Why does Danny Roddy recommend sugar to reduce stress/estrogen? page 3

[bopfer]

Primal is low carb?

I would consider low-carb anything less then 300g. I was around 100-150g while on Primal. Now around 300-400g, mostly from fruit.

[Neckhammer]

I would consider low-carb anything less then 300g. I was around 100-150g while on Primal. Now around 300-400g, mostly from fruit.

Holy balls...yeah then I'm definitely LC.

[magicmerl]

I would consider low-carb anything less then 300g. I was around 100-150g while on Primal. Now around 300-400g, mostly from fruit.

Fair enough. If that's the definition you are using then I guess primal is low carb. I would put low carb at being <50g personally, which is something that I don't strive for.

I've read through several of the articles on Dannys blog and they don't seem that outrageous. There's useful information there.

[Chaohinon]

I recommend sugar (fruit) and 80-100 g of protein per day for lowering estrogen because:

- The liver deactivates 100% of the estrogen in the body and does so when it is properly "energized" with carbohydrate (glycogen). Low glycogen levels decrease thyroid performance (the liver converts a large amount of T4>T3) and decreases the ability of the liver to remove estrogen.

- A sugar based metabolism decreases the release of fat from tissue (adrenaline and several other hormones release fat as a predominant fuel when we're stressed). Breakdown products from these fats (prostaglandins) activate aromatase (creates new estrogen)

- An ample amount of carbohydrate in the diet restrains the release of adaptive "stress" hormones, predominantly cortisol, which also activates aromatase.

-Danny

Couldn't this easily be achieved by virtually anything containing carbohydrates? Starchy veggies, non-starchy veggies, 150g of carbs per day of leafy veggies...

"Non-starchy" veggies contain a hell of a lot more sugar than you'd think.

[magicmerl]

Couldn't this easily be achieved by virtually anything containing carbohydrates? Starchy veggies, non-starchy veggies, 150g of carbs per day of leafy veggies...

"Non-starchy" veggies contain a hell of a lot more sugar than you'd think.

As I understand it he is deliberately aiming for sugar consumption to get fructose as well, because that is a better facilitator of CO2 production in the body.

That said, he does seem to be eager to point out perceived flaws in paleo since falling out of love with her. And I'm not sure that what he is saying is rock solid. For example, this is the summary from this page:

■Adopting the idea of "safe-starches" reinforces the idea that carbohydrates are inherently toxic.
■Pulse and body temperature are two self-diagnostics that can be used to guide the consumption of sugar, salt, protein, and saturated fats.
■A deficiency of CO2 causes problems with the delivery and use of oxygen by the mitochondria (inhibits oxidative energy).
■Sugar oxidation provides more CO2 than fat oxidation.
■Carbon dioxide is a co-factor for several important fat-soluble vitamins.

I think that the first point is just flat out incorrect (and I think he gets corrected in the comments, but has not edited the article to reflect his changed understanding since he authored it). The second one seems to be based on the idea that the closer your resting pulse rate is to 85 the better, which I am unsure of (I thought lower was better?). The 3rd, 4th and 5th points all seem perfectly reasonable, but would require someone with more understanding of the subjects in question than me to rebut them (if they should be rebutted).

[dannyroddy]

@Apex,

Thanks.

@Grumpycakes,

It depends on the metabolic rate and that person's ability to produce energy in the face of stress (thyroid performance).

In general, a higher carbohydrate diet is preferable to limit adrenaline, cortisol, and the rest of the adaptive hormones.

@Joe 2.0,

Diabetes/metabolic issues are not caused by consuming sugar, they are caused by adaptive stress hormones that are released when energy production (real biological energy) is insufficient.

@Chaohinon,

Fibrous carbohydrates can cause complications with bacterial endotoxin and increase adaptive stress hormones.

Fruit sugar has a few other qualities as well; increased CO2, rich in magnesium, vitamin C, and fructose.

Good answer from @magicmerl

[dannyroddy]

@magicmerl,

I didn't change it because I don't necessarily believe that the concept of "safe starches" had nothing to do with fructose content.

[Chaohinon]

Fruits are fibrous carbohydrates.

[dannyroddy]

@Chaohinon,

Very ripe oranges, watermelon, grapes, cherries, etc. have lower fiber content than starches.

Also, this is why I recommend strained fresh orange juice as a carbohydrate source.

[magicmerl]

@magicmerl,

I didn't change it because I don't necessarily believe that the concept of "safe starches" had nothing to do with fructose content.

Fair enough. I've drifted to a point there I don't think that sugar is a demon once you have eliminated processed foods from your diet.

To the best of my knowledge 'safe starches' are a term coined by Paul Janimet for his 'perfect health diet' graphic. It's a way of ring fencing the bad starches while still having the macronutrient in your diet, and leaving people aware of 'unsafe' starches, particularly grains and legumes:

•Do not eat toxic foods. Notably:
◦Do not eat cereal grains — wheat, barley, oats, corn — or foods made from them — bread, pasta, breakfast cereals, oatmeal. The exception is white rice, which we count among our “safe starches.” Rice noodles, rice crackers, and the like are fine.
◦Do not eat calorie-rich legumes. Peas and green beans are fine. Soy and peanuts should be absolutely excluded. Beans might be acceptable with suitable preparation, but we recommend avoiding them.
◦Do not eat foods with added sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. Do not drink anything that contains sugar: healthy drinks are water, tea, and coffee.
◦Polyunsaturated fats should be a small fraction of the diet (~4% of total calories). To achieve this, do not eat seed oils such as soybean oil, corn oil, safflower oil, sunflower oil, canola oil, or the like. The best cooking oils are coconut oil, clarified butter, and beef tallow; palm oil, lard, olive oil, and avocado oil are next best. Nut butters are another possible source of fats.

It seems that most of the big 'controversy' is merely a question of degree.