Ketogenic Diet - Powerful Dietary Strategy for Certain Conditions

[SummerLite]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Thank you all for the awesome feedback!

Herondancer, it's good to hear this and very reaffirming. I will keep this in mind and its surely how I've been feeling. I'm also enjoying a new appreciation and heightened awareness of what is happening inside me. Really paying so much more attention to the subtleties of my body changing in response to the new things I'm doing. Its very good.

dugdeep: "The metals in the mouth are a concern, but it sounds like you're already taking the right steps to support the liver with the milk thistle, NAC and ALA. You might want to try a chelator like cilantro, activated charcoal or bentonite clay to bind toxic stuff and help it out of the body. Lots of water should be done in conjunction with this.

Also, on the Health and Wellness show tomorrow (Monday) at 2pm EST on the SOTT Talk Radio Network we'll be doing part 2 of our ketogenic diet series. Tune in if you can! You can even call in with questions, if you have any, or just to share your experience. We love calls! Here's the link:"

I like this idea about the cilantro, clay and charcoal. Sounds like something I could do that would fit in nicely and is a fairly simple process. Also I'll definitely listen to the archived show soon. Thanks for letting me know, I may have missed it otherwise.

I've got to tell everyone here, I'm absolutely loving all this. Its an authentic, highly creative, tangible learning and growing experience and challenge. The massive material collected here on health topics is a treasure. I think and am excited to say, I believe the keto diet along with so many other things here are contributing to major, positive changes in my life. Thanks to All for your contributions, its such very Good Work! :D

 

[lilyalic]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I've been keto-adapted for just over 6 months now, eating the right amount of protein with the right amount of fat, doing all the fasting etcetc..
taking magnesium, zinc, pottasium, salt water, (now started taking Betaine HCL with Pepsin), VitD, Evening primrose oil, L-glutamine.. also started on probiotics and "Ultimate Candida Cleanse" today.

I was taking Berberine for 2 weeks, but that didn't seem to be helping either, so I've stopped that for a while.

The problem is I've been bloating ridiculously for around 2/3 months now, something seems wrong with the digestion of the food... I've tried eating even less and it still persists. I've tried fasting for longer, exercise, cutting chocolate completely out, cutting vegetables out... there was a day I just had fat bomb and I didn't seem to bloat, then after the protein I did bloat... that's why I started on the HCL's.

I know the gut seems to react in accordance to psychological stress, which is something that has persisted also but I seem to be dealing rather well with everything.

I wasn't having any problems in the first few months of keto, I was SO skinny all the time, now I've put weight back on and just look 4 months pregnant most of the time!

 

[osher]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

The problem is I've been bloating ridiculously for around 2/3 months now, something seems wrong with the digestion of the food... I've tried eating even less and it still persists. I've tried fasting for longer, exercise, cutting chocolate completely out, cutting vegetables out... there was a day I just had fat bomb and I didn't seem to bloat, then after the protein I did bloat... that's why I started on the HCL's.

My observation is that quality of meat/protein will determine if one bloats or not. For example, smoked bacon from local farmer does bloat my belly, while meat that is prepared by myself does not. It may be because all of ready to eat procuts are filled with soy protein to keep them moisturized/heavier, seems even local farmers do that. I often make broth from turkey necks, then the meat (without bones) is stored in fridge - i think it is impossible to fill turkey necks with soy protein soultion, that's why it doesn't bloat belly. Also i eat lots of turkey liver - seems they are not soy-protein filled neither. Fat bomb never gave me bloating, as you write. There may me lots of other factors causing bloating, for example even smallest amount of mustard does it for me. Good luck finding the cause(s) and eliminating them.

 

[dugdeep]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I've been keto-adapted for just over 6 months now, eating the right amount of protein with the right amount of fat, doing all the fasting etcetc..
taking magnesium, zinc, pottasium, salt water, (now started taking Betaine HCL with Pepsin), VitD, Evening primrose oil, L-glutamine.. also started on probiotics and "Ultimate Candida Cleanse" today.

I was taking Berberine for 2 weeks, but that didn't seem to be helping either, so I've stopped that for a while.

The problem is I've been bloating ridiculously for around 2/3 months now, something seems wrong with the digestion of the food... I've tried eating even less and it still persists. I've tried fasting for longer, exercise, cutting chocolate completely out, cutting vegetables out... there was a day I just had fat bomb and I didn't seem to bloat, then after the protein I did bloat... that's why I started on the HCL's.

I know the gut seems to react in accordance to psychological stress, which is something that has persisted also but I seem to be dealing rather well with everything.

I wasn't having any problems in the first few months of keto, I was SO skinny all the time, now I've put weight back on and just look 4 months pregnant most of the time!

Hi lilyalic. I didn't see any mention of fat digestion support in your list of supplements, so this might be something you want to try. Ox bile and lipase are supplements that help with fat digestion by helping emulsify and break down fats. You may have been OK with the fat bomb because it's already emulsified (with the lecithin and egg yolks), but eating straight unemulsified fat is giving you issues.

Ox bile and lipase often come in the same pill, and isn't usually expensive. You probably won't need the support indefinitely; just until your body gets used to the increased fat consumption.

Hope that helps :)

 

[Carl]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

In addition to the above, liver toxicity can induce symptoms like abdominal bloating, fatigue, cellulite, weight gain etc.

Milk thistle is effective at detoxing the liver, along with sweating through saunas or hot yoga. Emmerich also recommends a supplement called estrofactors to detox bad estrogen from the liver, which might be worth looking into.

Also, cutting out dairy for a period of time (including butter) is a necessary test, especially if one is having obvious GI problems. 2 months is recommended by Emmerich, and longer by others. Healing time of the gut villi can be sped up through anti inflammatory gut supplements such as L glutamine and DGL.

Then there's also candida, bacterial infections such as H. Pylori, or even parasites. It can be very unclear what is actually going on down there.

 

[Miss.K]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I've been keto-adapted for just over 6 months now, eating the right amount of protein with the right amount of fat, doing all the fasting etcetc..
taking magnesium, zinc, pottasium, salt water, (now started taking Betaine HCL with Pepsin), VitD, Evening primrose oil, L-glutamine.. also started on probiotics and "Ultimate Candida Cleanse" today.

I was taking Berberine for 2 weeks, but that didn't seem to be helping either, so I've stopped that for a while.

The problem is I've been bloating ridiculously for around 2/3 months now, something seems wrong with the digestion of the food... I've tried eating even less and it still persists. I've tried fasting for longer, exercise, cutting chocolate completely out, cutting vegetables out... there was a day I just had fat bomb and I didn't seem to bloat, then after the protein I did bloat... that's why I started on the HCL's.

I know the gut seems to react in accordance to psychological stress, which is something that has persisted also but I seem to be dealing rather well with everything.

I wasn't having any problems in the first few months of keto, I was SO skinny all the time, now I've put weight back on and just look 4 months pregnant most of the time!

I've always had bloated stomach before the diet, and for me, when I changed the diet, I found that if I ate only roast pigbelly (the most fatty part) it went away.
I could eat 1 small apple a day without it coming back, but every time I tried to add anything else, like half a sweet potato it came back (!??!)

I don't know if apples have something I needed, because I was past sugar cravings when I started to eat them, and I started because I started to think of apples a lot, and found one that was not mature yet and really sour that I ate, and it seemed like my body craved the acid in them more than the sugar. (I might have been lacking vitamins as I was poor and not able to buy them always)

Anyways what I found was that roast pork belly seemed to be my food. And I ate other meats or fish once in a while, but apart from apples, it seemed like anything not from animals (even things that other people on the diet here can eat), was a disturbance in the force so to speak.
(egg yolks seemed OK but the white gave me a foamy feeling in the stomach)

Things were well, I got so much more energy, lost excess fat, no bloating, no hunger, and feeling happy every time I ate, as roast pork belly is really tasty (even after eating it every day for a year)


Then I moved to Spain 2 years ago, and for some really strange reason they don't have pork belly here (it's probably possible to tell a butcher how to cut it, but haven't gotten to it yet)

So I bought a piglet, and though tasty, I have a hard time eating babies, and never succeeded eating the face (reminded me of that lady from the wave with the child eating mantis)

So then I bought some lard to eat fried meat (and get enough fat, as they've usually cut away all the fat on slices of meat to fry) But got an allergic reaction from the lard (??!!?) My face would start itching shortly after eating.
(the lard was not organic, and as I have never had any negative reaction to non organic pig before, it might have been GMO fed, as that is illegal in Denmark where I came from, but not in Spain)

So then I bought half a sheep, and only ate that for a while, which gave me constipation and after being constipated for a couple of weeks I got really sick (poisoned like symptoms, probably worst headache of my life)
And when I made broth of the bones I got the same itchy face as with the lard, before even finishing the cup. (the sheep was not organic, but from a local farmer that swore they were not GMO fed, and mostly ate grass outside)

So then I started to eat sardines and other canned seafood, but then I felt the lack of good fat, and started to put mayonnaise on, which has bad fat and gave me a feeling of "wrong".

Then I moved to Madrid and for a while I ate out a lot, and not many places have pig, but only cow, and hard to find some with enough fat on.
I started to suspect that cow might not be my food, as there is some feeling when eating it a lot that I can't really put my finger on. And then my friend who have studied a lot of food/vitamins/herbs etc. said that if one is allergic to the protein in milk one is also allergic to cow meat (as it is the cow protein) and I'm certainly allergic to milk products, and was test rabbit at a biopath school once where their machine said that it was the protein I was allergic to. But it might also just be that it was not organic.

Then I bought organic pig ribs online (to last for about a month) and they felt like medicine, and things got better.

But then I didn't have money to buy another big bash, and had to buy supermarked meat for a while.

Then due to working waaay to hard and not having any time to cook, and not sleeping enough, I started to buy the absolutely discusting already roast chicken from the supermarked, and my health declined again (both because of lack of fat, and all the drugs and torture those chickens are full of I think) By that time I was so stressed out from working too much, and so much in need of fat, that I started to eat icecream, as it seemed that the chicken was as poisonous, and then I might as well eat a more tasty poison which at least had lot's of milk fat (this is not recommended)

It escalated into almost living on icecream all of last summer, which resulted in getting as tired as I was before I switched to ketogenic, and looking about 6 months pregnant with cellulite on top, and I`m getting back on track now, but still get carb cravings, and still have to get an oven (there's no oven in my flat here) and find out how to get ecological pork belly.

So it seems to me that it takes very little to throw me off balance foodwise (not talking about ice cream, but that everything seemed to start going wrong as soon as pork belly wasn't my main food) even eating eggyolks and bacon don´t have the same healing effect as pork belly for me. (organic ribs work well though)

Also, cutting out dairy for a period of time (including butter) is a necessary test,

Agreed, A friend of mine can't even eat Ghee with out getting a bit swollen all over (I might not be able to either)

 

[Gaby]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Hello,

There is some important research regarding thyroid function that I meant to share. My thyroid panel from last year showed subclinical hypothyroidism with TSH levels of 10... very high. After doing some research, it seems that my high TSH is related to the amount of weight I was losing during that period of time.

Since then, I've taken several supplements and done some detox. I mean to repeat the tests this Spring. I never had any concerning symptoms, except that I lost a lot of hair last year. Hair loss stopped around a couple of months ago and now it is re-growing fast. I also gained weight since then.

During this time period, a friend of mine started the ketogenic diet and he did a blood panel showing marked improvements in his lipid profile and uric acid levels, and he lost weight. But the tests showed sub-clinical hypothyroidism as well. The same thing has happened with a couple of other patients I've been following on the keto diet. I always kept in mind that this could be a "marker" of longevity... I remembered reading Dr. Rosedale's research on this topic which I quoted on this thread quite awhile ago. I also remembered how an Endocrinologist was explaining that elderly people who have hypothyroidism are best left alone or treated with minimal doses of thyroid hormone. If "full" hormonal therapy is given, they have greater mortality. Correcting this "problem" accelerates aging.

In case this becomes a regular finding on blood panels despite people feeling great, thought I would share the summary given in "Keto Clarity" by Jimmy Moore. It is really a great synthesis with very good points:

"The concern about thyroid function reveals a misunderstanding both among the lay public and among doctors themselves. A lower number does not necessarily mean lower function. Often it means better function. As the body is functioning better, thyroid levels go down. This is a very desirable state. This is what distinguishes health and longevity in many instances. Centenarians have lower thyroid than their elderly peers. When people criticize a very low carbohydrate diet by saying that it causes hypothyroidism, it's not only misleading but overtly wrong."
- Dr. Ron Rosedale.

[...] In fact, a diminished thyroid level is not a "pathological condition", says nutritional consultant and educator Nora Gedgaudas. As long as calories are sufficient, a lowered thyroid level is actually a sign of "improved efficiency of metabolic functioning and is literally desirable longevity marker".

[...] "When we are burning ketones from fat as our primary fuel source, our thyroid just doesn't have to work as hard as it does when it's got to manage bodily metabolism on a less-preferred fuel (glucose). When our organs, against their better judgment, are required to metabolize sugar over fat, more T3 is needed to deal with this less-than-ideal scenario. Our thyroid has to work overtime, and somebody -poor T3!- has got to do the job. But burn fat for fuel instead, and T3 gets to stay home and put its feet up." - Dr. Chris Decker.

[...] Cardiologist William Davis also says the claims about very low-carb diets and reduced thyroid function are "simply untrue". He says that when someone on a ketogenic diet loses weight, levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH, of the three key thyroid hormones checked on a thyroid panel) increase and free T3 (another thyroid hormone that's checked on a more advanced thyroid panel) levels decrease, which some falsely believe indicates hypothyroidism. But Dr. Davis says this is not entirely accurate. "This specific situation does not represent disturbed thyroid function, but rather a physiological adaptation to limit weight loss by reducing metabolic rate [...] These hormonal adjustments are transient and correct themselves over several weeks after weight has plateaued.

[...] "An approach to eating that is substantially different metabolically from what most people are doing - like a low-carb, ketogenic diet- may lead to blood values that are outside the "normal range". This doesn't always mean that the value is unhealthy, because the "normal range" is defined by what is most commonly seen. The levels of thyroid hormone, for example, may be outside the normal range and yet perfectly healthy if the body needs less thyroid hormone in the blood because it is more sensitive to it. Similarly, most keto-adapted people have so co-called abnormally low blood glucose because they are burning ketones so much that they don't need high glucose levels anymore!" -Dr. Eric Westman.

Hope this helps!

 

[A Jay]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Interesting findings there Gaby, and good to know!

 

[Keyhole]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I've been keto-adapted for just over 6 months now, eating the right amount of protein with the right amount of fat, doing all the fasting etcetc..
taking magnesium, zinc, pottasium, salt water, (now started taking Betaine HCL with Pepsin), VitD, Evening primrose oil, L-glutamine.. also started on probiotics and "Ultimate Candida Cleanse" today.

I was taking Berberine for 2 weeks, but that didn't seem to be helping either, so I've stopped that for a while.

The problem is I've been bloating ridiculously for around 2/3 months now, something seems wrong with the digestion of the food... I've tried eating even less and it still persists. I've tried fasting for longer, exercise, cutting chocolate completely out, cutting vegetables out... there was a day I just had fat bomb and I didn't seem to bloat, then after the protein I did bloat... that's why I started on the HCL's.

I know the gut seems to react in accordance to psychological stress, which is something that has persisted also but I seem to be dealing rather well with everything.

I wasn't having any problems in the first few months of keto, I was SO skinny all the time, now I've put weight back on and just look 4 months pregnant most of the time!

Do you still eat butter/ghee Lilyalic? I found that when I reintroduced butter after 4 months I started to feel slightly bloated so I have completely given it up now, possibly for good.

 

[riclapaz]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I've been keto-adapted for just over 6 months now, eating the right amount of protein with the right amount of fat, doing all the fasting etcetc..
taking magnesium, zinc, pottasium, salt water, (now started taking Betaine HCL with Pepsin), VitD, Evening primrose oil, L-glutamine.. also started on probiotics and "Ultimate Candida Cleanse" today.

I was taking Berberine for 2 weeks, but that didn't seem to be helping either, so I've stopped that for a while.

The problem is I've been bloating ridiculously for around 2/3 months now, something seems wrong with the digestion of the food... I've tried eating even less and it still persists. I've tried fasting for longer, exercise, cutting chocolate completely out, cutting vegetables out... there was a day I just had fat bomb and I didn't seem to bloat, then after the protein I did bloat... that's why I started on the HCL's.

I know the gut seems to react in accordance to psychological stress, which is something that has persisted also but I seem to be dealing rather well with everything.

I wasn't having any problems in the first few months of keto, I was SO skinny all the time, now I've put weight back on and just look 4 months pregnant most of the time!

Hi lilyalic , I too am experiencing a few months ago swelling and heaviness after meals, which helped me was simply buy a bottle of digestive enzymes, I take one with each meal, and really made a difference.

 

[riclapaz]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Hello,

There is some important research regarding thyroid function that I meant to share. My thyroid panel from last year showed subclinical hypothyroidism with TSH levels of 10... very high. After doing some research, it seems that my high TSH is related to the amount of weight I was losing during that period of time.

Since then, I've taken several supplements and done some detox. I mean to repeat the tests this Spring. I never had any concerning symptoms, except that I lost a lot of hair last year. Hair loss stopped around a couple of months ago and now it is re-growing fast. I also gained weight since then.

During this time period, a friend of mine started the ketogenic diet and he did a blood panel showing marked improvements in his lipid profile and uric acid levels, and he lost weight. But the tests showed sub-clinical hypothyroidism as well. The same thing has happened with a couple of other patients I've been following on the keto diet. I always kept in mind that this could be a "marker" of longevity... I remembered reading Dr. Rosedale's research on this topic which I quoted on this thread quite awhile ago. I also remembered how an Endocrinologist was explaining that elderly people who have hypothyroidism are best left alone or treated with minimal doses of thyroid hormone. If "full" hormonal therapy is given, they have greater mortality. Correcting this "problem" accelerates aging.

In case this becomes a regular finding on blood panels despite people feeling great, thought I would share the summary given in "Keto Clarity" by Jimmy Moore. It is really a great synthesis with very good points:

"The concern about thyroid function reveals a misunderstanding both among the lay public and among doctors themselves. A lower number does not necessarily mean lower function. Often it means better function. As the body is functioning better, thyroid levels go down. This is a very desirable state. This is what distinguishes health and longevity in many instances. Centenarians have lower thyroid than their elderly peers. When people criticize a very low carbohydrate diet by saying that it causes hypothyroidism, it's not only misleading but overtly wrong."
- Dr. Ron Rosedale.

[...] In fact, a diminished thyroid level is not a "pathological condition", says nutritional consultant and educator Nora Gedgaudas. As long as calories are sufficient, a lowered thyroid level is actually a sign of "improved efficiency of metabolic functioning and is literally desirable longevity marker".

[...] "When we are burning ketones from fat as our primary fuel source, our thyroid just doesn't have to work as hard as it does when it's got to manage bodily metabolism on a less-preferred fuel (glucose). When our organs, against their better judgment, are required to metabolize sugar over fat, more T3 is needed to deal with this less-than-ideal scenario. Our thyroid has to work overtime, and somebody -poor T3!- has got to do the job. But burn fat for fuel instead, and T3 gets to stay home and put its feet up." - Dr. Chris Decker.

[...] Cardiologist William Davis also says the claims about very low-carb diets and reduced thyroid function are "simply untrue". He says that when someone on a ketogenic diet loses weight, levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH, of the three key thyroid hormones checked on a thyroid panel) increase and free T3 (another thyroid hormone that's checked on a more advanced thyroid panel) levels decrease, which some falsely believe indicates hypothyroidism. But Dr. Davis says this is not entirely accurate. "This specific situation does not represent disturbed thyroid function, but rather a physiological adaptation to limit weight loss by reducing metabolic rate [...] These hormonal adjustments are transient and correct themselves over several weeks after weight has plateaued.

[...] "An approach to eating that is substantially different metabolically from what most people are doing - like a low-carb, ketogenic diet- may lead to blood values that are outside the "normal range". This doesn't always mean that the value is unhealthy, because the "normal range" is defined by what is most commonly seen. The levels of thyroid hormone, for example, may be outside the normal range and yet perfectly healthy if the body needs less thyroid hormone in the blood because it is more sensitive to it. Similarly, most keto-adapted people have so co-called abnormally low blood glucose because they are burning ketones so much that they don't need high glucose levels anymore!" -Dr. Eric Westman.

Hope this helps!

Thanks for sharing Gaby, I think it is very important information which you mention, it is a pleasure that you take the time to do it, really appreciate it. :)

 

[Beau]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I've been keto-adapted for just over 6 months now, eating the right amount of protein with the right amount of fat, doing all the fasting etcetc..
taking magnesium, zinc, pottasium, salt water, (now started taking Betaine HCL with Pepsin), VitD, Evening primrose oil, L-glutamine.. also started on probiotics and "Ultimate Candida Cleanse" today.

I was taking Berberine for 2 weeks, but that didn't seem to be helping either, so I've stopped that for a while.

The problem is I've been bloating ridiculously for around 2/3 months now, something seems wrong with the digestion of the food... I've tried eating even less and it still persists. I've tried fasting for longer, exercise, cutting chocolate completely out, cutting vegetables out... there was a day I just had fat bomb and I didn't seem to bloat, then after the protein I did bloat... that's why I started on the HCL's.

I know the gut seems to react in accordance to psychological stress, which is something that has persisted also but I seem to be dealing rather well with everything.

I wasn't having any problems in the first few months of keto, I was SO skinny all the time, now I've put weight back on and just look 4 months pregnant most of the time!

Hi lilyalic , I too am experiencing a few months ago swelling and heaviness after meals, which helped me was simply buy a bottle of digestive enzymes, I take one with each meal, and really made a difference.

As you see above, lilyalic is taking Betaine HCL, which is a digestive enzyme. I would agree with dugdeep that trying an ox bile/lipase combo and see if it helps is a good idea. It sounds like you may have a problem digesting fats properly at this time.

 

[riclapaz]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Sorry for the confusion, I recommended digestive enzymes containing proteases (for protein), so that said lilyalic

The problem is I've been bloating ridiculously for around 2/3 months now, something seems wrong with the digestion of the food... I've tried eating even less and it still persists. I've tried fasting for longer, exercise, cutting chocolate completely out, cutting vegetables out... there was a day I just had fat bomb and I didn't seem to bloat, then after the protein I did bloat... that's why I started on the HCL's.

 

[Yas]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Hello,

There is some important research regarding thyroid function that I meant to share. My thyroid panel from last year showed subclinical hypothyroidism with TSH levels of 10... very high. After doing some research, it seems that my high TSH is related to the amount of weight I was losing during that period of time.

Since then, I've taken several supplements and done some detox. I mean to repeat the tests this Spring. I never had any concerning symptoms, except that I lost a lot of hair last year. Hair loss stopped around a couple of months ago and now it is re-growing fast. I also gained weight since then.

During this time period, a friend of mine started the ketogenic diet and he did a blood panel showing marked improvements in his lipid profile and uric acid levels, and he lost weight. But the tests showed sub-clinical hypothyroidism as well. The same thing has happened with a couple of other patients I've been following on the keto diet. I always kept in mind that this could be a "marker" of longevity... I remembered reading Dr. Rosedale's research on this topic which I quoted on this thread quite awhile ago. I also remembered how an Endocrinologist was explaining that elderly people who have hypothyroidism are best left alone or treated with minimal doses of thyroid hormone. If "full" hormonal therapy is given, they have greater mortality. Correcting this "problem" accelerates aging.

In case this becomes a regular finding on blood panels despite people feeling great, thought I would share the summary given in "Keto Clarity" by Jimmy Moore. It is really a great synthesis with very good points:

"The concern about thyroid function reveals a misunderstanding both among the lay public and among doctors themselves. A lower number does not necessarily mean lower function. Often it means better function. As the body is functioning better, thyroid levels go down. This is a very desirable state. This is what distinguishes health and longevity in many instances. Centenarians have lower thyroid than their elderly peers. When people criticize a very low carbohydrate diet by saying that it causes hypothyroidism, it's not only misleading but overtly wrong."
- Dr. Ron Rosedale.

[...] In fact, a diminished thyroid level is not a "pathological condition", says nutritional consultant and educator Nora Gedgaudas. As long as calories are sufficient, a lowered thyroid level is actually a sign of "improved efficiency of metabolic functioning and is literally desirable longevity marker".

[...] "When we are burning ketones from fat as our primary fuel source, our thyroid just doesn't have to work as hard as it does when it's got to manage bodily metabolism on a less-preferred fuel (glucose). When our organs, against their better judgment, are required to metabolize sugar over fat, more T3 is needed to deal with this less-than-ideal scenario. Our thyroid has to work overtime, and somebody -poor T3!- has got to do the job. But burn fat for fuel instead, and T3 gets to stay home and put its feet up." - Dr. Chris Decker.

[...] Cardiologist William Davis also says the claims about very low-carb diets and reduced thyroid function are "simply untrue". He says that when someone on a ketogenic diet loses weight, levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH, of the three key thyroid hormones checked on a thyroid panel) increase and free T3 (another thyroid hormone that's checked on a more advanced thyroid panel) levels decrease, which some falsely believe indicates hypothyroidism. But Dr. Davis says this is not entirely accurate. "This specific situation does not represent disturbed thyroid function, but rather a physiological adaptation to limit weight loss by reducing metabolic rate [...] These hormonal adjustments are transient and correct themselves over several weeks after weight has plateaued.

[...] "An approach to eating that is substantially different metabolically from what most people are doing - like a low-carb, ketogenic diet- may lead to blood values that are outside the "normal range". This doesn't always mean that the value is unhealthy, because the "normal range" is defined by what is most commonly seen. The levels of thyroid hormone, for example, may be outside the normal range and yet perfectly healthy if the body needs less thyroid hormone in the blood because it is more sensitive to it. Similarly, most keto-adapted people have so co-called abnormally low blood glucose because they are burning ketones so much that they don't need high glucose levels anymore!" -Dr. Eric Westman.

Hope this helps!

Thanks for sharing Gaby, I think it is very important information which you mention, it is a pleasure that you take the time to do it, really appreciate it. :)

Yes! Thanks Gaby! I've just sent that to my doctor because he was concerned about my thyroid function which appeared a bit low to him. :D I'm still gonna get the tests he asked done, but it's good to know that it isn't something to really worry about.

BTW, I also loose a lot of hair, but I thought that was due to my liver function because I also have some of the other symptoms related to that, plus, my ferritin level is a bit high, which can probably mean my liver can be bit overwhelmed by iron, right?

Regarding Milk Thistle for the liver. I've taken it for a while, but everytime I take it, it seems that the symptoms (bloating mostly) get worst, is that normal? I thought it could mean that it's making effect, but I stopped taking it because of that...

 

[Gaby]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Yeah, if milk thistle gives you bloating, I would stop. If you still feel you need liver protection, you can try alpha lipoic acid which will also protect you against the oxidizing effects of iron overload.

For detox purposes, I alternated FIR sauna with cold showers and several supplements including vitamin D3, minerals, french oak extract, alpha lipoic acid, CoQ10 and several others. I also did vitamin C, but my ferritin levels are low. A friend from Dominican Republic gave me her favorite local hair treatment: coconut oil rinse. I always meant to do coconut oil hair treatments, but she beat me to it by giving me the rinse. That seems to work very well against dandruff as well. I don't know what stopped the hair loss, but FWIW. :)