Hi there. I am Claudio from Buenos Aires. I am in the cetogenic diet because of my sugar blues. What do you take to improve your mood or getting energy?. I would like to know the score of glutamine, octacosanol, kava, sam-e, acetil-l-tirosine, etc. It is difficult for me to get some of those products in buenos aires just to try them. Greetings

Claudio Acuña

I wish I was in Buenos Aires right now. I'm sick of shovelling snow and scraping ice from my car.

Are you following a ketogenic diet only to cure sugar addiction, or are you also trying to reduce your weight?? The diet is the most effective treatment for both; make sure you are eating adequate protein foods - eating smaller meals and snacks more frequently will definitely help keep your blood sugar levels from swinging up and down, which is the trigger for the cravings, as you know.

I have not tried any of the nutrients and supplements you mentioned, but I know many people find them helpful. Glutamine especially is used for treating addictions and improving mental energy as well as for building muscles. Meats, fish and fowl are all high in natural glutamine.

Here is an interesting and informative site. Lots if articles on health, nutrition and supplements - in both english and espanol. http://www.chemedia.com/Pag00003.htm

Here is another good site, very detailed encyclopedia of vitamins and supplements (english only). You might be able to order some supplements from the USA if you cannot find them locally in Argentina. http://www.mothernature.com/ency/Index/Supp_Index.asp

Good luck

Doreen

Hi Claudio

You will find somedays really dragged out, and so close to sneak some sweets - have you tried some berries to pick up your blood sugar?

Little meals through-out the day will help: 5-6 instead of 3 large...try that.

Also: are you constipated? Often irregularities will built up toxins, instead of washing them OUT of your system, since your liver has to work a little extra to purify this new KETOSIS state.

Hot water with lemon first thing in the morning works great for me! Also, warm water throughout the day (instead of Cold stuff), seems to get the bowels moving and you feel more ENERGIZED and motivated to STAY on track.


Try and stay away from any anti-depressants , beacuse they have a reverse effect when on a low-carb diet.
You need no stimulants, and even sam-e's formula seem to disrupt your chemical brain functions.

Tell me...do you drink enough fluids....(not the diet drinks, please - so high in CHEMICALS and sodium).

Love
ENERGY

Hi there. Besides my sugar blues I have the caffeine blues. That is the reason why I was looking for an additional form of energy to replace the lost ones. Greetings

Claudio

Hi Claudio,

What plan are you following and how long have you been following it for?

Karen

Hi there. I am following the cetogenic diet because my hypogyecemia, between other reasons. I am an addict to caffeine in the form of cafiaspirin too. Between the other reasons of the diet is a probably candidiasis or a leaky gut or a CFS. Any suggestions?. Greetings.

Claudio

hello Claudio,

It sounds as though you have a number of health problems besides just sugar and caffeine blues! It's very good that you are interested in reading and learning information to help your health, but it is best that you have the supervision and diagnosis of a doctor or professional who is knowledgeable and experienced with natural and holistic medicine. Many of the herbs and nutritional supplements you asked about can have bad effects if not used correctly, and may not be suitable for all of your health conditions.

Here are some good books for you to read; you should be able to find these at your local library or book store -

1. "Recetas nutritivas que curan", by James Balch and Phyllis Balch. Very excellent book about natural health, vitamins, herbs and supplements. Also good information about hypoglycemia, leaky gut and chronic fatigue syndrome.

2. "Dieta Para los Adictos a los Hidratos de Carbono", by Richard Heller and Rachael Heller. Explains sugar blues and sugar addiction, and recommends a diet and some vitamins and supplements to help. Not ketogenic diet though.

3. "La nueva revolución dietética", by Dr. Robert Atkins. Lowcarbohydrate, ketogenic diet. Will help your sugar addiction. Also information about vitamins and supplements.

It would be good for you to read these books to help your understanding. Hope you are feeling better soon. Please write again to let us know.

take care,
Doreen

Hi there. I read most of the books of Robert Atkins and some of the books of Michel Colgan, Lina Lazarides, Paavo Airola, Andrew Weil and others. The doctors I consulted do not coincide with the diagnosis about my illness. Many of them do not approve the cetogenic diet nor the fasting diet. Many of them says that my illness is mental. Many of them tried I take the famous pills of happiness. The most strange diagnosis certain doctor gave to me after an electronic scanning was that my brain cells do not feed properly and that the solution was to take the famous pills and talking. I would like you gave my more feedback. Greetings.

Claudio

hi Claudio,

Thankyou for sharing the information about yourself. No wonder you feel so frustrated! You are right, most doctors do not believe that Candidiasis, or Hypoglycemia or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome even exist, except inside our heads. But there ARE some good doctors out there, who have open minds and are willing to work with you to help you get better. They are just hard to find! Are there any naturopaths, or doctors who specialize in Chinese, Ayurveda or herbal & homeopathic medicine in Buenos Aires? Many good chiropractors are also educated and experienced to help you with these chronic health problems. You should be able to phone and ask. If they are good, and care about YOU, they will be happy to explain how they can help before you make the appointment (and hand over the money).

You do not need to have a doctor's "permission" to follow your chosen diet. However, it's not clear from what you have said which diet plan you are following. Atkins? Protein Power? NeanderThin or the Paleolithic Diet? There is a "ketogenic diet" used for children who have epilepsy/seizure disorder, that is very low carbohydrate AND very low protein, and very HIGH fat. I don't think that would be so good for your particular health concerns. "The Ketogenic Diet" by Lyle Macdonald isn't so much a diet plan itself, as it mostly explains how the popular programs (Atkins etc) work.

A nutritious lowcarb diet, eating lean meats, fish, poultry, eggs, etc, and fresh vegetables with lots of fiber, maybe a small amount of lowcarb fruits (berries, melon, grapefruit, etc) will be helpful for all of the problems you mentioned. Avoid eating a lot of animal fat; instead, use unsaturated vegetable oils, olive oil, nuts, almonds etc. For Candidiasis, it would be good to avoid dairy products also, so no cheese, cream, yogurt, etc. Obviously, you want to avoid bread, sugar and sweets of ANY kind, noodles, rice, corn, cassava, potatoes etc, etc, etc ... Eat 5 or 6 small mini-meals and snacks through the day, instead of 2 or 3 larger meals. Make sure to have some protein at every meal and snack too.

Don't be so hard on yourself to try to cure all of your "addictions" at once. Work on the sugar and carbohydrates first. Cut back the coffee and caffeine, but if it's something you truly enjoy, then have it, just limit yourself to maybe one or two cups a day.

I will recommend this book again to you. "Recetas nutritivas que curan", by James Balch and Phyllis Balch. It is excellent, with large amounts of information on Candida, Hypoglyemia, Chronic Fatigue and Depression. It does not deal with lowcarbohydrate diets though, but it does list lots of herbs and vitamins you can take to help feel better.

I think if you are able to get your physical health better, with a good diet and nutritional supplements, that your mental problems will improve also. It's hard to be happy when your body feels so blaaaaahhhhh! And don't ignore exercise. Even going for a walk is very good to boost the mood, and helps keep the blood sugar stable.

Good luck, hope you are feeling better soon.

Doreen

Hi Doreen. I am eating a ketogenic diet that would be comfortable of eating for me. I take eggs, poultry, cow meat, green olives, nuts, hazelnuts, almonds, oil, tomatoes, onions, garlic, asparagus, lettuce and some cheese ( a bit). I would like to eat or drink a perfect healing meal. What do you think about the whey protein with glutamine which is sold for sportsmen?. The perfect meal would be for the health and the usual meal would be to enjoy eating without ruining the health. I would like to drink an alternative to the coffee too. Do you know any?. As far as the doctors I can not tell. I think that my health is on my own just now. The doctors do not know more than us in these matters.

Claudio

Oh Claudio, I think the most perfect meal is ANYTHING prepared by someone ELSE. (And someone else washes the dishes too!) ...

The foods you listed sound good, healthful. What about vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage? These have very healing nutrients, and lots of fiber, which is good for the leaky gut. RAW garlic is very good for Candidiasis, maybe not so good for the social life! Do you like fish?? Many of the fatty ocean fish - tuna, mackerel, salmon, sardines - are good sources of the octacosanol that you inquired about earlier. If you do not like to eat fish, you may want to take a fish oil supplement.

It might be a good idea to stop the cheese for a few weeks. Or, maybe eat cheese or yogurt made from goat or sheep milk, NOT cow milk. For Candidiasis and leaky gut, supplements of lactobacillus Acidophilus are very helpful. Take this on an EMPTY stomach, with water, not with food.

As substitute for coffee? I speak as someone who loves and is addicted to coffee also - there is no good substitute .... For flavour, there are delicious brands of decaffeinated coffee - look for the "Swiss water process". There are no chemicals used for this, and the flavour and aroma is preserved. It is of course, more expensive. I do not recommend the roasted grain-based "coffees", such as Postum or Krakus. These contain barley and/or wheat, and will trigger allergies. Plus, they are not low in carbohydrates. Teas contain caffeine also, but much, much less than coffee. Have you tried green tea? For energy, you might consider Ginseng tea, especially the Siberian (eleuthro) and Panax types of Ginseng.

Regarding the whey and soy protein drinks. These are very good and useful way to get quality protein in the diet, and are very fast and convenient to prepare. Make sure that it is low in sugar carbohydrates. Some brands contain fructose which is sugar, and bad for the Candida. Here are some good ideas and recipes for using these protein drinks http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?threadid=282

Make sure also to drink lots of plain water. Maybe squeeze some fresh lemon or lime juice in it (do not use the bottled juice - full of citrate preservatives).

It would be great to go back to the doctors when your health is improved. Then they will say, "oh look, it's a miracle". And you can say back, "No, it was hard work, and I did it myself".

Good luck,
Doreen

You may want to try St. John's Wort. It acts similarly to Prozac and it will help with your appetite, too. I have read that some people have a problem with depression on this diet. Like Prozac, though, it takes a while for the St. John's Wort to build up in your body, so be patient.

SJW can be effective for mild to moderate depression, but is not without side-effects and some precautions. It's not known for sure how it works, but yes, it can be used successfully in place of the SSRI class of antidepressants, such as Prozac, Paxil, etc. Note, it does NOT take the place of other classes of antidepressants - lithium, MAO inhibitors, tricyclics, anti-anxiety meds.

Make sure you buy a standardized 0.3% hypericin formula. Some of the teas and powdered leaf products may contain very little of the active ingredient.

SJW does increase sensitivity to the sun. Use at least SPF 15 sunscreen, summer and winter too. In particular, there is risk to the retina of the eye from ultra-violet light sensitivity. For this reason, persons using bright light therapy for depression and S.A.D. should NOT use hypericin. There are also studies from Europe suggesting SJW can reduce the effectiveness of birth control pills. Also, can interfere with protease inhibitors used for HIV/AIDS. Most other side-effects are minor - skin rash, stomach upset, fatigue, etc. If you are currently taking antidepressants, DO NOT TAKE SJW AT THE SAME TIME. Discuss with your doctor about first discontinuing your other meds, which may need to be tapered off slowly to avoid rebound effects.

SJW may cause similar reactions as MAO inhibitors when certain foods are eaten, such as red wine, aged cheese, nitrates, etc. Best to avoid these foods, as the reaction can be severe - nausea, headache, vomiting, even anaphylaxis (requires "911")

For unbiased information about St. John's Wort, check this site http://www.sjwinfo.org/ It is strictly information, and no one is advertising or trying to sell anything.

Take care, hope this info. was helpful. ..
Doreen

[Edited by doreen T on 03-02-01 at 12:24]

St. John's Wort is told may cause some digestion irritability to the 2% of the people who takes it. Well, I am between that two percent of people which get some problems with that herb. Greetings.

Claudio

hello Claudio,

It sounds that you are not feeling much better? Sorry to hear that. How is the fatigue, the leaky gut? Have you tried the other herbs I mentioned - ginseng, and green tea? And are you taking exercise and plenty of fresh air, and drinking lots of water??

Did you ever try to read the book I recommended to you? "Recetas nutritivas que curan", by James Balch and Phyllis Balch. Claudio, this is an excellent book for many illnesses (including depression, fatigue, candidiasis, hypoglycemia, addictions, etc., etc. ...) and has many, many lists of herbs and supplements, like glutamine, kava kava, co-Q10 etc. If you cannot buy it, perhaps your library will have a copy you can borrow ... go to the non-fiction shelf number 615.854. I have this book, and I use it ALL the time. (english "Prescription for Nutritional Healing")

Claudio, I cannot simply tell you to take this vitamin, or eat that food and you will get better (and I know that you do not expect that .. .).. Please tell us, are you following a program, a specific ketogenic diet such as Atkins or are you trying to invent your own diet? It's fine if you are..... maybe you could write for us a sample menu, what you eat each day, what vitamins and herbs you are taking, etc... That would be VERY helpful. Right now, you are only telling a little bit here, a little bit there, so it is difficult to see where help is needed.

take care,
Doreen