carb and totally allergic to eggs or some such thing and still feel terrible.

[erikJ]

Pretty much all sugars. Agave didn't affect me the same which would make sense as its all Fructose, But it was definitely part of the baseline inflammation. I think it just hit me slower. Not much with fruit. a little with potatoes. Like i said Wheat was the real killer. If I had a bowl of pasta (read as: a lb of pasta with olive oil and Parmesan cheese) and then had some Ice cream, the next day I could hardly get out of bed without two or three advil and LOTS of coffee. In fact it was the advil hat I had to take everyday that clued me in to the excessive inflammation. When I started eating full primal I almost cried to have finally found the reasons for my pain and have it removed.

[jammies]

Could your pain and fatigue come from food allergies? You can be very low carb and totally allergic to eggs or some such thing and still feel terrible.

I do have a lot of food intolerances as far as joint inflammation goes. I seem to react to all the high lectin food groups including grains (especially rice), all nightshades, eggs, dairy and maybe coffee. But I guess the reality is that I do still get small amounts of some of those each week. About twice a week I have cream in my coffee and some butter, etc. By my nature I am not very strict so I hate doing things 100%. Maybe these small amounts are causing problems?

I did have IgG food intolerance testing by some lab a few years ago (before primal). A LOT of foods came up including beef, chicken, pork, avocado......things I can't really get by without on a primal diet. The two that came up the highest were oats and eggs. Oats turned out to be the sole cause of more than ten years of chronic bowel problems and eggs are a problem for sure.

Thanks!