Here are common questions and answers about low carb high fat (LCHF) nutrition and health:
Is saturated fat dangerous?
No. That is an old and disproven theory. It’s been a mistake from the beginning. More.
I started eating LCHF / very low carb and I feel dizzy / a headache / tired?
Dizziness / headaches and similar symtoms are common during the first week as your body adapt to a very low carb diet. These symptoms usually go away in a few days.
Adding a bit more carbs to the meals reduces the symptoms but can slow the adaptation (and weight loss).
Another possibility is that you are dehydrated / low on salt. When starting a very low carb there is extra loss of salt and fluids through the kidneys in the first weeks, until the body adapts. Drinking some extra fluid and putting some extra salt on your food during the first week can avoid this problem and often cures the symptoms. Alternatively you can drink some buillon a few times a day.
Do you use blood pressure medication? A very low carb diet can lower high blood pressure, and medication may need to be reduced in that case. Low blood pressure may result in dizziness.
Why are Asian rice eaters thin?
Probably because they do not eat a lot of sugar or refined starch. More.
What about gallstones and LCHF?
High fat food can give you short term trouble if you already have gallstones. Low fat food gives you gallstones in the long term. More.
Can you eat low carb cookies / bread / pasta and lose weight?
That is probably not a good idea:
Do you get cancer from eating red meat?
Highly unlikely, although favoring unprocessed meat is the healthiest choice. Replacing meat with processed carbs may be one of the worst things you can do for your health and weight. More.
Do you get hypothyroidism on a very low carb diet?
No, hardly on a well-formulated low carb diet, meaning you replace the energy from carbs by eating more fat. In scientific studies on LCHF there are no problems with the thyroid and I see no new thyroid issues in my patients going strictly low carb.
However, starvation can lead to hypothyroidism, and if you remove carbs AND fat from your diet you will be starving. So you do need to eat carbs or fat to fuel your body.
Bottom line: A LCHF diet is fine for your thyroid. More.
Is there scientific proof that LCHF is good for weight / blood sugar / cholesterol / blood pressure?
Are studies showing better weight loss on low carb diets sponsored by the meat industry or the Atkins foundation?
Yes, a few of them are. But repeated independent studies show the same results.
Does insulin play a role in weight gain / loss?
Yes, it’s absolutely crucial in most cases. Some bloggers have objections but they do not change biochemical facts. More.
Can you drink alcohol on LCHF?
Sure, in moderate amounts. But beer and sweet drinks need to be avoided. Choose wine or non-sweetened liquor. More.
Is salt dangerous?
No. At least not in moderate amounts. More.
What’s a good LCHF breakfast except for eggs?
Can you eat fruit on LCHF?
Only occasionally, as an exception, if you want to be strict and get the maximum effect. Fruit contains a lot of sugar. Fruit is candy from nature.
Why are Americans obese?
More knowledge
This talk by me from the Ancestral Health Symposium 2011 summarizes the history and science behind the ongoing revolution in diet and health.
More theory and practice
Here four of the world’s biggest experts on the subject explain the theory and practice of various kinds of carb restriction:
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205 Comments
Thanks.
I'll give you my idea:
Morning:
2 eggs and 200 grams tomatoes fried and drizzled with 20 ml of olive oil
Lunch:
20 grams of butter on 200 grams of pangasius fish filet, 100 g Salad Iceberg and 100g grated carrot
Afternoon:
Whey protein shake with 200 ml of semi fat milk
Evening:
1 corn of the cobb with 20 grams of butter and 200 grams of fatty beef meat
In all: 1.771 calories (400-500 cal below my need)
Is this okay?!! I know it's not completely right, but I think for a start I'm the type that needs to ease into it...but really I just need some idea on whether this is hopeless ... could some one share a typical day for them and how they get the fat in?
Thanks
And if one do have problems with glucose metabolism and or need to lose weight.. then one should get to eat less carbs!
100 gram of carbs a day is low.. medium low.. for healty persons.
Some need to eat not more then 50 grams a day.. others the half of that.
Its depends of wath goals and problems one have, and there is healty real fodd and there is unhealty junkfood.
You know.. there is no magical diet.. only better or worse.. those how is best is those how give you all the essentiall nutrichment and make you eat no more then your body needs!
And its recomended to eat down to 50 gram a day in the induction.. about three or four weeks to make all nesesery adoptions to metabolism.
i started a low carb/ high fat and protein diet since 2.5 weeks. My diet actually is called the ketogenic diet, but as i am reading, it is like 99% similar to the LCHF.
I am 29 years old, 190cm and 104kg.
I eat :
- around MAX 50g of net carbs a day.
- 150g protein per day
- the rest is all fat
by "the rest" i mean the rest of my calories (2000 calories per day).
However i am not losing weight as fast as LCHF people usually do. Also there is those "ketostix" that test ketosis, and i know they might not always be accurated, but it never showed am in ketosis.
What might be that am doing wrong?
* is it that i am eating too little/too much calories a day?(2000 calories, and i do cardio and body building 3-4 times a week, but during the day i am a software developer = the most sedentary lifestyle ever).
* My diet consists of (in general) : beef tenderloin, atlantic salmon, tuna, chicken thighs, broccoli, lettuce, cucumber, eggs (whole) , fat cheese, almonds,walnuts,hazelnuts and olive oil. But i do take omega-3+fish oil pills daily, can this be affecting my fat loss?
* should i eat less than 50g net carbs a day? Should i workout less/more?
Sorry for asking many questions, but there is sthg wrong i am doing and i'd appreciate some professional feedback.
Thank you and keep up the good work!
I think you have come to the right conclusions.. I wish that others did have such an open mind and clear way of thinking!
PCOS is often linked to elevated insulin levels.. and then its dificult to goe to a high fat burning state.
"In addition to being a risk factor for type 2 diabetes, hyperinsulinism due to insulin resistance may increase blood pressure and contribute to hypertension by direct action on vascular endothelial cells (the cells lining blood vessels). Hyperinsulinism has also been implicated as a contributing factor in the excessive production of androgens in polycystic ovary syndrome.
The principal treatments of hyperinsulinism due to insulin resistance are measures that improve insulin sensitivity, such as weight loss, physical exercise, and drugs such as thiazolidinediones or metformin."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperinsulinism
Take the time to do a smoth transitation.. and then hope thats your problem get less.
You know not everybody do lose weight on a ketogenic diet, at least not easy, those how have the easyest weightloss did probably only have insulinresistance or juste was eating the wrong food.. for there bodys need.
If you eat 50 grams of carbs a day.. you are in ketosis.. you can be sure of that.
Stix only shows if you have an exces of keton bodies.
You know, ketosis is not that importen.. its juste shows that you not eating to much carbs.
And if you need to lose weight, than is probably an higher fat oxidation capasity in your muscle cells more importen.
If one goes on a ketogenic diet or near in a long time, then a lot of cells gonna transform to use fat directly to make ATP for energy.
You only read about those how lose weight rapidly.. sucess storys!
Its take three or four weeks for the brain to adapt to a ketogenic diet.. but it can take months for muscles to uppregulate the fat oxidation capability.
"Both observational and prospectively designed studies support the conclusion that submaximal endurance performance can be sustained despite the virtual exclusion of carbohydrate from the human diet. Clearly this result does not automatically follow the casual implementation of dietary carbohydrate restriction, however, as careful attention to time for keto-adaptation, mineral nutriture, and constraint of the daily protein dose is required. Contradictory results in the scientific literature can be explained by the lack of attention to these lessons learned (and for the most part now forgotten) by the cultures that traditionally lived by hunting. Therapeutic use of ketogenic diets should not require constraint of most forms of physical labor or recreational activity, with the one caveat that anaerobic (ie, weight lifting or sprint) performance is limited by the low muscle glycogen levels induced by a ketogenic diet, and this would strongly discourage its use under most conditions of competitive athletics."
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC524027/
yeah i think i'll give it time so that more and more free fatty acid cells transform to ketones.
Concerning the impact of performance on exercise, well i am doing a varation called the cyclical ketogenic diet, which has ONE carb load up day. But i did it only the first week, and stopped it later and i do not feel fatigue while working out anymore.
Just one last question, is 2000 calories/day too litlle/too much for my height/age/weight?
thanks again, and have a great day!
Psyuliumseeds next to flax seeds and the husk in the baking compartment.
And to a more expensive way in healt shops.
Psylium seeds is often used at senior care centers, blended with other cereals for regular stools.
Husk is more laxative and for baking.
Calories do counts.. but dont bother to count them!
Do the opposite, if you is curious, eat till you feel fine, and then have energy to do exercise that you want.
Listen to your bodys demand and learn how much you need to eat to feel fine.. its gonna be different, different days.
Some days your body is keen to take very much from fat depoes, other days it not willing to do that.
Try to find out whats make you eat more or less!
I was inspired by your lecture on YouTube and for the past six weeks have done a "semi low carb" diet meaning ; along with the reccomended foods , I have had some beer, a little bannana , peach or two combined with my regular regime of hard commute cycling 1hr per day.
Starting to feel nervous as I have now lost 12 kg! and no sign of slowing, feeling normal but should i carry on? Will my weight stabilise?
Is LCHF a permanent dietary option?
If I include more "poor food choices" for a week and thus take on many extra carbs, does the fat burning chemistry switch off and then need rebalancing over another period of time with those possible side effects of weakness etc. that I think I did notice?
And that is probably linked to your high blood presure?
I supose that you have an medical check perticuly if you are on any medication.
What about flaxmeal as in the one minute muffins?
Anyway I love the food I'm eating now but want to know:
Approximately when does weight loss stabilise ...ie. Is LCHF diet a permanent way of living?
I realy dont know how you is eating, but if you do eat a mixed animal and vegetabel diet and fats for energy then its sutibel for allmost everbody.
You know.. 12 kg in 6 weeks is a kalorie defiecit of 2000 Kcal a day.. thats imposibel!
It must be water.. and obese peopel seems to carry a lot of water, and this result in a high blood pressure!
A defiecit of 0,5 kg a week is verry fast if its fat one lose, and its a defiecit of 500 Kcal a day!
I must have been wrong about my initial weight. Got weighing scales Monday and standing on them for the first time is what worried me!
Will post here in say a month's time with better info.
26.7.12 I am 84.3 kg.
During my off/recovery season i started the LCHF way of life.
My concern or question is, what do i eat before or snack on while im on the bike or on a run?
Is a proper protein bar ok? How many portions in a space of time?
Do you know of a good energy drink? All the ones i used to drink are high in carbs and sugar.
Any suggestions?
Thanks so much
You not gonna do your best with depleted glycogen depoes!
"How to Fuel a Marathon"
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/how-to-fuel-a-marathon/#axzz21kdoCDGC
Its all dependent on what level you compete on.
If you is an amatuer and does time double the elit, then you probably not need any carbs att all.
Colting how is an Ultra marathon vinner.. do load carbs ounder his races!
And what about home made whole wheat bread? Since it is not made with refined flour, I don´t think it would affect insuline.
These are the only two of my concerns about this diet, which is quite reasonable and easy to follow.
Homemade sourdough is probably better then that bread one buys in stores, but then its about carb content anyhow, if one need or try to reduce carbs.
You know, there are foods that contain almost carbs, but is natural in a sort of way.. but if one do have problems with blood sugar going up and down, in an unatural way, one can try to reduce some of them.
All carbs affects insulin, its moore about if one get hyperinsulinemia, thats bad.
You know insulin is not a bad hormon, withoutit you gonna die, it just doing its job, and saves you from high blood sugar.. this diet is about to be nice to your insulin secreting glands, and let it have an normal working load.
Its about those how is diabetic, or/and obese, and to promote a better fat oxidation capability.
Re heart (again its just personal) , I'm seven weeks or so along now and continuing with my usual regime of cycling really hard twice a day ... no adverse effects but suspect stamina is a little reduced.
If you stop eating sugar and starch cold turkey (recommended) you may experience some side effects as your body gets used to it. For most people it is relatively mild and just lasts a few days. Also there are ways to minimize it.
Common during the first week:
Headache
Tiredness
Dizziness
Heart palpitations
Irritability
The side effects rapidly subside as your body adapts and your fat burning increases. They can be minimized by drinking some extra fluid and temporarily increasing your salt intake somewhat. A good way can be some broth every few hours. Alternatively drink a few extra glasses of water and put some more salt on your food.
The reason is that carbohydrate rich foods may increase the water retention in your body. When you stop eating that food you will lose excess water through your kidneys. That may give dehydration and lack of salt in the first week before the body has had time to adapt.
Some prefer to decrease the intake of carbohydrates slowly, over a few weeks, to minimize side effects. But for most it is wise to take away most sugar and starch right away. A few extra pounds of fluids lost on the scale in the first days is great for the motivation.
http://www.dietdoctor.com/lchf
You know, its fat, it must be burned, its not disepere in the air.
And you have taken 500 Kcal fat from your body every day.
Let him read this;
Curbing carbohydrates is more effective than cutting calories for individuals who want to quickly reduce the amount of fat in their liver....
http://www.diabetesincontrol.com/index.php?option=com_content&vi...
It sounds like maybe you are eating too much protein...I know that too much protein can also cause an insulin release, not as much as carbs, but you can read up on it in Dr. Bernstein's book or google it. Lyle McDonald also talks about too much protein and an insulin release in his book about ketogenic diets.
Think about it this way...the more fat you eat, the less insulin is produced if carbs are kept very low and protein is moderate...just enough that your body needs. Eating too much protein at one sitting also can cause a higher insulin release. Try eating 85% fat for a couple weeks and bring your carbs down to 30 grams or less per day and see if you notice a change.
BTW, so glad I found this site (thanks to Jimmy Moore) and thank you Doc for the awesome and informative web site. Great job!
I am very interested in this diet. Currently, I am not over weight and do not desire to loose weight either. Rather, I would like to adopt a more healthy lifestyle (to feel better, and perform better at work/ sports/ etc). If I loose weight I will be under weight and I don't want that. Could I follow LCHF without decreasing my weight? And if so, should I do something different? I would like to ban carbs fully, and just consume them through the small amounts that can be found in the allowed veggies etc. Is that okay?
In simple.. eat real food thats have the moste nutrichment!
You know its about essentiall nutrshment in the first case.. then if one is sensitive about carbs one can limit them in resonably amounts, and add some more fat for energi.
Ash.. I think Chris Kresser do explain it a lot better than me?
http://chriskresser.com/9-steps-to-perfect-health-2-nourish-your-body
and another question: i'd rather not eat lots of meat. ofcourse i can eat fish but is it okay to eat vegetarian sometimes... for example something like this: vegetables baked in olive oil with nuts and then a salad of advocado with cheese? is there enough fat then?
thank you!
Many obese peopel do acumulate water, in some sort of edema.
And one differ some kilos from day to day.. of natural reasons.. often by different water retension.
at the very beginning of my LCHF diet, my weight dropped quickly, i was very happy with that.
but now i think me myself is getting fatter again.. or let's say, my weight just stops dropping..
is it because i eat too many fat but do not do any exercises? plz help
I have been following the diet for quite a while now, but in the past couple of weeks, i haven't been losing any weight. I barely eat any carbs, only the little bowl of oatmeal that i eat during breakfast, but that's about it. But my vegetable intake has decreased these past few weeks. Could that be the cause?
I recently tried the lchf lifestyle (no refined sugars and no grains) for about 3 months, and during this time I noticed a lot of great effects on my body such as clearer skin and more energy.
However, I started getting a very upset stomach: digestion problems, cramping, etc...
I realized I had started consuming a diet high in dairy, eggs and cabbage, and when I looked up sources of intestinal bloating and other issues, these three items seemed to come up on most lists!
Do you have any ideas how I could tailor lchf to my specific needs, or why my body seems to be rejecting these seemingly very healthy foods?
Thanks!
Cabbage is rich in fibers, and can give you gases.
And egg are hard to digest.. ie, its take som time but often thats no problem, one feel full longer.
Eat real food every meal.. eat what your stommage tollerate.. one need variation on this diet to!
I have been on LCHF for about 4 months. I intially lost about 6 kg but nothing since. I' m feeling great. I surf most days and cycle at lest 1 a week. I'm also going though the change and have just strated HRT. I don't eat any carbs. Protein and lots of veg. I'm not scared of fat . i am sill about 12kg over weight. I really enjoy the diet and don't want to change any suggestions on how to lose the exta weight.
I have always been curious to know if eating popcorn is bad or does it have a bad effect in a low carb diet?
1) Are seeds permitted on a low carb high fat diet? Sesame seeds? Poppy seeds?
2) Some people on the LCHF diet also seem to eliminate cheese. Is cheese allowed, or just cream/butter?
3) I assume olive oil and avocado are fine, but they're not frequently mentioned on lists of recommended food for LCHF. Can they be eaten?
4) Lastly, what about a bit of Stevia to sweeten coffee?
Tabata.. milk is for calfs to grow and to gain weight, I think it says it all!
Brandon.. one can eat low carb and be an vegetarian, try cocnut oil!
Mirit.. use seeds as spasely you can.. perticuly dont make them a big part of your meals.
You can use chees if you use high fat ones, but its probably about those how avoid milk products?
Olive oil is used for thousands of years.. so it seems to be healty., and avocado to.
If you drink your coffe without sweteners, then you dont maintain your taste for sweets.. but its up to you, how healty you want to be.
They are not overweight, but lean and full of energy. Very busy the whole day long. Should we keep it like this or would it be fine for them to also go low carb/high fat? They do become peckish and crave sweet things during the day.
Can you give me an example menu for them?
We live in South Africa.
http://www.lifezone.se/eng/category/kids/
http://www.dietdoctor.com/going-to-cape-town-and-other-exciting-devel...
And you know by comon sense that they need real food, and small amounts of junkfood probably dont make them sick.. as long they get real healty food!
I don't need to lose weight I am just curious for health reasons.