Carbohydrate Intolerance And Weight Loss

[qbrute]

I was diagnosed with celiac disease in Aug 1998 after suffering for 16 years with bizarre symptoms. These included waking up at night with thirst, brief lack of coordination, loss of concentration, tingling fingers, abdominal cramps, slight headache, tearful, anxiety attacks, and reddening around the mouth. I discovered time after time that if I reduced the sugar (glucose, lactose, and fructose) in my diet I improved. Recently I lost a job, became stressed, and suffered for four months with symptoms so I took drastic measures. I cut ALL simple sugars completely and starchy foods such as potatoes and white rice. I think it's called a Caveman Diet. I now eat vegetables (not potatoes), and I grill fish, chicken, and turkey. I also eat wholegrain brown rice. There's no fruit. After three weeks of this I've never felt better. However, I've dropped 3kg (7 pounds) in three weeks although I'm still at the top end of my recommended weight. So it looks like an intolerance to ALL sugars even those produced from starch.

Here's my problem. If I continue with this vegetable and meat only diet I'm thinking I'll continue to lose weight. But will I waste away? Surely I should hit a platform weight where it won't drop any more. The caveman lived with it didn't he?

What do you think?

[ndw3363]

My system hates carbs as well - but I have yet to cut them all out (I'm not as strong as you). But I would think if you increased the amount of fat and kept your calories a bit higher, that you should be ok. Your body will shed a few pounds initially after cutting it all out, but I would think that it will adjust to your new diet eventually. I cut out most carbs and sugar a couple years ago and dropped about 20 pounds in a couple months (which I really couldn't afford to lose). But after that, it held steady. I've recently increased my sugar intake, and man can I tell a difference. I feel like crap and my pants don't fit (put on a few pretty quickly). Time to cut the sugar back out and only eat simple carbs such as sweet potatoes and brown rice. Wish everyone was still on the Low Carb kick - made eating out a lot easier.

[domesticactivist]

When we started the GAPS diet (about 5 months ago) I dropped 20 lbs immediately. I was thin to start with so I was worried the trend would continue. However, I stopped losing weight when I got to my pre-baby weight (about 125 lbs at 5'6" with large bones).

The GAPS diet sounds similar to what you are doing. It starts out with just bone broths, meat broths, cooked veggies, and meats, then introduces home-fermented foods, and slowly introduces raw foods. Several stages into the diet we did get to introduce fruits, but did discover the need to not go crazy on them! (Though at the moment I am polishing off a pint of fresh cherries, lol). We are totally grain-free and much better off for it. One important thing is to make sure you are eating enough healthy saturated fats. Avacados, fats from meats that are organic and pasture-raised (there is scientific evidence that the fat from CAFO animals is bad for you where the pastured animal fats are totally different), coconut oil, & ghee are some examples.