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  #1   ^
Old Sun, Jun-12-11, 16:08
FogPilot FogPilot is offline
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Plan: Paleo/Primal
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Default Bouts of Uncontrollable, Insatiable Hunger -- Please Advise

Hello!

I am new to the low-carb lifestyle—I started three weeks ago. I have Hashimoto’s and am on 90mg of Armour Thyroid. My question has to do with these perplexing bouts of insatiable, intense hunger where I feel that I need to eat every hour or two hours or I feel like I’m going to pass out. This has been going on now every few days (sometimes 4-5 days) out of the month for the past year or so. I was hoping it would go away or diminish on a low-carb diet, but it seems like it’s actually getting worse.

I am consuming what are (to me) awe-inspiring quantities of high-protein foods replete with plenty of fat, and plenty of fresh vegetables, and minimal fruits, plus usually one or two protein drinks a day. No sugar or grains whatsoever, and I think I’m averaging around less than 50g of carbs a day. So I don’t understand these incredible swings in blood sugar/appetite.

Then I’ll have what I call “normal” days, where I eat very little, am totally satiated by what I eat, and everything is fine.

I take a full-spectrum multi-vitamin, magnesium, potassium, D3, Krill Oil, and 90mg Armour Thryoid every day. I have Hashimoto’s but I haven’t had any overt symptoms of being hypo in a long time. I’m not tired, cold, having dry skin, etc. Just these insane bouts of hunger/starvation that are out of control.

Is there something awry with my ability to absorb what I'm eating? Or with my blood sugar levels? The last time I had them tested (back in April), my fasting glucose level was 102 (range is 70-110). Is this a sign of pre-diabetes or something?

Will these bouts of hunger go away or level out at some point? Has anyone else experienced this?
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  #2   ^
Old Mon, Jul-11-11, 19:37
neen's Avatar
neen neen is offline
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Plan: Atkins
Stats: 238/225.2/199 Female 5'6
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How much Krill are you taking? I upped my dose and found it did wonders.
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  #3   ^
Old Mon, Jul-11-11, 20:07
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Nancy LC Nancy LC is offline
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Plan: DDF
Stats: 202/185.4/179 Female 67
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Location: San Diego, CA
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Hmmm... no real idea. Is it possible you're getting a little hyperthyroid? I know with hashi's your thyroid is kind of sputtering, sometimes it puts out a lot of juice, other times not enough.

When my T3 are highish I tend to get a lot more hungry.
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  #4   ^
Old Tue, Jul-12-11, 06:14
FogPilot FogPilot is offline
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Plan: Paleo/Primal
Stats: 150/148/135 Female 67 inches
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Neen, actually I just ran out of Krill Oil pills. I was only taking 2 a day (don't recall how much was in them). To replace them, I got Solgar Omega 3 (950mg) instead. Should I switch back to Krill, and if so, how much did you have to take for it to make a difference?

Nancy, thanks, yes, a possibility, though my latest labs seem okay. Actually the appetite issues are getting better. Now I am being periodically slammed with this incredible fatigue, achiness, dizziness, and sometimes nausea. This all started when I went gluten- and grain-free about 1-1/2 months ago. Is it possible this is some kind of detoxification/withdrawal process? It's been occurring every week for several days since I went Paleo.
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  #5   ^
Old Tue, Jul-12-11, 06:43
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WereBear WereBear is online now
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Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
Stats: 220/125/150 Female 67
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This can be what happens when our pancreas is used to responding to food with big gobs of insulin. When it doesn't find as much blood sugar as it is expecting, blood sugar can drop too low, and a "hunger alarm" is triggered.

Also, people with thyroid problems often report doing well with somewhat higher levels of carbs.

If you can bump them up without messing yourself up, lowering them again, gradually, might address the problem.
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  #6   ^
Old Tue, Jul-12-11, 07:22
Nancy LC's Avatar
Nancy LC Nancy LC is offline
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Plan: DDF
Stats: 202/185.4/179 Female 67
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FogPilot
Neen, actually I just ran out of Krill Oil pills. I was only taking 2 a day (don't recall how much was in them). To replace them, I got Solgar Omega 3 (950mg) instead. Should I switch back to Krill, and if so, how much did you have to take for it to make a difference?

Nancy, thanks, yes, a possibility, though my latest labs seem okay. Actually the appetite issues are getting better. Now I am being periodically slammed with this incredible fatigue, achiness, dizziness, and sometimes nausea. This all started when I went gluten- and grain-free about 1-1/2 months ago. Is it possible this is some kind of detoxification/withdrawal process? It's been occurring every week for several days since I went Paleo.

Some people do have withdrawals from gluten. There's carb-flu too. 6 weeks is a bit long though. Did you quit drinking caffeine too? Those withdrawals are harsh.

Do you feel any better if you up the carbs just a bit? Like add in some paleo carbs: fruit, squash, yams. Don't go crazy, but just a bit more.

Can you give us some idea of what you're eating?
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  #7   ^
Old Wed, Jul-13-11, 06:52
FogPilot FogPilot is offline
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Plan: Paleo/Primal
Stats: 150/148/135 Female 67 inches
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Thanks so much for the responses. I have not quit caffeine, only cut down a bit. I drink a couple cups in the morning.

Mainly I've been eating things like eggs, coconut and olive oil, some organic cheese, half-n-half in my coffee, plenty of vegetables like broccoli, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, fruits like oranges and berries, lots of nuts, avocados, olives, red meat, chicken, and pork.

I have not included any higher-carb vegetables like yams. But if that would help, I could definitely give it a try.

I should mention, too, that on my "good" days--I feel better than I have felt in YEARS! I'm 41, and on those days, I feel like I'm in my early 20s in terms of energy and mood levels. So, I feel like I'm on the right track and my guess is that this is some kind of a detox process... but yeah, it seems rather long and drawn out! So, any suggestions to help speed it along would be much appreciated. Thank you!
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  #8   ^
Old Wed, Jul-13-11, 07:05
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WereBear WereBear is online now
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Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
Stats: 220/125/150 Female 67
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Location: USA
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Get a free meter (drugstores in the US give them away) and see what your blood sugar is when you feel bad, and when you feel good.
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  #9   ^
Old Fri, Jul-15-11, 08:00
FogPilot FogPilot is offline
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Plan: Paleo/Primal
Stats: 150/148/135 Female 67 inches
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Hi, yes, thanks -- I have a glucose meter, and have used it in the past several weeks to track my levels, but I have seen no correlation whatsoever to how I feel and my blood sugar levels.

Sometimes the levels are low, but I am not hungry. Sometimes the levels are high, and I am starving. It doesn't seem to bear any relation to the fatigue...
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  #10   ^
Old Fri, Jul-15-11, 17:25
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Seejay Seejay is offline
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Plan: Optimal Diet
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Can you correlate the hungry horrors with periods of high insulin?

that fatigue, achiness, nausea sounds like dropping blood sugar. You can get the effect when the sugar is dropping fast, even when the actual glucose level is supposedly in range. It's the steepness of the drop that is important and can trigger the fight-flight hormone cascade (sugar burning and hungry horrors)

like after -

large protein meals (more than 35g protein at a sitting)
early morning cortisol surge
long hard exercise insulin surge (insulin rises after long and hard enough exercise)
excitement adrenaline surge (like after a performance)
accidentally-not-enough-food adrenaline crisis surge (I do this if I don't eat enough for a couple of days, with natural appetite low)
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  #11   ^
Old Mon, Jul-18-11, 14:15
FogPilot FogPilot is offline
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Plan: Paleo/Primal
Stats: 150/148/135 Female 67 inches
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Progress:
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Thanks for the feedback... I can't seem to see any correlation. But, actually, (and happily...!), I'm not really having many of those hunger bouts anymore. Perhaps it was some kind of process of my body converting over to a new way of burning body fat--the whole ketosis thing. And/or detox/withdrawal off gluten and grains?

I have no idea, but I appreciate all of your good ideas and support!!
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