chest pain..

[Candiflip]

Hey all,

So I'm happy to say as of today I am down 35lbs! :D

But I have a question.. for the last few days I have had some chest pain.. off and on.. but today it has lasted all day. It is not heartburn, I know what that feels like. It is more of a tight feeling.
My husband had said to me that butter is bad for me, so could I be hurting myself eating the high fat? I really did not think I could be, but this pain is like nothing I have ever had before.. and it makes me wonder.

[Vpeach]

I get random pains myself, but it comes and goes.

But, if you've been feeling it all day and you are experiencing tightness, then I would suggest going to get it checked out.

[black57]

No, it's not the butter. I would wager that your potassium is low. Either way get it checked out to put your mind at ease.

[Candiflip]

okay I will take some potassium. I have been slipping in taking it! I think it got pushed to the back on cupboard and I forgot about it.
Thanks!

[kazLaJauna]

Hey all,

So I'm happy to say as of today I am down 35lbs! :D

But I have a question.. for the last few days I have had some chest pain.. off and on.. but today it has lasted all day. It is not heartburn, I know what that feels like. It is more of a tight feeling.
My husband had said to me that butter is bad for me, so could I be hurting myself eating the high fat? I really did not think I could be, but this pain is like nothing I have ever had before.. and it makes me wonder.


Get to the emergency room. You should never guess about chest pain. That is only something that a doctor can evaluate.
I will be praying for you!

[g-didi]

Yes! To the ER! I would err on the side of being paranoid. Please check it out!

[Figaver]

Defenitly go get your chest pains checked out. Even if it turns out to be nothing, it will put your mind at ease. My sister had a chest pain but didn't think anything of it because it went away, but she happened to casually mention it to our mom on the phone that day. The next evening during dinner, her heart stopped. 30 years old is too young :(

[nurselisa]

Chances are that it's nothing, but you can't be positive. Women experience cardiac issues differently than the typically textbook symptoms. If you are getting the heart checked out, you could ask them to draw your electrolytes also to make sure that the potassium or other is not out of whack. My husband experiences heartburn in a non-typical manner where it feels tight when he breathes in deep. It goes away when he takes his prilosec like he's supposed to. Your husband needs to do some research, saturated fat is not the villain that they have been proclaiming it to be for years. Turns out they were wrong.

[Zelocka]

It really depends on the side. I use to get pains in the other side from my heart due to me exercising and over-stressing that side of my body (leaning to one side to much).

[hysteria]

Yes - please get it checked. I began experiencing chest pain when I was IF'ing w/ low carb & exercising heavily. I went to my PCP & my EKG was normal. I DID find out I was hypothyroid. Once I got on medication & went back to a carb-filled normal diet - the chest pains went away. Looking back, I was not taking any type of supplements and wonder if I was lacking ??? (potassium? electrolytes?). Never found out. Have been VLCarb for over a month now and have not had 1 problem / pain / twang/anything.

[Candiflip]

thanks again for all the comments..
I took the potassium last night, and again this am.. and the pain is going. I'm sure that was probably the problem!
thanks!!

[DEBBIE2007]

I agree with others. Don't gusse when it comes to your heart.
Ive been low on potassium before and did not have any chest pain or tightness. was just a little dizzy.

Please get your self checked out.

Debbie

[nurselisa]

It really depends on the side. I use to get pains in the other side from my heart due to me exercising and over-stressing that side of my body (leaning to one side to much).


Zelocka- you have lost over 200 pounds????? You are my hero! Wow, way to go!

[Mia-Chloe]

Sometimes a lack of iron causes chest pains. The best thing to do is see a doctor and get some bloodwork done to pinpoint what could cause it.

As for the butter, it is not bad for you - having high cholesterol is bad for you (and butter, when combined with other carbby foods, can raise your cholesterol). If you really are concerned, then go have your cholesterol tested. But I am sure you will see that yours has gone down since starting a low carb lifestyle.

[amandawald]

Hey all,

So I'm happy to say as of today I am down 35lbs! :D

But I have a question.. for the last few days I have had some chest pain.. off and on.. but today it has lasted all day. It is not heartburn, I know what that feels like. It is more of a tight feeling.
My husband had said to me that butter is bad for me, so could I be hurting myself eating the high fat? I really did not think I could be, but this pain is like nothing I have ever had before.. and it makes me wonder.

It could be low magnesium, but, I nonetheless echo what the others say and would recommend you go and see a doctor anyway.

It is definitely not the high fat!!! Despite the anti-fat brigade's hysteria, the evidence is growing that many different fats are actually cardio-protective: they are good for our hearts!!!

I have already read one book on magnesium ("The Magnesium Miracle" by Dr Carolyn Dean) and am currently on my second book on magnesium called "The Magnesium Factor" by Drs Seelig and Rosanoff. The second book specifically mentions that some kinds of angina can be treated with correcting magnesium deficiency.

Here's the books reviewed on amazon.com:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=seelig+and+rosanoff&x=16&y=12

It wouldn't do you any harm to take some magnesium supplements (just avoid magnesium oxide as it is poorly absorbed) or eating a few more magnesium-rich foods in the meantime. Here's a few ideas:

http://www.ctds.info/magdiet.html

Oh, and by the way, I have also had mild angina type pains on and off, but they have pretty much gone away now that I have got my magnesium levels up. Last year, in July/August, I was having regular calf cramps in the night (the jump-out-of-bed-and-hop-around kind), but I have not had these for months now. I have been taking various kinds of magnesium supplements and am now also taking extra care to eat more magnesium-rich foods as I reached my limit with the supplements (GI problems) and had to cut back.

All the best,

amanda

[amandawald]

I get random pains myself, but it comes and goes.

But, if you've been feeling it all day and you are experiencing tightness, then I would suggest going to get it checked out.

I just put a reply in the thread you started on leg cramps, so if you have had both cramps and angina-type pains, I think you are definitely low in magnesium.

amanda

[amandawald]

Hi there!

I wrote this for a forum pal who is going through a lot of stress right now and who also found out that her magnesium levels were low. I have left out the more personal bits, but some of you might find some of the ideas useful:

Here's some tips (ignore any that you are already aware of and forgive me for not knowing which ones you knew about):

- B6 can enhance magnesium uptake. I take a B-complex (it finally arrived from the USA!!!) with 50mg of B6, amongst the other Bs. I think it helps with overall energy levels.

- D3 can increase magnesium absorption from the gut: are you still taking your D3???

- low stomach acid can cause poor mineral and nutrient absorption, so having a little glug of lemon juice in a small glass of water before meals can help raise your stomach acid and thus enhance mineral absorption. The same goes for magnesium supplements: if you have them between meals, take a shot of lemon juice with it. If you take your magnesium at meals, take it preferentially at the end of a meal so that the magnesium doesn't function as an antacid and lower nutrient absorption.

- digestive enzymes might also help with general nutrient absorption and raise your energy levels.

- eat as many magnesium-rich foods as possible

Here are a few which I like:
- brown rice (only 24g of carbs per 100g; 50g is a serving spoon size and only 12g of carbs)
- legumes (I know you like hummus) such as chickpeas, lentils, peas, kidney beans, broad beans and so on. Chickpeas and kidney beans have about 15g of carbs per 100g, which is a big portion. I like to add them to soups or salads. I find them very satisfying, certainly a lot more satisfiying than any of the GF crackers and crispbreads, which don't seem to register as carbs - or food for that matter - in my bod!!!
- Nuts and seeds are the foods which are richest in magnesium, especially sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds, followed by cashews (not strictly nuts, but still high in magnesium). Nuts and seeds apparently need soaking and then drying to get the phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors out of them, but I am sure that we still get some goodness out of them and they are very low in carbs!!! Cashews can easily be thrown into a stir-fry or curry to add a bit of extra magnesium.
- the old leafy green veggies apparently have lots of magnesium and they are super low-carb!!! Try adding a few sliced almonds into your spinach or have some almond sticks with cooked carrots and butter.

I have made an effort recently to have more of these foods and I do feel it has made a difference in my magnesium-deficiency symptoms - i.e. they are less noticeable.

Stress depletes magnesium and overtaxes the adrenal glands, so the more stress you have, the more you need to watch your magnesium intake.