Q & A
This page as an open thread for reader questions, especially questions about personal health concerns.
I am putting this page up as a way to share knowledge — my knowledge with questioners, but also so that others with similar concerns can read the conversation, and readers with relevant knowledge can chip in with their own thoughts.
Please keep in mind that I can’t research questions in any depth, so my answers should be considered tentative, incomplete, and subject to later correction. Also, I am not a doctor, and nothing I say should be construed as a substitute for medical diagnosis and treatment. I am only sharing opinions about disease origins and general therapeutic strategies which may or may not be applicable in any given case.
To get the page started, I’ll put up a few questions from recent emails. Here is an index by disease, with clickable links:
- Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)
- Bloating, acid reflux, anxiety, depression, hypoglycemia, hypothyroidism, fatigue
- Lupus
- Depression
And here are my answers.
Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)
Paul,
Been following your work on the PHD before the publication of the book and commented on my CLL and the usefulness of Vitamin D once on your blog and you responded to keep an eye on my Vitamin K intake, which I do now.. Am fortunate in a way to have my form of CLL as it indolent which gives me the opportunity to experiment without the pressure of undergoing conventional treatment. The PHD, I think, is helpful in this regard.
Wonder if you could point anything out to me that may be useful. Anything at all. And I will be happy to share with you my results.
Surely you know of the helpfulness of green tea with CLL. You may not be familiar with research that points out that those with low levels of Vitamin D need treatment for CLL far sooner than those with elevated levels.
Feel strongly that your version of a ketogenic diet would be helpful but also feel I need some direction in this area. Do you have any suggestions?
Warmest Regards,
A
Hi A,
I remember your comment, thanks for writing back. I’m glad you’re enjoying our diet and wish you the best.
Thanks for the tips about green tea and vitamin D. Neither one surprises me.
Most likely CLL is caused by a viral infection. So enhancing viral immunity is probably a good idea. Good strategies may include: (1) low-protein dieting, which inhibits viral reproduction and can promote autophagy; (2) maintaining high vitamin D levels; and (3) intermittent fasting, which promotes autophagy.
Some food compounds have been reported to have antiviral effects. An example is green tea catechins, eg http://pmid.us/16137775, http://pmid.us/18313149, and http://pmid.us/18363746, and this could be why green tea is helpful against cancers, http://pmid.us/21595018, which are usually viral in origin.
I might search Pubmed for herbs and spices with antiviral effects, and use them abundantly in cooking, along with antiviral foods. Turmeric / curcumin is a good choice, this needs to be taken with black pepper to enter the body. See http://pmid.us/21299124, http://pmid.us/20434445, http://pmid.us/20026048.
Coconut oil / lauric acid also has some antiviral properties, so inducing ketosis with coconut oil could benefit you even aside from the ketosis. You could also try monolaurin supplements which may enter the body better and which some people have reported to help viral infections.
You might also try HDL-raising tactics as discussed in this series: HDL and Immunity, April 12; HDL: Higher is Good, But is Highest Best?, April 14; How to Raise HDL, April 20.
Another possible tactic is high-dose riboflavin with UV exposure on the eyes. This requires going outdoors at midday and not wearing glasses or contact lenses. Riboflavin+UV is toxic to blood-borne viruses, and the retina is a location where UV can reach circulating blood cells. Sun exposure will also help you optimize vitamin D.
That’s a few ideas, at some point I’ll do some research to come up with more and do a blog post. Do keep me posted on your results!
Best, Paul
Bloating, acid reflux, anxiety, depression, hypoglycemia, hypothyroidism, fatigue
Just came upon your website and had a question for you. I have had some health concerns for the last four years, bloating, acid reflux, anxiety, depression, hypoglycemia symptoms, female complaints (I am in my forties), thyroid antibodies at 333, weight gain around my middle and too tired to work out like I once did. I used to be fikiiled with energy and great health no depression or anxiety. My doctor thinks these symtoms are all from peri-menopause and wants to treat me with Zoloft.
Needless to say I have tried to avoid the Zoloft. I have tired every avenue out there to cure myself. Most recently the Primal type diet. When I eat no grains or dairy I get horrible hypoglycemia symptoms and don’t feel great like everyone else on a low carb diet. I feel weak and more anxious. Do you think your diet would be easier for me with the addition of rice and potatoes?
G
Hi G,
Yes, I do think our diet will be better for you. You should eat enough starches to avoid hypoglycemia.
The key thing for you is treating the infections which are consuming so much glucose and making you glucose-deficient if you don’t eat enough carbs. Whatever pathogen(s) this is, it seems to have infected your gut and caused the various gut problems; circulating pathogen-derived toxins and immune cytokines are probably responsible for the anxiety and depression. Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism may be either due to circulating toxins or a thyroid infection.
I would suspect some kind of protozoal or parasitic infection due to the hypoglycemia, but what I really recommend is getting your doctor to have a stool sample analyzed for pathogens. Metametrix has a good test. Once you know what pathogen to treat, and get on a better diet like ours, you should improve quickly.
Lupus
I am writing on behalf of my mother … We live in Dhaka Bangladesh …
Before her illness, my mom was 105 lbs, 5 feet tall and always 10ft tall in spirit…. When she was diagnosed with Lupus at the age of 30, we were all overwhelmed and out of our depths. My beautiful, athletic mother was in a wheelchair and given 6 months to live….
The doctors has advised her to eat literally nothing, minimum protein (1 small piece of chicken/fish, limited to 20g protein per day), only 2-3 types of vegetable and 2-3 fruits and of course lots of carbs to apparently compensate for her failing KIDNEY and LUPUS. She is on tons of medication, no food except the wrong foods (carbs) and in chronic pain. She currently weighs 139 lbs.
Please advise. — S
Hi S,
I believe lupus is a catch-all diagnosis for a variety of conditions which are probably caused by undiagnosed infections. In the US the infections are usually bacterial. I’ve known several people with diagnosed lupus who were cured by antibiotic treatments – in one case the problem was Lyme disease (Borrelia). I have no idea what the likely pathogens would be in Bangladesh. If she does better on low carb and coconut oil, that indicates bacteria; if she does better on high-carb, that indicates protozoa.
A healthy diet is very important. It is very bad advice to “eat literally nothing,” it is essential to be well nourished. Protein is necessary for healing and immune function, and 20 g/day is too little. Fasting is good, but it should be intermittent – not starvation! She needs healthy fats, more protein, and lots of micronutrients. Eggs, shellfish, seafood, bone broth soups, vegetable soups, and fermented vegetables may all be helpful. Coconut milk is probably good for her. You should basically follow the program in our book.
I would try to put her on a good diet, give her a little time for kidneys and other tissues to heal, and then try antimicrobial medicines. Usually, if they’re not working, then you don’t notice an effect. Any strong effect, good or bad, means they are working. Bad effects mean that pathogens are dying and releasing a lot of toxins as they disintegrate. If this occurs, detox aids (salt, water, and one of cholestyramine/charcoal/bentonite clay; also glutathione supports and vitamin C) will help.
Please stay in touch and let me know how things go.
Best, Paul
Depression
I’ve suffered from depression for decades. A few months ago, I decided to try the Dr. Kruse protocol for jumpstarting leptin sensitivity and 2 interesting things happened.
When I went very low carb – below 50 gm -. I had half-day periods where the depression suddenly lifted (something that has rarely happened otherwise). However, I also suffered from darker than normal periods.
I stopped the Dr. Kruse protocol after 6 weeks, and went back to regular paleo (approx. 200 – 300 gm. Carb/day). I’m now generally more depressed than usual, without the good periods.
These changes seem to indicate that I can have an influence on my depression with diet, but not sure what diet to try. Thoughts?
Hi Jersie,
I think your experience on very low carb is diagnostically telling.
I would interpret it this way:
- Your depression is caused by an interferon-gamma mediated immune response in the brain, probably caused by a viral or bacterial infection. This leads to tryptophan being directed away from serotonin and toward the kynurenine pathway. So you have a serotonin deficiency and kynurenine excess.
- A ketogenic diet is both therapeutic (promotes immunity against bacterial and viral infections) and mood-improving (clears kynurenine).
- However, you are at risk for hypoglycemia in the brain (especially if the infection is bacterial) and hypoglycemia causes irritability/anxiety and can aggravate depression.
So the very low-carb diet had mixed effects (ketosis, hypoglycemia).
What I would do is follow our ketogenic diet advice. Eat at least 50 g/day carbs from starches to get sufficient glucose, plus sufficient protein to reach 600 calories/day protein+carb, but add in large amounts of MCT oil or coconut oil. Also, do intermittent fasting – eat all the carbs within an 8-hour window; eat at least half the MCT oil in the 16-hour fasting window.
Once on a good diet, I might experiment with antibiotics to see if they relieve symptoms.
Please let me know how things go.
via this link:
Hi folks, I love following the Q&A but I cringe everytime I see a question that has been answered by Paul numerous times. To be honest, I have been guilty of this in the past. However, it’s not fair to Paul and since he has had the good will to attempt to answer questions we owe it to him to at least search the archives and read or re-read his book to see if the subject has allready been covered.
Perhaps those of us who are faithfull PHD blog followers can also help Paul by answering questions that have been asked before by providing link to the thread. Also, a gentle suggestion to the questioner regarding using the search tools on the site as a first resort may be prudent.
Jonathan
This is why he needs a forum section!
The forum will be good in general, although I like a FAQ tab/link for answering the frequently asked questions. A fixed list of questions with answers that Paul can update as needed that has the comment section turned off.
“The forum will be good in general, although I like a FAQ tab/link for answering the frequently asked questions. A fixed list of questions with answers that Paul can update as needed that has the comment section turned off.”
good idea MarkES,
all takes time to setup tho.
If it does get impelemented,
i vote for ‘arsenic & rice’ as the top question,
followed closley by questions regarding ‘cod liver oil’
😀
failed to notice my spellchecker was off for my last comment…
If it does get implemented,
i vote for ‘arsenic & rice’ as the top question,
followed closely by questions regarding ‘cod liver oil’
Just start with the rice/arsenic, CLO questions and build as you go.
Definitely need a forum. We don’t want Paul to get Lou Gehrig’s disease answering the Q&A for the rest of his life. 😉
Lol, tam. Good tip jonathan. I definitely am grateful for Paul’s insight. With Paul’s help, I’m making more progress in identifying my problems than I would’ve have done by myself =)
Is that how one gets Lou Gehrig’s disease? I ride in an ALS cyling benefit each July. Wait’ll I tell them this latest update! 😀
Excessive self sacrafice according to the Gabor Mate video that was posted here a while ago…
Just looked over the article. The person for whom I ride the benefit event was, indeed, a kind and caring person. However, she also carried a genetic marker for a third kind of ALS, said to be passed through families. She was the 9th person in her family to pass just a year after diagnosis.
You’re right, Jonathan – and I don’t know how Paul has the energy to give all these answers. Just to be sure I’m not missing something – is there an archive with a search feature by chance? Just a question to make sure, not a demand from an ingrate!
Whoops, sorry! I see the regular search button does it. Excellent.
Hey, Jack – Are you the same Jack Kronk who used to post on PaleoHacks about high cholesterol? I’m just curious how all the advice you got on PH and from Jack Kruse compare to how you’ve done with the PHD.
Nope. Must be another unfortunate soul with this moniker. Mine’s spelled Cronk.
Nick, that last bit was for Jack; sorry if I confused you.
Hi there
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/EBV/Leaky Gut:
Hi everyone,
I have been battling EBV/CFS for about 3 years now. It has progressively gotten better but i’m far from where I use to be. I have currently been following the autoimmune paleo diet and have seen improvements from that, but have started to read PHD and feel I should be eating more along PHD’s guidelines.
I did also read the Fibromyalgia/Chronic fatigue post however I have a few questions in terms of diet. I am unsure about the 1lb of safe starches. Should I be following a ketogenic diet? I feel satisfied when I eat good fats such as coconut oil/milk, avocado, and olives as well as safe starches like sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and butternut squash but how much is too much to affect my energy?? I do eat bone broth regularly, some liver, and sauerkraut for fermented food. My health and energy is first priority, but I do have a little bit of weight to lose as well and don’t want to carb load and affect my weight loss…
I am currently on 10 mg of Lexapro for anxiety/depression, 1 1/2 grains of nature thyroid, and I take customized vitamin/mineral powder and amino acid powder after taking a metabolic test to see what I was deficient in. I am excited about the Perfect Health Diet but would love a little bit more detailed direction..
Thank you for your time!
Hi Helene.
There is very strong evidence that those conditions are linked to your gut micro flora. Fecal micro-biota transplantation may be a cure for your conditions. this procedure utilizes the diverse species of probiotic bacteria in a healthy person’s colon, to restore the many species of gut bacteria missing in a person with gut disbiosis.
I have irritable bowel syndrome and chronic pain myself, and am saving up for this treatment at present.
I have also benefited greatly from combining the GAPS diet with Dr.Jaminet’s “safe starches”. It will probably be necessary for you to adhere to this diet as well as receiving the Fecal Microbiota Transplantation.
Hi Marcus? isn’t gaps and phd mutually exclusive? gaps calls for elimination of starches, phd their incliusion…
Hi Michael. I follow the Gaps diet in every respect except that I include safe starches. The benefits I experience are from not eating the many other foods the GAPS diet suggests eliminating, and by eating mostly stews, soups and casseroles; and lots of home-made fermented drinks.
p.s I should also mention that there is equally strong evidence that this will resolve your depression. The Gaps diet was actually designed primarily to resolve psychological/neurological conditions, and combined with Fecal Microbiota transplantation (FMT) it works wonders.
FMT has been proven to cure IBS and even Chrohn’s disease. I am sure I have also read one case where someone used FMT to treat a stomach infection, and inadvertently ended up curing themself of Fibromyalgia.
Hi Paul,
I lost my link for the RSS feed of the comments and can’t seem to find it on the site. Can you please post the link.
Thanks,
Adam.
Adam, is this it?
http://perfecthealthdiet.com/feed/
Monnyica, no that’s the feed for the articles – there was a feed for comments on all articles but the link to it doesn’t seem to be here anymore.
this is the knik if you use Google Reader,
http://www.google.com/reader/view/#stream/feed%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Fperfecthealthdiet.com%2F%3Ffeed%3Dcomments-rss2
…in case you were wondering, knik is my effort at typing link…
Brilliant. Thanks for the knick 😀
for those not using google reader, you can try this link,
http://perfecthealthdiet.com/?feed=comments-rss2
Hi paul,
I have been doing a lot of reading on Astaxanthin recently. I am considering purchasing it in bulk in the form of Astaxanthin algae powder. There is about 40 grams of Astaxanthin for every kg of the powder.
However, I have had trouble finding out if humans can readily absorb astaxanthin from the pure algae powder (the supplements extract astaxanthin from the algae). Do you know if astaxanthin is absorbed in this form? Thanks.
re: Metametrix Organix urine test
http://postimage.org/image/6adywyfit/full
I tested high for p-Hydroxybenzoate at a value of 1.8 which indicates “intestinal bacterial overgrowth”. Does anyone know if this indicates SIBO? Or can it be in the large intestines?
I experience warm acidic feeling in stomach, tongue plaque, skin issues…
Hi Paul
I have had a few issues the last year. I was at at a healthy 125lbs for a 5.7 female 32years young. Current weight 145lbs 🙄
1) To have reached this weight, I was on a very low carb diet (B: Yogurt/apple, L: 4 crackerbreads a day with salad and some protein, D: lean protein, non-starchy veggies or a potato) and my total day calories was between 600-800 calories (no fat AT ALL) – and once I’ve reached my GW of 125lbs I reintroduced carbs once a day (brown rice, sweetpotato, greenbeans) and kept my weight stable for about 3 years. Luckily then I hardly had to do heavy excercises and kept it lite, but very active (no hour long cardio and a hour strenght training)
2) I started gaining weight Dec 2011 and gained the 20lbs in one year (till today) Feb 2013. In January 2012 I was diagnosed with a underactive thyroid (low T3 and put on Diotroxin) that was treated for a few month till it was normal again. Since I saw my weight increasing in Dec 2011, I started yo yo dieting and tried everything you can think of even Atkins/17 day diet, did not finish one program, as soon as I did not see any results, I’ll moved on to the next one!
In March 2012 I went for a general check up at my Gyno, and they discovered a cyst as big as a tennisball on my one ovary that I didn’t even know about, and booked me into the hospital the following week (just in time to removed it – was about to burst). At this stage my weight was still okay (127lbs). After the operation I stopped using my Melodene (the pill) and gained all the weight after that, and haven’t had my periods since (only once when the doctor’s gave me high estrogen pills for a month to force it down, but I stopped using it cause it made me feel very ill)
So, I think it must be hormonal issues. I have been on the Primal blue print diet for about 5 days, but I’m having heavy hot flushes and night sweats – no energy (112g fat, 60g protein and less than 30g carbs)
We would also like to have a baby soon but I do not feel very healthy yet….
Would love to year any suggestions.
Hi what is your opinion on frying foods? i.e. eggs, plantains, etc.?
Hi Meg,
Here is a link to fried plantains with “braised tacos.” http://perfecthealthdiet.com/?s=plantains
Also, he has stated, “We eat omelets,” so I would think gently fried eggs with a soft cooked yolk would be acceptable. I would be careful not to let the whites brown. Love these myself, with hash browns, but not sure about the hash browns. There is a PHD recipe for french fries, so I’m thinking hash browns are okay, on occasion.
Here’s something lovely they do with eggs. Haven’t tried it, as I need the equipment, but sure sounds wonderful. Can’t wait for the cookbook.
http://perfecthealthdiet.com/?s=omelet
I feel like it’s possible to overdose on the potassium foods (or not enough sodium) and get low blood pressure.
How much fat/carbs/protein per day is required for weight loss (Weight 145lbs – GW – 125lbs)?
Hey el
http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2011/02/perfect-health-diet-weight-loss-version/
500 carb calories/300 protein calories/500 fat calories come naturally from the protein and nourishing fats like egg yolks, omega 3 from salmon.
Thx Alex – so no added fat (olive oil/avocado/nuts) if trying to lose weight? Only from protein sources…
Hi El
I would recommend experimenting. Fat is definitely the first thing you want to cut when trying to lose weight. The proportions above don’t work for me. Personally I aim for about 50% carb, 30% protein and 20% fat. No added fat, just that found naturally in food like eggs. It helps to track these sorts of things in fitday or something similar.
Lindsay
This is what I do for weight loss.
1) write down what I eat and at what time on my phone, waiting a least 3 hours between each meal
2) limit sugar
3) track my daily weight in a tool that calculates a trend line. As long as the trend is going down no matter how slowly I’m happy.
Thx Lindsay – I’ve been trying the Primal Blueprint for a week with very high fat, medium protein and very low carbs (veggies) and not feeling very well since the weekend. Extreme hot flushes, fatigue and insomnia!! (33 year of age) Have you lost any weight since you started and how much starch to you add per meal 2 and 3 (of the 50%)- scared of carbs….
I guess I should disclose that I am extremely active.. so, my carb proportions may seem high. I workout intensely with weights 3 times per week. On days when I don’t lift weights I do cardio.. generally intense. Sometimes running sometimes elliptical and sometimes kickboxing. I would say I get about 7 hours per week of vigorous exercise. I am one of those people that is never sitting still.
As far as weight loss, I haven’t measured bc things like that get complicated when there is weightlifting involved. i will say that I feel slimmer and my clothes are a bit looser.. this being after about 4 weeks of dialing down fat intake. Also, let’s remember that you must reduce cals. I think it is helpful to figure out your REE (resting energy expenditure) and then your TREE. In order to lose about a pound per week aim to cut about 500 calories off that TREE number.
As for how much you add that is where an app like fitday comes in handy. I eat a fair amount of rice, rice bread, potatoes, bananas, etc. A typical meal would be something like 1.5 cups cooked rice, 3 eggs, kimchi. Or some kind of protein and 1/2 pound to 1 pound potatoes.
Thx – that helps alot. I’m also very active, exercise 5-6 days a week (cardio/weights/circuit training). I will slowing start adding the carbs (had rice for lunch and sweat potato for dinner, some protein and veggies)and see how it goes. Can dairy be a protein option and do you have to remove chicken skin before cooking. Think that the high fat content that I’ve been consuming has cause some inflamation in the colon, that is why I am having hot flashes (feverish). TOO MUCH FAT CONSUMED 😯
PS: My mission is to get to a healthy weight before getting pregnant and to sort out my hormonal issues since I left the pill in March last year (haven’t had my cycle since then)
hi el , Lindsay is spot on about higher carbs to meet glucose needs for exercise. I would recommend exercising according to the primal blueprint, as it utilizes more fat rather than glucose , therefor adapting you better to a high fat diet and reducing appetite. Intense longer durations of exercise like crossfit (big in the paleo community) is good for fitness goals, but very strenuous as it uses up a lot of glucose, which needs to be equally matched with increasing your carbs to avoid a glucose deficiency , so no calorie deficit occurs, although you gain increased fitness. The insomnia and hot flushes are probably caused by over stressing the body ( low carb, intense exercise ). -30 minutes light cardio daily. Heavy weights 3 times a week (stay under 5 reps to avoid excessive muscle gains via the pump. Aim for strength, a lot of my female friends have complained about big thighs and too much muscle from your typical flawed high rep pump training to “tone” the muscle) and sprint once a week. Basically primal blueprint fitness. – increase carbs to 150grams a day (excluding fiber) have an extra 25grams on weight days, probably 50grams on sprinting days to avoid a glucose deficiency. -if intermittent fasting is too stressful, you could try eating a low carb, protein rich breakfast (eggs) and add in the carbs from midday, and exercise during morning hours to enhance circadian rhythm and become better adapted to fat due to being lower carb. Also more carbs at dinner might help with sleep. – definitely cut the skin off the chicken, to keep omega 6 low. – track your food on cronometer.com . It shows all the nutrients your getting.
Alex – Thx for all the helpful information. I will definitely try this and let you know how it’s going. Luckily the hot flushes is much better since I lowered the high fat % in my diet. Yesterday I unfortunately had some wheat crackers for lunch and since that – bloated, stomach cramps…No wheat for me ever again. BIG NO NO. Which starch do you think is the best for weight loss, rice, potato or sweetpotato and have you eliminated ALL fruit from your diet?
So I went back to a different Gyno today for a second opinion about my hormones and he discovered with a Ultra sound x3 more cyst that needs to be removed urgently on Tuesday. My previous Gyno didn’t pick it up with the previous Ultra sound that she did and only found one that had to be removed in March 2012. I bit dissapointed/upset to go through the entire procedure again, but also glad that he discovered the problem…Wish me luck.
A for hormones, that’s tricky. Not sure what sort of eating would help sort out hormone issues. I would recommend seeing a doctor or naturopath or both and having them tackle those issues head on. I do know that if you are hormonally challenged with fatigued adrenals that all your exercise could be doing more harm than good.
As for dairy. It’s a personal call. Personally I eat dairy, but there are many in the Paleo world that don’t and others who can’t
tolerate it. I try to ignore all the bad hype around it because I think it’s an incredible nutrient and protein source. Do try hard to find a good source for dairy. I use a brand called Kalona here in the Midwest. It is sourced from small family farms and comes from grass fed cows. Additionally, it is not ultra pasteurized. They also make cottage cheese which is an excellent low fat protein source.
Yes, I would remove the chicken skin when trying to lose weight. I generally buy split chicken breasts that are still attached to bone. Baked with skin on and then remove before eating. This allows for extra flavor without fat. When not dieting down I wouldn’t worry about skin. I would imagine most traditional cultures would never even consider removing the skin.
Lindsay -Thx for the feedback regarding the ‘dairy topic’, I’ve made a appointment for later this morning at a different Gyno (Hormone expert) and hope to get these issues sorted out. 🙂
Hi, Paul!
I’m going to interview sustainable seafood guru, Barton Seaver on Wednesday for the Biodynamics Now Podcast. Barton says that regardless of how good fish appears to be for our health, we should eat a lot less of it (or risk losing all of it!)
Before I talk to him, I wanted to check with you and find out exactly how much fish we should have in our PHD to get enough omega3, etc. I’m afraid that I probably eat way too much of it but Barton seems to be saying that we should be satisfied with 1/4 pound of tuna once a year.
What are quantity of fish weekly are you currently recommending?
Thanks
-Allan
Hi Allan,
1/2 to 1 lb per week salmon or sardines, plus as much shellfish as you like.
Discovered your wonderful site through your interview with Bryan Davis aka ASK BRYAN.COM(Doc Fermento). I have been Paleo about nine months. After my initial weight loss of 30 lbs. I remained at 160 until the past month. My midesection from bottom of rib cage to hip bones is fat. Fat! I can grab 5 inches of blubber. What is going on? It cannot be healthy. What do I need to do or change? I take digestive enzymes, eat fermented foods, avoid all grains except a little white rice. buy organic and pastured meats and vegetables. I was wearing size ten pants, now I cannot button a 14.
Paul has written a bit about weight loss on this blog and in the book, so you’ll want to check that out.
Obvious places for improvement are circadian rhythm and maybe actually consuming more carbs (eating some carbs will help you feel satiated and carbs are also more thermogenic than fat). Also, try to eat more protein, protein is even more satiating and thermogenic than carbs (by far) – so upping protein intake is one of the easiest ways to lose weight.
The obvious and time-tested strategies left for you are exercise and calorie counting. There’s a tendency to assume that eating full paleo will magically cure every problem, but that’s simply not the case. Each situation must be evaluated in context; I suspect you’re not exercising enough, and if you have any history of metabolic disorders that will obviously make weight loss harder.
You should definitely start counting calories, though – it’s often eye-opening to see what you’re really consuming, and it’ll let you know if perhaps you need to increase your deficit. A lot of paleo folks don’t believe in calories in/calories out, but from an energy standpoint it’s a fundamental law of the universe, and from a weight-loss standpoint it’s been a consistently successful strategy for weight loss.
So, in conclusion: get your circadian rhythm in gear, exercise a lot, and start tracking calories. If you’re not losing weight, you’re not running enough of a caloric deficit, meaning either a) you’re eating too much or b) your body’s expending less calories than it should be.
There’s a lot of misconceptions about energy balance on both sides. The besta rticle I’ve seen on the subject is by lyle mcdonald (http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-energy-balance-equation.html). He’s well-researched and tends not to drink the kool-aid.
Remember, some times you’re just going to accept that you’re going to feel hungry while losing weight. Don’t shy away from hard work if weight loss is your goal – but obviously, at the same time don’t kill yourself with exercise or run an enormous deficit. Sensible but noticable weight loss is the way to go. (I’d start with a 500 caloric deficit and see where that gets you)
I am not talking about experiencing an overall weight gain. my face legs and arms are still thin. I exercise moderately, do a little strength training, have a fairly physical job, eat about 50-60 gr of protein a day. coconut oil, avocado. I eat well. I am talking about in one month my midsection has swollen. it is FAT. Fat. Pillsbury dough boy FAT. Bloated and gross. as in not normal. i feel great, my markers are all good. BP good choleterol etc. are all good. Weight loss is not my goal. getting rid of this huge belly is. where did it come from? what is causing it?
Yes, it’s fat. How do we burn fat? We expend more calories than we consume. Weight loss *is* fat loss.
Where did it come from? Overeating. What’s causing it? Overeating.
I’m a little confused when you say you’re not talking about weight loss – do you mean you haven’t gained weight but have gained fat in your midsection? That would imply that you either a) lost muscle and gained fat or b) gained fat and daily fluctuations/water weight are hiding your true weight gain.
Regardless of the problem, weight loss is simply for healthy individuals (note that I say simple, not *easy*). Most effective weight loss strategies cause you to consume less without really knowing it – either by restricting higher calorie foods, restricting your eating window, increasing satiety (mainly more protein), etc.
You’re simply going to have to run a deficit to lose that fat. I would experiment with intermittent fasting – it’ll make it easier to keep calorie consumption down and it’ll also most likely improve your hormonal profile (making it easier to lose weight).
One last thing – the reason you’re only gaining midsection fat is because that’s where fat is the first to go and the last to leave. If you continue gaining weight, you’ll notice it all over your body, not just in the midsection.
Just for the sake of discussion…hormones drive fat deposition (just think of puberty or menopause); also,there are certain medications that can cause fat to be deposited in certain areas(think about steroids and moonface or back fat) Weight gain isn’t always clear cut.
She’s talking about a change in her body – a reasonable question. Perhaps you could spare her the attitude?
I’m so sick of people claiming weight loss is simple. Try being a 40+ year old woman and negotiating the hormones, body changes, social expectations, and then a slew of men scoffing that you’re a feeble minded woman who doesn’t understand that you need to eat less and move more. It’s more complicated than that, but when we try to say that, or ask for help we get that patronizing “you need to try harder” BS.
ManUp,
Thanks for those pearls of wisdom. You’re a joy. Ditto to Kira’s words. If things were as simple as what you say, Paul wouldn’t have the need to write this book and wouldn’t have helped PLENTY. Sometimes there are more pieces to the puzzle than calories in/ out.
I read the book, I am not talking about experiencing an overall weight gain. my face legs and arms are still thin. I exercise moderately, do a little strength training, have a fairly physical job, eat about 50-60 gr of protein a day. coconut oil, avocado. I eat well. I am talking about in one month my midsection has swollen. it is FAT. Fat. Pillsbury dough boy FAT. Bloated and gross. as in not normal. i feel great, my markers are all good. BP good, cholesterol etc. are all good. Weight loss is not my goal. getting rid of this huge belly is. where did it come from? what is causing it?
If your bloated and gained fat especially around the mid section, it probably suggests some sort of infection around the gut. Definitely track your food to make sure your getting enough carbs, protein, fat, and your omega 6 and fructose is low which cause weight gain around the waist and infections in the gut. It’s important to be getting enough carbs to avoid a glucose deficiency which is a stressor, and stress increases cortisol levels and abdominal fat and makes infections worse. – avoid intense long durations of exercise – sort out circadian rhythms by eating food in a 8hour feeding window, doing exercise in the morning and noon hours (light cardio, heavy weights), avoid artificial and bright lights 2hours before bed. Try reading and maybe meditation or deep breathing to help de stress and sleep deeper.
I too am experiencing the same problem. I have been paleo and fairly low carb for over a year, and have felt pretty good, but after reading the PHD , felt these were good changes to make. Within a couple of weeks my belly had “puffed” up. I would also like to get an idea of what is going on, and whether to continue the increase in starchy carbs.
Hi cortisol levels lead to midsection fat. High cortisol can result from stress of all kinds- lack of sleep, caffiene too much cardio, mental and emotional stress. Just a thought, best of luck figuring it out.
Hi Paul,
I know CQ10 supplementation is expensive but would you suggest it? Do you need to cycle it?
Thanks.
Hi Stort,
Not Paul, but he addressed CoQ10 here (at 2:01 on 11/4/10):
http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2010/07/it%E2%80%99s-easy-to-be-malnourished/
Dear Paul,
thanks for a great book! I am enjoying reading it.
I have a question regarding the amount of rice you refer to as safe starch. You say that it is preferable with 1 pound a starch day. When it comes to rice, are we then talking about dry weight or after cooking?
Also, I think the measure “one fist full” is very un-concrete. Is it an open fist or is it near to burst holding what ever is in the hand.
Hope to hear from you or others.
Greetings from Denmark
Regards Kasper Olsen
Hi Kasper,
Paul and Shou-Ching are referring to cooked rice when they suggest a pound of safe starches per day. A pound of uncooked rice would mean a much too large amount when cooked. In grams, I believe the recommended amount is about 450 grams of cooked rice or potatoes.
When they refer to “fist-sized servings,” they mean the size of one’s closed fist — empty. They do not mean for you to gather the food into your fist. So, with an empty hand, close your fingers to form a fist, approximate the size of your fist, and see that you consume about four such servings per day of safe starches.
In their first book the unit of measure was grams and we Americans whined that we didn’t know grams. So, Paul suggested we get kitchen scales, which I did. Love my kitchen scale! I suspect the “fist-sized” reference is because of all the questions from metric illiterate Americans. Me being one of them, before my scale.
Hope this helps.
How to you come upon the PHD?
Hi Kasper,
Paul and Shou-Ching are referring to cooked rice when they suggest a pound of safe starches per day. A pound of uncooked rice would mean a much too large amount when cooked. In grams, I believe the recommended amount is about 450 grams of cooked rice or potatoes.
When they refer to “fist-sized servings,” they mean the size of one’s closed fist — empty. They do not mean for you to gather the food into your fist. So, with an empty hand, close your fingers to form a fist, approximate the size of your fist, and see that you consume about four such servings per day of safe starches.
In their first book the unit of measure was grams and we Americans whined that we didn’t know grams. So, Paul suggested we get kitchen scales, which I did. Love my kitchen scale! I suspect the “fist-sized” reference is because of all the questions from metric illiterate Americans. Me being one of them, before my scale.
Hope this helps.
How did you come upon the PHD?
So, I thought I would try to outsmart this site by deleting and reposting with my typo corrected, but it did not work. Thus, you have my remarks twice. I am sorry.
How I do wish we could delete our poorly typed posts. 🙁
Thanks, Lana.
It helped me out. Funny how one can interpretate one fist size. Of course it is a closed fist size. I thought it was what one could grab from a bowl or something.
The cooked rice also gives best meaning.
I am a reader of Chris Kresser and he did recommend it. Besides that I came across PHD a year ago but I thought it had to much starch compared to other paleo styles and I had a horrible relux issue to get rid off. My reflux was killed with non grains and low carb. But now where I need starch as I am doing quite at lot of exercise the PHD seems to be the perfect one for me so far. Also I have taken home the idea that we need more vitamins than we can possible get from foods.
Regards Kasper
A fist size is problematic. For example, I am about 6″ taller than my sister who has much larger hands than I do.
Hello Paul,
Thank you for taking the time to answer this I really appreciate it. I have a dairy intolerance, and a grains + potato within 10 hrs of each other intolerance based on a food intolerance test at a clinic. My question is, is daiya cheese an ‘ok’ occasional substitute for dairy about 1-2x week? General ingredients are –
Filtered water, tapioca and /or arrowroot flours, non-GMO expeller pressed canola and /or non-GMO expeller pressed safflower oil, coconut oil, pea protein, salt, inactive yeast, vegan natural flavors, vegetable glycerin, xanthan gum, citric acid (for flavor), annatto, titanium dioxide
Thanks 🙂
I’m curious to know if anyone has had success following PHD for gut dysbiosis. Paul has recommended rice syrup for a glucose source when dealing with gut dysbiosis. I’ have had great results with my skin issues while onPHD but do feel rice and white potatoes are irritants (for me) and want to try eliminating those and add the syrup.
If anyone has had success, would you mind sharing your daily diet? I’m thinking there’s something more appealing than downing two tbsp of syrup a day! Thanks in advance 😀
Hi PHDers,
I just got results back from ZRT Labs and am dismayed to find my Vit. D levels are only 20 ng/ml. (First time I’ve ever tested.) Just wondering what is the best tack to take and other tests I should consider in light of that? I’ve been taking D3 1000 IU for several weeks. Do I bump up to 2000? 5000? And retest after 6 weeks?
It’s strange to me because I made sure to get a lot of sun last summer (I live in Alabama so it’s easy.) I thought that would be a good store for the winter. Why would it be so low? I had a cold a few weeks back, could that deplete it?
I’ve been having those strange “warm flushes” in my legs lately, that I’ve mentioned here before. Last time that seemed to be linked to some supplements I was taking, since it went away when I cut out all supps. (I thought maybe it was some Life Extentsion K2 that also had 1000 mcg K1, which I have seen noted somewhere could have side effects at high levels.) Lately I’ve been taking some K2 (120 mcg from mk-7) and thought that might be re-triggering the sensitivity. I’m probably off-base, but I can’t help speculating.
About a year ago I did extremely low carb for maybe 6 months, I wonder if that dropped my D levels somehow?
Would a thyroid panel be a good test to follow up? When I finally raised Iodine (Prolamine) to 1 mg, it seemed to have a big effect – seemed to clear my skin of moderate acne, and perhaps boost energy, regulate sleep more. But somehow it seemed to make me more anxious. I woke up one night with a rapid heart rate. So I dropped back down to 750 mcg. For a couple days once I took 1.5 mg and it caused me to sleep much longer than normal, 10 hours or so, and IIRC, to feel groggy. Which scared me off that level. It seems to have a strong effect, I guess is what I’m saying.
I’m 34 yrs old, 5’8″, 130lbs (always have been very thin, like other family members.)
Apologies once again for all this rambling; I always feel my health questions are impossibly vague and atypical…
hi TimR,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cq1t9WqOD-0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIDWA9-cGdY
check these out
I’ll watch them – anything I should be looking out for? Does this guy have a diff. take on it than Paul, or the Vit. D council?
8 minutes in, it looks like he might prefer UV lamps to supplements?
only that the sun has to be at 50 deg altitude, so in central florida starting feb 18th for 1 hour around noon. if your shadow is shorter than you are tall then the angle is right, 10-15 mins is good but it then take 48 hrs to convert in the skin, if you wash that area with soap in that time period you wash it off.i was supprised that my reading was 29. im now supplimenting 4000iu/day and soon i will use the sun also, will retest mid march and publish my results. im taking k2 per paul’s recommendations also
Did not know about that 48 hrs/no washing rule! So many details to this stuff… usually I just use a rag and water for most of my body, wonder if that’s okay.
I found particularly interesting the second video, and the hypothesis that fluctuating high in summer/low in winter might actually be *worse* than a steady low (as in areas w/ no real summer.) Fascinating.
4000iu/day – Is that just a guess at what you need, or is there some way to calculate how much (on average) that’s supposed to raise your levels? The first video had a formula saying that every 100iu D is expected to raise levels by 1 ng/mg… But surely they don’t mean just from one dose? Do they mean taken every day? But for a month, 2 months, or what? Somewhat unclear.
K2, if I take it daily, *seems* to correlate with this weird warm flushing feeling in my legs. When I cut it out that eventually goes away. I wonder if maybe the Life Extension K2 was so high (2100mcg K1 & K2 of various kinds I think), and I took it daily for a long time, that it “overloaded” me on K or something? Just speculating. Right now I’m thinking I’ll try K2 (120mcg) once a week or so and try to find some high k2 foods (how much does sauerkraut have I wonder – that would be easy for me to find and afford.)
Hah. I didn’t know the 48 hr no washing rule after tanning either. I’ve been dabbling in tanning beds a little bit (<= 10 min now). Dr Mercola has some articles about it. It also reminds me of a George Carlin routine, where he recommends only washing 4 key areas of your body, possibly with the same brush. 🙂
http://www.ask.com/wiki/Vitamin_D?o=3986&qsrc=999#Deficiency
look at “toxicity”
http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/69/5/842.full
many question’s are answered here,perhaps Paul could weigh in on this, my head hurts
http://www.lewrockwell.com/miller/miller25.html
this has a good explanation
hi TimR. well my Vit D is upto 43 as of april 8th first test was 26 on january 18th. this was achieved using 4000IU/day and some sun exposure from the end of feb. alfred
Thanks to Kira for her comment. Yes.. a huge change in my body…but only in my midsection..In a month. My waistline a respectable 32 is now 40. it is distended like a starving child.
I eat fermented foods, eat a little goat milk yogurt that I make and take digestive enzymes and a probiotic..My gut should be happy. nothing artificial, chemical etc. vitamin D because I live in cloudy northern OH and other vitamins mostly of a raw source. I eat pastured meat and eggs…low carb white rice mostly and sweet potato. Good fats…coconut oil and avocado. My intention is not weight loss…it is understanding the cause of the large swollen abdomen..
I am 60 yrs old, through menopause with no symptoms. I look ten years younger than my age. I feel great. I exercise…but I have acquired a large round bowl full of jelly belly. My legs and arms and face are of natural proportion..even slender. Can anyone address this issue? Please advise me what to do or stop doing. or what can I try to alleviate this? it is distressing to me. Cortisol build up? Is it my thyroid? I take NO medications. HELP! Also I do not have any health insurance so don’t advise any tests , as I also have no money.
Hello Kira, I am reading book and still learning so I cannot offer any scientific advise but I do know for sure that whenever I take probiotics and get very very bloated. Maybe the combination of that and yogurt and fermented foods is doing it. Just a thought
What foods have you recently introduced? You might need to track what you’re eating and experiment with that. What are you doing for exercise? Also sounds like it could be some sort of gut infection.
Hi Julie D,
So when you tense your abs, do you have a wobbly mass in front of your abs and a straight belly otherwise?
If so, then it might be something hormonal, e.g. http://europepmc.org/abstract/MED/7589642 where postmenopausal women shift towards male fat distribution.
It’s not http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visceral_fat#Abdominal_fat is it? That would not be good.
Hi Paul,
I need some clarification about how to lose weight on the PHD. I have read seemingly conflicting advise here and in older referred to posts. I have read that to lose weight it’s still basically the old “calories in/calories out” and that we need to reduce the calories in the fats and not carbs or proteins down to a total caloric intake of not less than 1200 calories per day using the formula of about 33% each.
Then in another post you surmised that a large percentage of obese people became so due to infections such as ad viruses and should be using intermitent fasting and taking coconut oil to promote ketones and help kill off these viruses by increasing our immune system.
As a obese woman who became so at the relatively early age of 13 (I always thought puberty somehow set it off???) I would like to know what is the best couse of action to take on the PHD to regain my health and lose weight at the same time. Losing weight of course having a great deal of effect on improving my health.
I have been more or less following the PHD for about 6wks now. I haven’t made the bone broth because until I saw a recent response from you about grain fed bones being better than no bone broth I didn’t think I was able to do it correctly. I have noticed thatat the end of my 16 hour fasting time I’m often not hungry and have to make myself eat so as not to put my system in starvation mode which obviously defeats the purpose. I have not been taking the coconut oil during fasting times but have on occasion eaten some fruit if I got really hungry. I have been using butter and sour cream and heavy cream daily and have still been losing about 1 to 1 1/2 lbs per wk. Please advise as to what changes I can make to improve my goal of health and weight loss.
As always thanks for your time and effort,
Sandy
“Starvation mode” as most people think of it simply doesn’t exist, if you’re not hungry after a 16 hour fast it’s good to eat something but don’t feel compelled to eat – if you can fast longer why not? (Although don’t fast behind 24 hours).
Any effective weight-loss program will be based upon calories in/calories out. The real controversy is about how to keep calories out at a normal level, as metabolic damage can cause you to burn a lot fewer calories than you should be. However, that being said, anyone saying that calories in/calories out isn’t true is feeding you a bunch of crap. The only way to lose weight is too consume less than you output – it follows logically that any reasonable weight-loss strategy will restrict caloric intake and increase the amount of calories you burn overall. Increasing the calories you burn beyond exercise is difficult beyond being healthy enough to have a good hormonal profile. For example, NEAT, the energy burned from fidgeting and such, seems to have a strong genetic component.
In short, find ways to restrict your consumption and exercise daily. If you’re obese you should count calories, because it’s a clear sign that *not calorie counting* hasn’t worked for you. Studies show that overweight/obese people drastically underestimate the calories they consume and overestimate the calories burned by exercise, so count calories meticulously until you have a handle on what you should be eating daily.
Thank you so much “quick comment”. For your understanding and “helpful” advise. If you read my question thoroughly you would have noticed that I am losing 1 to 1 1/2 lbs per wk currently while NOT counting calories.
I was asking Paul for some clarification not looking to be coached by a contender for the “biggest loser” meanest coach.
You come across as being a “fatophobic”. Maybe that was not your intention. Good thing I have tough skin and your “comment” didn’t hurt it just PMO.
Sandy
Telling you to reduce eating and increase exercise isn’t “biggest loser coach”-esque, it’s common sense. I didn’t tell you to massively underfeed yourself while massively overexercising as they do in biggest loser – so thanks for strawmanning.
I’m by no means fat-phobic, although I definitely don’t buy any of the HAES doctrine.
Wouldn’t it be a perfect world if everyone ate only what they should and no one ever had to deal with weight or health issues. The point I was trying to make was that your attitude was counter productive and somewhat patronizing. Do you think at 54 yrs old I have never heard that “simple” equation before? People post on here for the most part to learn about new ways to look at what we eat and how our bodies function better on diets like PHD. Most of the responses I have seen given by “posters” as opposed to coming from Paul himself have been well intentioned and didn’t come across as arm chair quarterbacking. If you really meant to be helpful and not just condescending you might want to think about how you phrase your advice. Also as I have learned from the PHD and other diets calories are not all equal. I think that most of us are realizing what has caused us to over eat is not lack of will power but lack of knowledge about the foods our bodies really need to function properly and when we find that balance we won’t be taking in too many calories and not expending enough energy. I have lost over 100 lbs twice and then gained it back with the old mindset. I am doing well on the PHD and am not counting calories. I’m just trying to eat the food our bodies were intended to be fed. Like most people on this site I’m asking questions in an effort to gain as much information as we can from Paul and others that want to help us.
If I misjudged you then I’m sorry. The last thing I expected to hear on this particular site was just eat less and do more. Duh!
Thank you so much “quick comment”. For your understanding and “helpful” advice. If you had read my question thoroughly you would have noticed that I stated I am losing 1 to 1 1/2 lbs per wk currently while NOT counting calories.
I was asking Paul for some clarification not looking to be coached by a contender for the “biggest loser” meanest coach.
You come across as being “fatophobic”. Maybe that was not your intention. Good thing I have tough skin and your “comment” didn’t hurt it just PMO.
Sandy
Pls excuse double post.
Hi Paul,
I just found out I have genital warts (HPV virus).
Can strengthening my immune system flush this virus out of the body I will it always be in my body?
Thanks
Todd
You can never rid yourself of a virus. Boosting your immune system should help to prevent outbreaks and proliferation of the virus.
Coconut oil(lauric acid) is good for viral defense.
Interesting!
I’ve read on the internet a couple of women who had genital warts, never saw symptoms again for a couple of years, got tests done and the tests showed they didn’t have the HPV virus at all.
Maybe their immune system reduced the virus to such a small size that tests couldn’t pick it up? I’m not sure if that is possible?
Thanks
Todd
If you are referring to the HPV test done after an abnormal PAP, it only tests for the few strains known to increase your risk of cervical cancer. If you have one of the hundred or so other strains, the test would say negative even though the virus is still present.
I’m not an expert in this, but I’ve had VZV virus since I was 8 and was told I’d never entirely get rid of it. My understanding is that your body builds up antibodies to specific viruses and renders the infection “dormant”. Meaning, it’s still in some of your cells, but no longer a threat to your body. It will keep producing antibodies until the threat is neutralized. If someone were to say their virus is “gone”, I think they mean that the infection is dormant. I could be wrong though.
Thanks guys! Makes sense!
Paul – My wife and I have been following PHD pretty strictly for a long time. Just recently, we’ve both started experiencing pretty serious muscular stiffness. Like, I can sit down in the library in the middle of the day and when I go to get up, feel like I need someone to help me. As you know, I get a lof of physical exercise through work. Workload hasn’t changed but this muscular stiffness really baffles me, especially when my wife has the same complaint. I am also experiencing pains in my large joints (she is not) at this time. I’ve read that muscle stiffness means ‘too much sugar.’ I just don’t think we’re getting any sugar at all, except I eat up to 1 orange a day (and was doing so earlier when I didn’t have muscle stiffness) I supplement with magnesium but only, I recently found out, 300 or so mg daily. What to ‘try’? Thanks -Allan PS Happy Valentines Day!!
Hey Allan,
I started PHD Jan 1, 2013 and have been experiencing the same thing since week two?! I have been a long distance runner for a long time and had not had anything like this. It was like getting arthritis overnight and I’m 26 years old. Paul said it could have been an underlying selenium deficiency. On the 19th I increase my iodine for the first time so I am curious to see if this helps. It has gotten some better but its not enjoyable, otherwise I feel TENFOLDS better, mood, energy, digestion, so I’m not giving up! Let me know what you find out.
Thanks
Stephanie
Perhaps you might experiment with eliminating nightshades.
I believe Chris Masterjohn had similar symptoms and later found the culprit to be sweet potatoes, or the oxilates that they contain. After a couple days without sp’s he was free of symptoms.
yes, he did, and here is the link
http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2011/01/what%E2%80%99s-the-trouble-with-sweet-potatoes/
Thank you guys so much..I think you might be onto something. I was hoping when I increased the iodine all of this would quit…I was eating alot of sweet potatoes initially, but haven’t in about two weeks now. I really wonder about all this now. It is better than when it started, I run through the aches and pains, but its still no picnic. I have been checking out the nightshade stuff all day and really wonder.
I s.b. good on selenlium. I do have mercury poisoning, so I take max selemnium (no problems came up when I started doing that) CRAP, I eat a sweet potato almost every night! (CRAP, I’d rather not be able to stand than to give up my sweet orange bowl of melted grass fed butter, but I’ll try doing without for a while. How long do you think to make an elimination decision? 1 week?
I would give it two.
I really appreciate your advice, I’m gonna try it too as I ate potatoes before starting the PHD, but not NEARLY like this. I have been eating them daily lol and this joint pain/bone pain/muscle aches started about two weeks into the diet. Is there any other way to test for this beside elimination?
Thanks again
Just a thought, it may be prudent to cut out all foods with high oxilate levels(spinach and beet greens for example)for the elimination experiment.
Also, I assume your both preparing starches properly? My understanding is that it’s important to peel the potato in order to expose imperfections and dark/green spots which contain the most toxins(applies mostly to white potatoes). Cutting the potatoes into smaller chunks will also expose damaged spots that are deeper inside the potato. Lastly, boiling the potato rather than cooking with dry heat is extremely important.
Here are a few examples of high oxalate foods:
•Almonds
•Tahini
•Sesame seeds
•Beets
•Beet greens
•Spinach
•Sweet potato
•Swiss chard
•Rhubarb
•Figs
•Potato
•Tomato
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15826055
Good luck!
Hi Allan,
Muscle stiffness could be electrolyte deficiencies which are common on low-carb diets. Try eating more tomatoes/potatoes for potassium, and more salt. If you’re low carb try adding more carbs in. If you’re not making bone broth, start (for calcium). Lithium supplements might help too, they support better management of potassium/sodium.
Another thing to try if you’re taking supplements is cutting out supplements. Sometimes people react to something or get too much of something.
The oxalate / food sensitivity idea is a good one too. Thanks Ellen & Jonathan for suggesting that.
Best, Paul
I’m gearing up for running/biking season and I’m wondering what you’d recommend to eat/drink to maintain energy during races?
Last year I would’ve drank Gatorade and chewed on Clif Bars but both of those have either toxic or just long scary ingredient lists so I’m wondering if there are PHD alternatives? Maybe a water bottle full of bone broth? 😉
Thanks,
Isaac
Lara Bars…they are just nuts/dates/fruit or make your own…maybe sprinkle some sea salt on them.
Are you really sweating enough to require an electrolyte supplement? If so, I’ve seen recipes online for home made “gatorade”. I think the main ingredient besides water is sea salt.
I think a good snack for intense exercise is dried plantains(trader joes) and bananas. Both should be good sources of starch/glucose and fully phd compliant. If you can find them, dehydrated sweet potatoe, known as sweet potatoe chips, should be a good one as well.
Jonathan
I had heard if you’re doing fairly strenuous exercise for more then an hour or so then water doesn’t cut it and you should be using a sports drink, do you think that’s not true?
Last year I was doing 1.5-2 hour rides pretty comfortably and I’ve lost a good 30 pounds since then so I’m hoping I can ramp it up 🙂
Bananas and dried plantains sound good and are nice and portable.
Congrats on your progress! I haven’t really looked into electrolyte supplementation. I’ve done my fair share of sweating though and haven’t ever used them. That’s not to say they aren’t beneficial at a certain point. Check out the recipes online, there are quite a few to choose from and you’ll save a lot of money and avoid the crap ingredients manufacturers use.
Hi Paul,
I hope you are well. I know you recommend the use of coconut oil, but would you recommend taking caprylic acid (as in the form of tablets)? Also, what about garlic as an antibiotic (again as in the form of tablets)? I am particularly concerned about a bacterial infection. Many thanks.
Hi Paul,
Bad news on the homefront. My stepfather was just diagnosed with myeloma and has already undergone a round of radiation. The myeloma was diagnosed because of a plasmacytoma-related vertebral fracture. We hope the fracture will be repaired in the spinal fusion he’s undergoing this afternoon. I’m afraid soon we’ll be contemplating chemo.
I’ve read your cancer posts, including the study suggesting that K2 might be helpful specifically for myeloma. D will also be important given his immobility. Might additional magnesium be in order to ward off hypercalcemia? Any other myeloma-specific ideas?
It seems that standard PHD is the ideal protocol here. But I thought I’d ask just in case. Hope you and Shou-Ching are well.
Hi Paul,
My little facial rash has cropped up again.
Two years ago you helped me pinpoint it as a fungal symptom. It went away after stopping the blue cheese that I had been consuming daily for the previous six months.
I have been assiduosly avoidng all mold associated foods since then, but suddenly the rash is back.
The only new routine food for me has been some daily dark chocolate for the last six months.
So on that basis and having no idea what the reason for chocolate being a problem might be, I did stop the chocolate. But after two weeks the rash was still there, albeit slightly faded.
Have been racking my brain to figure out what is going on.
Then I saw this in your post on sweet potatoes:
—–> There is a chance that oxalate may benefit fungal infections, so I suppose an oxalate sensitivity could be diagnostic for that, although in my experience fungal infections are usually slow-reacting to food and the response is rarely obvious.<——-
I eat sweet potatoes but not daily. and when I went off chocolate i had a sudden craving for almonds and sesame tahini. Both high oxalate.
So I am thinking maybe it was not the chocolate per se but the load of high oxalate foods over the last secveral months.
So I will go back off the chocolate and will try to cut way down on all the other high ox foods and see what happens and will report back.
But would be glad to hear if you have any other thoughts on why this fungal rash would return.
Hi Paul;
I’d like to have your opinion on something I’ve posted around a few health forums. I’ve copy and pasted below:
thanks!
“What is the age where “negative aging starts?” When does the physical decline start?
It’s generally accepted that a 20 year old has a higher level of physical fitness, health, and cognitive agility than a 30.
But is there an improvement at age 22? Has a decline at 27?
What about 20 v 25? Or 18 v 20? Or 22 v 27?
If you took a sample 100 million people, and found the mean age where “the decline” VERY FIRST begins, what age would you get?
Personally, I think 21 is the first year of decline. By the time you are 6 months away from your 22nd birthday, your physical health, along with fitness and cognitive fluidity, have already started a lifelong decline. Of course you barely notice it, but by 23 you’ve already lost the look of “true youth”, and by 25 the signs of aging are not so subtle.
By 27 your face has forever lost that “youthful look”, and you begin to get the face of “mid-adulthood” which lasts until mid 40s. You’ve also seen significant loss in fitness, health, immunity, metabolism, fluid intelligence, memory, etc.
I might even say that the absolute peak is 18- this is when health is at its absolute prime, and you’ve reached full development. By 20, you’ve probably gained a little in athletic performance, but you’ve declined slightly in fluid intelligence and health. You’ll also see some 20 year olds showing signs of aging they didn’t have 2 years ago. This is definitely true for me- I’m 3 months away from 21, and I’m already starting to see the decline.
I read somebody say that by 22, they couldn’t do the workouts they used to do at 20- how normal do you think this is.”
Thanks again!
Paul
33 year Female 5.6 (145lbs) Any recommendation on calories/day if you can not exercise (have to go for a operation on Tuesday and will be unable to exercise for about 3 weeks 😥 )
El try using this http://www.health-calc.com/diet/energy-expenditure-advanced
You could also google REE calculator. It is pretty in depth and you can account for activity level.
Thx will have a look 🙂
Lindsay – as our previous conversation that I posted the latest result of my check up with another Gyno, things didn’t turn out that well, discovered more cysts that needs to be removed urgently, but at least we know what is going on now and waiting for more blood test regarding the cause of it.
So does anyone have a formula for how much D3 supplements might be expected *on average* to raise your 25 OHD levels?
I know you have to test, but just a guideline. E.g., my level is a low 20ng/mg and I’d like to raise it, I guess to around 40 or 50. But I don’t want to be completely arbitrary. How much (and how fast) would 5000iu/day be expected to raise levels? Or what would you advise?
I have searched your site for more specific info on seeds & legumes, but have not found what I need. I have a plethora of IgG mediated food allergies that I’ve been working around for over a decade. The more I avoid the foods I should, the better I feel. One thing I never gave up though was legumes, with the exception of soy, as I have a fairly severe allergy to that in addition to being hypothyroid. The PHD makes some pretty compelling arguments & I’m prepared to commit to it.
Since I’m also severely allergic to eggs & dairy, I need to know if there are any legumes that are less problematic. Or, failing that, where flaxseed, sunflower seeds & sesame might fall on a contiuum of ok vs. not. Do I have much wiggle room on these?
Thanks so much .
Hi Paul, whats your view on Neurofeedback?
I am a vegetarian. I will eat eggs (including the yolk) and cheese. I don’t think I could switch back to meat. Is there any way to modify. I’m thinking the only thing I can do is to follow what to cut out. Can I increase my protein by using whey protein shakes?
Hi Mitzi,
We have a number of lacto-ovo vegetarians following our diet. Most of them increase carbs toward 50%, since the number of healthy protein sources is more limited.
It’s fine to use whey protein shakes but you shouldn’t need to — complete dairy protein is just as good. Yogurt, cheese, and such are good sources.
1. Thanks for this fantastic book!!! I’m recommending it to my friends here in Paris.
2. By any chance, do you know the ratio between dry rice weight and cooked rice weight? In other words how much of dry rice should I cook to get for instance 1 pound of cooked rice?
Hi Paul
Just wanted to ask a question about honey, do you think it is healthy ingredient in you diet/can it cause a allergy reaction – cause everytime I consume honey (once a month perhaps as a dessert with yogurt) the scale jumps up. Can it be the carbs/calories??
Hi Paul,
With regard to attaining the correct weight ratio of proteins and carbs, are the weights you recommend cooked weights or raw weights? I imagine that especially with white rice, this would make a difference.
Thanks for your time 🙂
Kim
Hi Paul,
I recently bought your book and have been following your recommendations. After trying to eat a lower carb paleo diet for awhile, I have learned, thanks to you, that I actually do better eating more carbs. My question is: is it possible to overeat non starchy/low carb vegetables in regards to gut flora? I know this might sound strange, but I eat A LOT of vegetables. After struggling with binge eating for many years, the vegetables really fill me up. Of course, I am bloated (and a little gassy) right after I eat them, but then my stomach returns to normal; however, I am afraid I might be altering my gut flora with the extra digestion I put on my body. What are your thoughts?
Thank you so much for everything,
Angela
Hi, I am not sure if I am posting in the correct place, apologies if I am not. I am a 35 yo female and I am pretty sure I have hypothyroid issues, as can confidently put my hand up to every symptom listed in your book and also in medical texts. At this stage my TSH is very high (but just within normal limits) so I am not having active treatment. I have been following a ‘primal diet’ for 18 months and noticed significant improvements in my blood results, however my main concern (and always has been) is my very very thin hair (you can see my scalp. Has anyone had similar experiences with their hair, and did you find that iodine (and the other supplements made much of a difference? My hair (and probably thyroid) has been an issue for over 15 years, so I scared that there is permanent damage and I will be forever bald looking. How soon after taking iodine should I notice results ie. more energy, hopefully more hair growth etc?? Thanks so much for your input 🙂
Hello, I have clinical hypothyroidism d/t hashimoto’s disease…I know you can lose some hair, that does sound somewhat more excessive. Google estrogen dominance symptoms as well, this may also be an issue for you. I take Indole-3-carbinol on top of the supplement recs to keep estrogens to a low, but the hair loss especially the area behind you bangs and showing scalp are associated with estrogen dominance. The symptoms I think coincide. I am not an expert, but have looked at alot of this stuff. Hope that helps.
Thanks so much Stephanie. Perhaps I exaggerated my hair thinning (it feels pretty bad to me), I do look ‘normal’ but it is very thin and you can see my scalp at times. I appreciate your input and will look up estrogen dominence, although have had hormone tests in the past and all showed up fine. Main issue was chronically low iron and also high TSH. Thanks again 🙂
Hello. I was wondering if its a normal reaction to feel kind of hungry from supplementing. I’m taking the PHD recommended dosages, but it seems like its making me hungrier.
Some background: I was malnourished for a little while because I was dieting to lose weight not necessarily in a healthy way. I also became even more malnourished during my diet because of some environmental toxin (mold or VOC off-gassing, still not sure what) which caused me to get asthma (never had it before), have asthma attacks, brain fog, really weird dreams, rashes, and more. I’m a healthy, healthy-weight, athletic 23-y-o woman, and I’ve always been healthy until fall/summer 2012 after I lost almost 10 pounds from my diet. Now I’ve gained it all back and I’m still hungry.
I started supplementing within the last week. Will my hunger go away soon? Or could it be that the supplements are upsetting my stomach. I’m not sure if I want to take them anymore if I’m just going to keep gaining weight. I want to stay healthy.
Thank you in advance for your help. This Q and A is amazing!!! 😀
Hi Alicia,
I wanted to respond to your note because it hits close to home.
What I think Paul would say to you at least partially is that hunger is a sign of malnutrition and that you need to focus first on feeding yourself all of the right nutrients (macro and micro) and getting rid of the hunger before you focus on anything else.
On a personal note, as a woman with experience over-dieting and dealing with hunger, I would say experiment with the food supplements to make sure you are getting what you need. The daily egg yolks (which took me a while to integrate) and 5 days a week bone broths really, really help me. Like, if I skip either of them for more than two or three days I get this questing insatiable hunger until I remember to eat them.
Best and good luck,
Elizabeth
ugh, sorry to spell your name wrong, Alecia!
Hi Paul,
I’ve been following PHD and doing IF for about 7 months. Last week I decided to get my cholesterol checked, just the basics. I was surprised to see my numbers so high across the board. My hdl was 91, LDL 150, trig 93 and TC 260. I weigh 121 lbs and am 5’5″. My risk ratio was totally low due to the hdl, but what does that say about my diet and liver health? Is that a problem? I eat gf red meat, fish, gf ghee, pastured egg yolks…etc. Also, my iron was high normal and ferritin high. Am I overdoing it on fats? Any advice would be appreciated!
Thanks. Jan
Hi Jan
What was your starting weight 7 months ago?
El
I was VLC Paleo and was between 118-119 and losing weight. As soon as I added in some rice I stopped losing.
Hi Paul
I haven’t been eating red meat for 20 year and also only recently (2 years ago) starting adding back eggs to my diet. I only eat chicken/seafood/eggs, should I be supplementing with a specific vitamin for this type of diet? (B12?) I have a lot of muscle spasm/weakness and fatigue (exercising. Been on the PHD for about 2 weeks and feel so much better and bonus I’ve lost some cm’s.
Are you open to adding red meat back into your diet? PHD attempts to limit chicken due to it’s high omega-6 content. Beef and lamb have a better omega-6/omega-3 balance and should be favored over chicken and pork.
I think Paul would say to try to impliment the diet fully, including supplements for a few months and then reasses symptoms.
Good luck!
Johathan – thx for the feedback. The reason that I stopped eating red meat when I were a teenager, I had very low bloodpressure and iron deficiency/anemia symptoms. Everytime I consumed red meat I felt tired and sleepy and once I stopped eating red meat my blood pressure and iron were perfect and I felt so much full of energy….. ❓
Paul – I hope and pray you find a way to set up a better organized forum in the near future! 😉 (But thanks for all you do! 😉
I need to buy a dutch oven. Anyone buy one recently? I’m looking for recommendations for size (5qt big enough for a family of 4?), materials, make and best price.
I want it mostly for making broth and marrow bone dishes but stuff comes up all the time that makes me think I need to expand from the slow cooker.
Dutch ovens are so expensive, though, I don’t want to buy a bad one or to have to buy another one because I over looked something
Thanks
-Allan in WV
predominantly negative view of the paleo paradigm….
http://chronicle.com/article/Misguided-Nostalgia-for-Our/137285/
My problem with this article is that the author misses a couple key points. First, if we had evolved to the “refined grains” in that short a time, we wouldn’t see the health problems numerous studies have documented in relation to those grains. Also, having our species evolve requires that the least fit die before reproducing. With modern medical care and government assistance programs, even in you are unhealthy and evolutionary unfit, you will still probably manage to reproduce before you die, thereby thwarting or at least dramatically slowing evolution of humans.
What is the prime age if human appearance, health, intelligence, and fitness?Where does “negative aging” begin?
I often find myself wondering about the point where “negative aging” starts- that is, the point where every birthday ceases to mean new developments and gains, and instead ushers in decline.
It’s obvious that 20 is a more physiologically desirable age to be than 15- a 20 year old will be more advanced physically and mentally, without seeing any declines in health.
It’s also obvious that 60 is a less physiologically desirable age to be than 20- there have been clear declines in almost all facets of life.
Take the following standards- health, fitness, energy, appearance, immunity, metabolism, cognitive agility, and regenerative ability
At what age have you started the detrimental aging process in at least one facet? When does the turning point begin?
I’ve always imaged it to be around 21, with very slow decline between 25 with a few facets improving, and than 25 being the start of universal decline where everything begins to go downhill.
Does this sound right? Do you think a 23 year old has 100% of the health and fitness as their 20 year old self? Or have they perhaps developed even beyond their 20 year old self?
Hi there Paul, can you tell us what your planning on speaking about at the PaleoFX conference?
Jonathan
Hi there, is there any postings on supplementation for young children? My children and 5 and 3 and eat reasonably well (gluten free, high fat) but they wouldn’t eat eggs every day. They are very healthy except often seem very tired. I wondered if they may be lacking somewhere. Thanks 🙂
Hi Amanda,
there is no supplement recommendation for children yet that I know of.
In any case, when you say “high fat” do you mean “low carb”? Children have a much higher need for carbs. I let my 3-yo daughter load up on all the mashed potatoes (with butter) she wants, and she’s pretty energetic but tired towards sleeping time.
Hi Amanda
What about making custard for your kids as a way to get some more eggs? Or the custard sauce variation to mix with fruit. Or some eggy muffins filled with things you kids enjoy.
I make my kids a custard-y drink at bedtime. I just whisk a few egg yolks in milk, add a pinch of salt and a little vanilla, heat it gently until thick, stir in some maple syrup (it doesn’t need much), strain and serve.
Two out of four of my kids LOVE it and would drink it every night.
And then there’s ice cream
http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2011/02/ice-cream/
Thanks for the great ideas. I have been lowish carbing them, but have stopped since reading PHD. Thanks for all the tips. I will def try the egg custard and will also check out the icecream recipe 🙂 I’m guessing that I throw away the egg whites? Seems a shame as we have our own pet chickens, so I know the effort they go to to produce them. I’m guessing young children would only need one two egg yolks a day? Thanks again 🙂
Egg whites are ok if you don’t have an allergy, you could make macaroons with them or chocolate mousse or perhaps stir them into soup for “snot soup” 😉
I haven’t been able to make good macaroons with only rice syrup though, I had to add sugar :-/
Amanda, I scramble extra egg whites and add good stuff like kale or shredded carrots and feed them to my chickens. They need a little extra protein during the winter, when there aren’t any bugs around. And it won’t entice them to eat their own eggs, because they’re unrecognizable as the same thing when cooked. (I love my chickens, but they aren’t actually all that bright.)
I only do this once or twice a week, but the chickens loooooove it.
We have chickens too
http://themodernhomestead.us/
We eat a lot of whole eggs, but when I have unused whites I save them up in a jar in the fridge then bake them and feed them back to the chickens,
Hello, I stopped taking a multivitamin last year and immediately fell ill for a couple of weeks. Around New Year’s I had what can only be described as a massive panic attack (since I never had one before) minus any psychological symptoms; purely physical. Couldn’t sit still, lie down, fast breathing, for HOURS. Went to the ER but they just chalked it up to dehydration. Got a prescription for Valium.
I’ve tried a million things over the past year and I believe the PHD has really helped reduce the recurring anxiety but one sure fire cure at the moment is niacinamide. About 500 mg a day does it. I can’t explain it although there’s plenty of orthomolecular websites that extol its virtues.
I’m wondering what could have deranged my system so much to the point that I’m dependent on it? I’m going to try and slowly reduce the dose over time but it just baffles me.
Just wondering if anyone has used a starter culture to make fermented veggies. Apparently it has the advantage of increasing the diversity of the bacteria strains beyond those naturally present. Currently, I’m just using saltwater but the ability to diversify strains sounds intriguing.
On a similar topic, I was listening to an interview of Chris Masterjohn by Joseph Mercola. Mercola mentioned that his staff developed a starter culture for veggies that not only increased bacteria strains but also provides therapeutic doses of vitamin K2. Sounds like a winner to me, but we’ll have to wait for the unveiling for more info.
Jonathan
Is milk allowed on PHD? I didn’t think it was, but has seen it referred to a few times. I LOVE dairy (but it seems to make me put on weight). I was just wondering what PHD thoughts are on it as Paleo is against it, and Primal allows butter and heavy cream. I find it hard to dairy free as it is such a good fat and protein source (and moderately priced). I would love to read your comments. Perhaps milk has too much sugar??? Thanks 🙂
I should mention that we do have access to beautiful organic raw milk at our local store (it is expensive $7.80 for 2 litres compared to $2 for normal milk, but really yummy!!!)
If you look at the apple, it is up in the leaves
http://perfecthealthdiet.com/the-diet/
Listed as a pleasure food. So not too much.
Fermented things like
Cheese, yogurt are preferred. But some milk is fine if it is from a good source. Raw, Grassfed, and well tended direct from farmer would be best.