"Life Without Bread"

[RedFox]

Between sluggish liver, no carbs, quitting coffee, and general autoimmune crap, I've about had the course today.

Are you taking L-glutamine and colostrum/lactoferrin for gut healing? Omega-3s? (we take 6 grams a day, 2 of them 3X) ??

Yes on L-glutamine, and omega-3's (though I have to be careful with fats because of chronic diarrhea.)

I've also been taking DGL (sugar/flavor free) for abdominal cramping.

I've avoided colostrum, thinking it had to do with dairy, for some reason.

Yesterday and today I've been stuck indoors with severe diarrhea, and its making me snippy. Apologies.

Lactoferrin is meant to be lactose/dairy free.

 

[shellycheval]

Brainwave

I guess I need more time to heal my gut.

Most likely you do—from reading all the data provided in this thread, a healed gut would most certainly change all your digestive processes for the better. While I agree Laura’s suggestions for reading and diet changes should be your priority, in addition, I think you may want to consider some sort of support/therapy for the deep emotional issues about food and eating that you report having in your posts:

Brainwave

Psychologically it has been weighing on me. I've been told that maybe it is difficult because I feel I am different and the diet doesnt' apply to me or I don't believe it deep down. . . . deep down I am not sure red meat works for everyone and I am one of those for whom it doesn't work.

Brainwave

[on having] psychological resistance

Brainwave

but I am wondering about emotional issues too and need to find a way to get over that . . . One sign of an emotional issue for me was . . . my mind started going and I began to wonder if my feelings about mammalian meat comes from a similar place as my daughter's about seafood or is it just displaced identification and guilt.

Brainwave

my psychological issues around red meat (which I admit could be driving the physical reactions) leaves me feeling disconnected and wondering why I can't just get with it already.

Brainwave

I do have issues with eating mammals not because there is a moral superiority. I just couldn't stand witnessing animal slaughter as a child. That also made me sick to my stomach. So now I probably internalized it in a way that makes me sick to my stomach when I eat it.

I think your intuitions on this are spot on. This witnessing could inflict serious deep trauma on a sensitive child that could remain embedded in the gut as toxic emotion/energy along the lines of PTSD, and considering the connections between the gut and the brain, may well be part of what is impacting your ability to eat meat.

Brainwave

I really wish I did not need to eat meat for that.

Brainwave

my cheerleader/dancer years also put an emphasis on being thin and how I ate was a part of maintaining that. However the underlying issue for me has been poor hunger signals I guess from repeated cycles of starvation and binge like eating after realizing I hadn't eaten in a while. That was many many years ago. Today I don't have cravings per se except during PMS or if I feel especially stressed. EE and coconut water helps. One problem I still have is a tendency to 'forget' to eat and have to remind myself to do so. My typical habit for the past 7 years of so would be that I would go throughout the busy day only to realize that I hadn't eaten all day or something then grab the easiest thing which was gluten and dairy. That is not a habit I miss at all. But it does take focus to eat.

Brainwave
my relationship with food. When I get worked up like ' geeze I have to get something to eat', I often have to drag myself to go fix something or raise my head from what I am doing and take a few bites of what Ennio puts in front of me. A couple of pipe breaths really helps to focus there and keeps the idea that it is food for health over food for enjoyment. It is odd because I enjoy cooking meals for others and experimenting with ingredients, I just don't care as much about to eating it for myself.

These last two quotes are all reflective of emotional food issues experienced by people who are bulimic and/or anorexic.

So, in addition to applying the physical diet remedies that have been recommended, you may want to attend to some of your emotional issues with food too--which are also not easy to do.

I am trying to remember when I actually had an “easy lesson” about anything—I think they are oxymoronic terms!

Good Luck.
shellycheval

 

[mamadrama]

The idea that overeating is psychological is addressed in "Rethinking Thin". I suggest that everyone read that book too for some hard core info about dieting and cravings, especially about starvation diets.

Thanks, Laura, will order the book. :) No pyroluria here it seems.

My resistence comes when trying to stay below 20g of carbs for weeks and weeks. Two weeks, ok but after that, it's tough. Below 50, no problems, below 20 and I have issues.

You might even say that making this dietary change now is much like conscious suffering... until things really kick into high gear and the body adjusts, anyway.

Yes, that's a good way to look at it.

And I don't want to freak anybody out, but I was also thinking last night that there may be a very good reason to stick to this diet: food shortages. If we can run on a little bit of protein and a lot of fat, we will be able to not only survive potential shortages, but even think clearly and function very well while everyone else is going bonkers since they aren't getting their daily carb fix! I mean, just imagine the chaos that would ensue if the herd didn't get their daily dose of food-drugs... And that's to say nothing of potential DNA changes!

I was thinking about this as well but with the idea that meats and fats will be be scarce in times of economic shortage if you don't have a farm so it would be back to inefficient carb burning. (http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/newfaces.html#ixzz1UjJ1RNbs) But nonetheless, it is still worth healing the gut and eating optimally as long as possible. Does anyone know if it's easier to go from burning fat to burning carbs again for fuel if that should be required?

 

[brainwave]

Shelly, have recently been considering getting some therapy about the food issues. But I will focus on healing the gut first and foremost. I am much more motivated when I have something I can work on immediately.
Gonna up the HCL. I have colostrom/lactoferron and will get more L-glutamine too. Given the pyroluria results I will see about that as well.
I had started to explore my eating issues in my group therapy session in NY then I stopped going. That's something there....

Thanks Scott. All along I have thought about eating meat as conscious suffering and also as preparation for when access to healthy food may not be readily available. So while intellectually ok with the ideas, getting past the emotional block is the thing, and I think I can work on it here. So may layers of the onion to peel. geeze!

On another note, my latest project at work is looking at gene expression of what is primarily a gut hormone that is involved in regulating pain (uterine contraction in particular which is apt in terms of PMS), homeostatic regulation of food intake (hunger and satiation) as well as stress. It hasn't been studied for drug addiction but we found that it is expressed in the brain reward pathway and levels were altered by the psychostimulant we study. Never took such psychostimulants but other things can disrupt the balance, particularly stress. So everything in my life even the job is suggesting I pay more attention to gut and that's what I will do.

 

[dugdeep]

Not to detract from the current discussion, but Laura, what type of oil are you using in your homemade mayonnaise? That sounds like a perfect addition to my diet.

 

[brainwave]

FWIW

I just made a batch myself. I used olive oil but have also tried with grapeseed oil, since I am not using it heated. Personally I prefer olive. Maybe some animal fat like beacon grease might work as well, which would give it extra flavor.

 

[anart]

So everything in my life even the job is suggesting I pay more attention to gut and that's what I will do.

Amazing how that works, eh? Now, to heed the clues.

Did you notice that you consistently misspell the word 'bacon' as 'beacon'? I find this interesting, since bacon is literally a beacon of good health - it WILL light the way! (I'm actually not joking... it is that transformative a food to someone who has gone decades without decent animal fat - I know, I'm living proof.) :)

I think the input you've received in this thread is fantastic and healing your gut so that you can actually absorb the nutrients and fat so you no longer 'react' to it is project #1. I think once that is done, and it will take a while, other things will fall into place, including a clearing up of the emotional blocks - it all works together. Then you can correct your and your daughter's Pottenger's Cats syndrome, since I do think that is a present dynamic as well. fwiw.

 

[brainwave]

So everything in my life even the job is suggesting I pay more attention to gut and that's what I will do.

Amazing how that works, eh? Now, to heed the clues.

Did you notice that you consistently misspell the word 'bacon' as 'beacon'? I find this interesting, since bacon is literally a beacon of good health - it WILL light the way! (I'm actually not joking... it is that transformative a food to someone who has gone decades without decent animal fat - I know, I'm living proof.) :)

Ennio said you would pick up right way. I don't want to edit it it's a good reminder for me.

 

[Laura]

I was thinking about this as well but with the idea that meats and fats will be be scarce in times of economic shortage if you don't have a farm so it would be back to inefficient carb burning. (http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/newfaces.html#ixzz1UjJ1RNbs) But nonetheless, it is still worth healing the gut and eating optimally as long as possible. Does anyone know if it's easier to go from burning fat to burning carbs again for fuel if that should be required?

I've mentioned before, but it bears repeating: we've been doing a lot of canning this year. We can meat. I got a 34 quart canner and we can get 17 liter jars into it for one batch. Doing it is actually a lot easier than I expected. We just get good meat, but tough cuts so that it is cheap, chop it into bite-sized chunks, pack it raw into the jars very tight, add one tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper, put on the lids, load the canner, and process it for 90 minutes (no water, it makes its own broth). We''ve been trying to do one batch every week.

If anybody can get a good pressure canner and do this, it is well worth it. The canner should come with processing instructions. We've canned beef and pork. Going to can sausages and patties, too and probably some fish if I find a good buy. We've also canned about 100 liters of beets (pickled and plain), 60 or more of pickles. We'll be doing all our squash and pumpkin too. I'll just peel it, cube it, pack it with a little salt and pepper, pour boiling water on, seal, put in the boiling bath canner, and let 'er rip.

We've got tons of duck fat in cans, canned duck legs in fat (confit du canard), and a few serrano hams hanging.

I expect there to be food shortages this winter and even worse next year. Being able to eat the food that is good for you is important. I figure that two years worth is about right, with extra for others. Doing this - including the cost of the canner - is a lot cheaper than buying "survival food". It is purely an economic plan, but who knows?

 

[Laura]

Not to detract from the current discussion, but Laura, what type of oil are you using in your homemade mayonnaise? That sounds like a perfect addition to my diet.

Today I made a big batch and used half grape seed oil and half olive oil. The olive oil mayonnaise is pretty good, but a little strong for my taste. After I finished the batch, we made a big bowl of tuna salad for lettuce wraps; a big bowl of cole slaw (used the mayo, salt, pepper, a bit of xylitol), and deviled eggs.

Also, for dinner tonight we are having baked salmon. I eat it with mayo on it.

I make the mayo with dijon mustard instead of lemon juice because Psyche doesn't tolerate citrus.

Just put the egg yolks in the bowl and one tsp of mustard for each one. Add a bit of salt and pepper. Start the mixer and start adding the oil. Keep whipping it and taking up the oil (pause with the trickling oil every now and then for a good whip) until it is the right consistency. That's it.

 

[Gaby]

All of you who are having digestive system problems, consider also boswellia. It is very anti-inflammatory and it has been used successfully in pretty much all digestive issues: stomach upsets, diarrhea, pancreatitis, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, etc.

 

[Gertrudes]

Okay, with the protein restriction (started yesterday with about max 80 grams) something is definitely going on with my body, yesterday I felt almost the whole day very hungry, needed to to take a nap and ate only in the evening a little bit over the amount of proteins.

If you are feeling hungry, try eating a bit more fat. One thing I do is put a slice of butter on my plate and put a small chunk of it on every bite I eat just for the extra fat. If that doesn't do it, increase the protein. You may need more protein for various reasons. (And so may others.)

I think I'm one of those who needs a higher protein intake. Something similar happened to me Gawan, I cut down my protein intake yesterday and today to approach the upper limit of what I should supposedly be eating, and even though I ate more then my upper limit, I was starving today. This was definitely something not to repeat. I'm at my upper limit of fat intake, so upping it even more is out of the equation for now, I'm upping my vegetables but I'm also going to keep higher levels of protein since I feel that I do need them.

Everyone's metabolisms are different, adding to that, everyone's lifestyles are different. I was thinking of it today and with the amount of exercise I do there is no way I can get by with only a 40g of protein a day, so I think we'll have to keep experimenting, that is always bearing in mind that fat is unrestricted (according to personal tolerance), but not protein.

I was thinking about the 0.8 protein figure per Kg of body weight again today, and even though I read the quotes on protein, I am still struggling with this number, and here's why: assuming that our paleolithic ancestors ate nothing but meat and fat and very occasional sources of carbohydrates in the form of root vegetables and some fruits, for the figure of 0.8 per body weight kg, someone with my weight (around 44, 45kg) would have to eat only 36g of protein a day. I just weighted what I consider to be a small portion of stewed chicken (132g to be precise) that would give 36g of protein. This amount of food would in no way sustain a healthy individual for a whole day, even with plenty of added fat. Personally it wasn't enough for a single meal for me, even with the added fat and vegetables.
So all in all, I think we do need to do our own testing here.
Added: Maybe I'm missing something that's right under my nose and I'm just not seeing, happens often :/

Makes me think that the overarching concept was that of the Odyssey: the suitors eating and drinking away Odysseus' goods and seeking to marry his wife. As we've seen in "The Odyssey" thread, the over-indulgence in food is associated with bringing on cataclysm. Over and over again, over-indulgence is highlighted as being a serious fault of character.

Makes sense. We can say that the same happens with sex. It's as if over indulgence of what is a primary need for our own, and our species survival, has been turned into a feel good buffer, and mostly a source of dependence and addiction. Not to mention that it is a huge money maker, and 2 of the things (if not THE 2 things) that are crippling and disabling people in ALL senses.
Just observing how much energy is invested in food (adverts, the number of existing diets and food theories, vegetarianism being but one of them) and sex (almost always an underlying theme in today's music, adverts, pretty much the whole of society's own image seems to have that background theme) one can only be baffled.
This isn't to say one shouldn't derive satisfaction from both food and sex, but simply not to loose one's way in it, and turn what is fuel or a means for species survival, into our main source of comfort or even our sole reason for existing.

 

[pete02]

A quick question in reference to canning... I was just looking online to purchase one and I think I've found a good one but when I look to purchase the jars I've noticed a couple of people complaining that the lids are plastic lined with BPA. Another company uses POM lined lids instead of BPA (although I'm not sure what that is). Are there any tricks to this that I'm not aware of or maybe a manufacturer that doesn't use either? Apologies if this has been answered somewhere already.

 

[Laura]

A quick question in reference to canning... I was just looking online to purchase one and I think I've found a good one but when I look to purchase the jars I've noticed a couple of people complaining that the lids are plastic lined with BPA. Another company uses POM lined lids instead of BPA (although I'm not sure what that is). Are there any tricks to this that I'm not aware of or maybe a manufacturer that doesn't use either? Apologies if this has been answered somewhere already.

Give the links to the products so that I can look at them.

 

[Laura]

This is the canner I've got:
http://www.amazon.com/All-American-2-Quart-Pressure-Cooker-Canner/dp/B0002808ZM/ref=sr_1_16?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1313086879&sr=1-16

(I was mistaken, it's 41 quarts, not 34).

Canning jars should be just ball jars with canning lids. (seal and screw top).