Ketogenic diet

  • Ketogenic diet/ LCHF diet/ Paleo Diet/ Sugar Detox

    My positive results from Paleo and LCHF approach

    Paleo and LCHF approach

    I would like to share with you my continuing journey with improving my health with nutrition and my personal results with Paleo and LCHF approach.

    Three years ago I was suffering from a few years of high stress. I was overweight and still gaining, tired, with a myriad of symptoms including poor sleep, IBS, dry skin and eyes, hearing problems, post nasal drip, sinus problems,and joint pains, which at times were severe and debilitating.

    I started on the Paleo Approach program by first doing a full elimination diet. Sarah Ballantine PhD of www.ThePaleoMom.com. I discovered I was intolerant of gluten, dairy and soy so totally eliminated them and started to reintroduce other foods gradually while watching for return of symptoms. I then progressed to what I call a modified Paleo diet where I ate some gluten free pasta and wraps, rice, potatoes and either almond or coconut milk.

    With each week I felt better and had more energy. I started doing more exercise including walking, rebounding and a Yoga sequence called ‘The Five Tibetan Rites’.

    I suffered occasional setbacks but with attention to healing my gut with Probiotics and L-Glutamine the inflammation soon subsided.

    Having reached a reasonable level of health I started looking for ways I could protect myself from chronic illnesses like Diabetes, heart disease, Dementia and cancer – these being the main worries as we age.

    I read more and more about eating low carbs and high natural fats, LCHF, followed the research www.DietDoctor.com and everything seemed to make sense. The idea being to keep blood sugar lower and level by eating quality proteins and natural fats like Avocado, olive oil, grass fed butter (which I couldn’t have), coconut oil, oily fish and fatty cuts of meat.

    It was quite easy to adapt from Paleo Approach to LCHF and within a very short time I noticed that my blood sugar was more stable, I could go without food for longer periods without turning into Golem and I was sleeping much better.

    I really felt the benefits so I wanted to see if medical tests would reflect the improvements. Unfortunately I didn’t have any baseline testing from the past to compare but I think you will agree that they stand alone.

    I am 66 yrs old. Metabolic age 55

    Weight is 67 kg  and stable

    BMI 24

    Blood pressure 123/64

    Liver Function Good

    Fasting  blood sugar 5.0

    Triglycerides 0.7

    Cholesterol LDL/HDL ratio 2.04

    Bone mass 2.2 kg Muscle mass 40.9

    As part of eating LCHF I have been having Bulletproof XCT oil in my coffee, I bake using coconut oil and cook with it. I use coconut milk and cream a lot as I love Thai cooking. I also use olive oil each day, eat garlic, onions, plenty of salad and green vegetables, sweet potato, berries, small bananas and only occasionally other fruit like mangoes or pineapple. I buy free range and grass fed meat as much as possible and have nuts, eggs and fish 2-3 times a week.

    My indulgences are red wine and Prosecco but I don’t drink every day. I have dark chocolate and use coco powder to make desserts or Brownies and sometimes sweeten food with a little maple syrup – keeping sugar to an absolute minimum.

    I am certainly not strict with eating LCHF as I do not measure my carb intake, only relying on 1-2 small portions a day, always with protein.

    Sometimes we eat out and the meal is not low carb at all – like gluten and dairy free pizza, Red Wine and Lemon Sorbet but then I am just more aware of how many carbs I eat the next day. Sometimes I skip breakfast and just have black coffee with XCT oil and that keeps me going all morning which is something I never thought I could do. In the past, after a breakfast of toast and marmalade I would be starving by 10:30am!

    Many of you will react with horror at ‘giving up’ many of the things you think of as staples at the moment but I can assure you that the health benefits are enormous and instead of feeling deprived I actually feel indulgent, eating so many of those high fat foods that we have denied ourselves for so long. Throughout my adult life the guidelines have been to eat low-fat to prevent cardiovascular disease and throughout that time heart disease and obesity have been epidemic – time to stop. No low-fat, no artificial fats or oils, low sugar, no calorie counting and no to try to ‘burn it off ‘ at the gym!

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  • Healthy Food/ Immune system - healing/ Ketogenic diet/ LCHF diet/ weight loss

    Fat v Carbs

    Nutritional advice

    The debate on Fat v Carbs rages on!

    I personally and with clients, have found it works in that you get to a normal weight and then it stabilises even though you may add in a few more natural carbs like rice, gluten free grains, dark chocolate and red wine. Health markers improve, immune system improves, cravings disappear and energy is increased and because of this it is a very sustainable way to eat.

    Sustainability is key to weight-loss and keeping it off. I have known many people who have tried very low fat diets only to gain even more weight when they return to ‘normal’ eating. Low fat diets deprive you of fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K that are essential for good health and a strong immune system and yet that is what Government Guidelines have been for decades.

    Here are the foods to eat on a Low Carb High Fat Diet 

    • Meat
    • Fish
    • eggs
    • Vegetables
    • A little fruit
    • Nuts and seeds
    • Dairy products (not low fat versions) if not intolerant to casein or lactose.
    • Natural fats and oils like Coconut oil, Olive oil, olives, avocados and oil, ghee and butter if tolerated.

    If the source of these foods is organic, free range, grass fed(beef) etc. then that is when I use the term ‘CLEAN’ diet as it avoids all processed food, sugar, gluten grains and keeps fruit sugar low.

    In case you missed it, here is an excellent program from the BBC – well worth watching. The results in just a 3 week trial are disclosed with weight loss, lower cholesterol and also enjoyment of eating natural foods and no hunger or bad side effects.

    Take a look on YouTube

    If you like ‘studies’ then go here.

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  • Autoimmune diseases/ Exclusion diet/ Food intolerance/ Glutamine/ Health/ Immune System/ Immune system - healing/ Inflammation/ Ketogenic diet/ Leaky Gut/ Mineral Depletion/ Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity/ Nutrition and Cancer/ Nutritional Medicine/ Paleo Diet/ Probiotics/ Sizzling Minerals/ Sugar Detox/ Wheat and Dairy Intolerance

    The Healing Diet – Special Offer!

    Turn Your Health Around book

    New Year and what we all want is to get and stay healthy in 2018!

    So a Special offer for you of 50% the price of my guide so that you can Turn Your Health Around.

    Years of research and personal experiments have led to this approach to a Healing Diet. Find your ideal weight, gain health, energy and vitality – naturally. Make changes that will change your health and keep you healthy

    for LIFE.

    Whatever your needs, this book will help you. Was £12 …..Now ONLY £6 for a limited time.

    There are so many ‘diets’ out there, so many weight loss supplements and we go through life trying them all. Often starting in our teens or early 20’s we follow the fads, low carb, high protein, low fat – we might try pills to curb our appetite,  block fat absorption, make us poop more but none of this has a lasting effect. I have never been really overweight, probably 14-20 lbs at certain times in my life and I have tried –

    The Mars Bar diet –

    The low fat yogurt and  black coffee diet

    The Cabbage Diet,

    The F Plan Diet – OMG! that was the start to many of my problems!

    The South Beach Diet……..

    It is possible to initially lose weight doing all of these but it is not sustainable and ultimately not healthy. As a Nutritionist I now know how damaging some of these dietary changes are with many of them slowing your metabolism and depriving your body of vital nutrients. The decades long Low Fat eating advice – even for those not over-weight, has been the most damaging and has resulted in an epidemic of chronic disease, insulin resistance and obesity. The move to convenience foods and fast food results in us eating highly processed foods that are actually nutrient deficient and if we are nutritionally deficient we get food cravings, hormone imbalance and lowered immunity. Many of these highly processed foods cause inflammation in the body. This might become evident by pains in joints, eczema, heartburn, IBS, fatigue, high Blood pressure, weight gain, Diabetes.

    Modern Lifestyle also adds to the problem with more stress, exposure to many toxins, drinking more alcohol, more snacking, less quality rest and sleep. Our immune systems suffer and we end up taking more antibiotics and all of these things can damage our digestive tract and cause even more long-term problems.

    If you have a chronic health problem and inflammation then by healing your gut and improving your immune system you will reduce inflammation, improve your digestion, gain energy and vitality and reverse chronic damage.

    All the information you need to get started on the road to healing and health. From the foods to eat and enjoy to the natural supplements that will help your recovery – 30 pages of up to date information and links to more resources that can help – all in one guide.

    We are the midst of an epidemic of Chronic disease. Autoimmune Diseases – of which there are more than a 100 confirmed and many more suspected; Cancer; Heart disease; Diabetes; Asthma, Arthritis; Chronic Fatigue; Anxiety and depression. It is Chronic disease that is crippling our Health Services and ruining our quality of life.

    Especially relevant is the fact that drugs do not cure most Chronic Diseases – therefore we need to address the problems in a different way and not just treat symptoms but core body functions. Consequently Functional Medicine is the only way forward, looking at how chronic disease is caused and addressing diet and lifestyle for a sustained recovery.

    Chronic disease often starts with inflammation and a poor immune system and it is totally possible to reverse this with lifestyle and good nutrition choices. Proven by Doctors and Nutritionists around the World.

    If you want to make changes that improve your health long-term, reduce your chances of getting Dementia, Cancer or Autoimmune diseases this book will help you, step by step, including supplements and recipes to get you on the right track. It is a regime that is easy to stick to and puts you in charge. By finding out which foods cause problems for you and how you can control your appetite and fat burning with natural foods.

    This guide will tell you how. (Different currencies catered for through this link.)

    Buy my product

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  • Ketogenic diet

    FAT v Fiction – A Paradigm Shift

    Fat v Fiction

    This week I have been watching the online Fat Summit 2 where specialists have been discussing Fat v Fiction and the paradigm shift in Nutritional advice about FAT. The information that these Summits share, for free, is priceless. The internet, the most powerful way of sharing information and affecting change – so a huge Thank you to Mark Hyman MD and his team.

    The Chronic Diseases that are causing misery to millions and crippling our Health Services can be prevented and even reversed by lifestyle changes and changing to a LCHF (Low Carb High Fat) diet.

    DIABETES   DEMENTIA   ALZHEIMER’S   PARKINSON’S   HEART DISEASE

    Here is a ‘crash course’ summary to highlight the main points:-

    • Carbohydrate is not an essential nutrient, Protein and Fat are.
    • Saturated Fat makes Cholesterol stable whereas high Omega 6 oils make it unstable leading to heart attacks
    • Even Type 1 Diabetics can significantly reduce their Insulin on LCHF Diet – under medical care.
    • Type 2 Diabetics can frequently, significantly reduce their medication in as little as two weeks
    • Globally over 2 Billion people are overweight
    • Metabolic Syndrome and Insulin Resistance epidemic. 75% of adults in USA are insulin resistant.
    • Our Brains are made of Fat
    • Breast milk is 25% Fat
    • Fat protects cellular membranes and mitochondria
    • Fructose raises blood Triglycerides
    • Fructose as a cause of Gout
    • 50% of calories from Saturated Fats and Triglycerides go down, HDL Cholesterol Up, LDL down, no inflammation and lower diabetes risk.
    • No:1 risk factor for Cardiac risk is Insulin Resistance
    • Vitamin D and Omega 3 and 7 oils must be optimised for good health
    • High sugar, high carbohydrate diet plus low fat leads to digestive problems, poor microbiome and weight gain
    • Bile deficiency can lead to allergies, joint pain and Hypothyroidism
    • Risk factors for Neurodegenerative disease – sugar and insulin resistance. Sometimes termed Type 3 Diabetes
    • Treatment by diet, supplements and exercise can reverse Alzheimer’s, Dementia etc. and increase in Hippocampus volume proving brain tissue can regenerate following detoxification.

    This information really interested me, bearing in mind the mass reactions in our Communities at present. Is it an indication of our predominantly glucose fuelled brains that we are feeling out of touch with nature, lacking control and aggressive?

    • Sugar fuels the areas of the brain that fuel Fear, Anxiety, fight and flight, violence and negativity.
    • The Higher centers of the brain that concerned with Spirituality, creativeness, Community and Nature are fuelled by Ketones from fat burning.

    Today, Nov 14th is Encore Day of the Fat Summit 2 where you can access all the talks or buy the series.

    For more information on LCHF diet see my Post – Low Carb High Fat Basics

    For more information on all aspects of health check out

    Dr.Mark Hyman (Functional Medicine) at drhyman.com

     

     

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  • Ketogenic diet

    Low Carb High Fat Basics

    LCHF_steak_and_veg_DhLICm

    Whether for weight loss or improving your General Health and reversing glucose intolerance these are the Low Carb High Fat basics.(LCHF diets) You lower your carb intake and you increase you intake of natural, healthy fats that will be used to create energy.

    Losing Weight on Low Carb. Avoiding carbs usually results in weight loss, without hunger. You work with your body by managing the Insulin reaction.

    How it works

    Weight loss is often simply thought of as a question of calories – eat less, and burn more, and you’ll lose weight. This is true in theory, but not very practically useful – as evidenced by a massive obesity epidemic during the period of belief in calories.

    The big problem with focusing on calories is that it ignores hunger. It ignores the body’s regulation of it’s fat stores. It ignores the fact that we do not eat calories, we eat food. And food is so much more than just calories. Some food (usually low carb) make you feel satisfied. Some food (like soda) just makes you even more hungry.

    Insulin

    The basic idea of low carb is to work with the body, instead of against it. Instead of wasting time and willpower by restricting calories, exercising and enduring hunger, we do something else. We make the body want to eat less, and allow itself to burn more of any excess.

    This is done by altering the hormonal balance. And one hormone above all others is fundamental to do this: the fat-storing hormone insulin.

    Lowering insulin increases fat burning, enables the release of stored body fat. Long-term this results in reduced hunger and even increased energy expenditure, even without exercise.

    Learn much more here:

    Weight Control – A Question of Calories or Insulin? – Dr. Andreas Eenfeldt12536:26

    via Low-Carb Benefits and How to Maximize Them – Diet Doctor

    Foods to Eat

    • Eggs
    • Meat – lamb, pork, beef, game, chicken and Turkey
    • Fish – especially oily fish
    • Shellfish
    • Dairy foods – butter, ghee, cream, cheese (if tolerated)
    • Nuts
    • Coconut Oil
    • Avocado
    • Olives and Olive Oil
    • all above ground Vegetables – broccoli, cauliflower, leafy greens, salads, herbs, cucumber, squash, mushrooms, peppers, small amounts of tomatoes (if tolerated)

    Foods Not to Eat

    • Pasta
    • Bread
    • Potatoes
    • Rice
    • Corn
    • Fries
    • Sugar
    • Sweets
    • Grains (any kind really)
    • Low fat products in general
    • Cookies
    • Beer… 

    After some time you will learn how to spot the carbs and it gets easier to avoid them. Have some healthy snacks with you – like some nuts and seeds or a smoothie with plenty of protein and fat so that you have something healthy if late with a meal or after exercising.

    How much fat you eat can vary depending on your goals. A ‘normal’ diet should not go lower than 30% of total calories in fat because you need fat to support cellular strength and provide fat soluble vitamins like Vitamin A, D and E. A LCHF diet can go from 50-80% of calories from Fat.

    How many carbs you eat will also vary from low (20g a day) to moderate (150g a day) depending on your activity levels. A LCHF diet at the lower end is a Ketogenic diet where you are getting most of your energy from Fats – to the higher end when you do not want to lose weight but maintain your current weight. If you are getting hungry you should increase the amount of fat and also protein NOT Carbs.

    If this sounds like something you would like to try then there is a two week Low Carb Challenge on dietdoctor.com below with a 19 page printable guide with recipes and shopping lists.

    How to Get Started on Low Carb

    The 2-Week Low-Carb Challenge

    Do you want effortless weight loss, vibrant health or mind-blowing diabetes reversal on low carb? Do you want the simplest way to get started – or to get back on track? Then this challenge is for you.

    Everything – including meal plans, shopping lists and everything else you need – is free. All you’ll need to buy is real food.

    The meal plan

    The meal plan is not only simple – you’ll only do real cooking once a day – but also delicious. And you can eat as much as you want, no calorie counting required!

    Here is some of the food you’ll get to feast on:

    That’s right – you’ll eat low-carb versions of burgers, pizza, lasagna, bacon & eggs… as much as you like – and you’ll lose weight. Just try it and you’ll see.

    via How to Get Started on Low Carb

    I now eat this way after completing an Elimination Diet and losing any extra pounds and I manage to keep my weight steady and my energy levels up. I have also improved my General Health and reduced all inflammation and pain from Autoimmune Disease.

    If you want more proof check out the 23 Studies on Low Carb and Low Fat Diets – Time to Retire The Fad  on AuthorityNutrition Website.

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  • Autoimmune diseases/ Celiac/ Coeliac/ Food intolerance/ Healthy Food/ Ketogenic diet/ Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity/ Wheat and Dairy Intolerance

    Healthy Food while travelling – with Food Intolerance

    healthy food while travelling - with food intolerance

    Finding Healthy Food while travelling – with Food Intolerance problems is not easy. I am lucky enough to have just had two wonderful, mainly sunny, weeks exploring the Canadian Rockies. As my son and I are both Gluten and Dairy free, travelling and eating out generally can cause problems. Canada had many more Gluten free restaurant options than we get in the UK and restaurant staff everywhere were much more aware and helpful than here. They also seem to serve low carb main meals and do not offer fries with everything. As with the special meal pictured above – the potato was minimal, which is how we like to eat. Even when high in the Rockies, Salads and fresh fruit salads were plentiful. We also found that they have quite a few Gluten free beers. As elsewhere, we found Italian Restaurants usually had Gluten free pasta and Pizza options.

    Preparation is everything

    I started by investigating the airline food available but there was literally nothing we could eat and although most airlines can substitute Gluten free or Dairy free they seem incapable of doing both. The risk is too great and nobody wants to be ill on a 9 hour flight or at the start of their trip. I bought some Paleo Protein Bars and made some chocolate crisp protein bars to fill in for when breakfast or lunch was not possible. We took dates, dairy free chocolate and mixed nuts (which we couldn’t eat because someone on the flight had a severe nut allergy.) We have a basic standby of fruit, ham or turkey, gluten free crackers and crisps which saw us through most of the difficult days actually travelling. Each place we visited we Googled ‘Gluten free Cafes and Restaurants’ and were quite overwhelmed by how much information was out there.

    Eating Out 

    We actually found some great places!  We had a delicious, really healthy lunch of Meatballs on zucchini noodles with mushroom sauce in The Kofta Meatball Kitchen in Cambie Street, Downtown Vancouver. We had a good burger with a very acceptable Gluten free Bun in Milestones, Kelowna plus salad.

    The best meal of the entire holiday was the steak wrapped in smokey bacon with a black pepper demi-glace and lovely fresh vegetables which is the feature image above. The chef at The Marmot Lodge, Jasper, then excelled himself by producing a gluten and dairy free Hazelnut chocolate tart with a berry coulee! It was incredible – thank you, you are a star!

    hazelnut chocolate torte

    Then when in Victoria on Vancouver Island we found an amazing place called Sante Gluten Free Cafe (check out their Facebook Page) where we had a fantastic chicken risotto and we also bought pizzas, lemon coconut slice plus a Cinnamon bun for our long journey home. We also had a lovely meal in the Milestone’s on Victoria Harbour.

    We survived the whole holiday without getting ‘glutened’ and have some lovely memories – so thank you Canada! It certainly isn’t easy finding healthy food while travelling – with food intolerances but with a little planning it is possible to eat and even be a little indulgent 😉

    Let’s hope awareness keeps improving.

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  • Ketogenic diet

    Paleo Indonesian-style Roast Chicken

    Paleo Indonesian-style Roast Chicken

    So if you are one of the lovely people who have bought my book ‘Turn Your Health Around‘ you might be looking for delicious recipes to add to your Dinner choices and this is my favourite Paleo Indonesian-style Roast Chicken Recipe.

    Preparation time: 15 mins Cooking time 1hr to 1.30

    Ingredients

    • 1 Large Organic Chicken
    • 1 bunch spring onions, roughly chopped
    • 4 cloves garlic, peeled
    • 2 stalks lemongrass, cut into pieces
    • 6 Cashew Nuts or Almonds
    • 1-2 fresh red chillies, seeded and chopped
    • 2 ml ground turmeric
    • 10 ml ground coriander
    • 2 ml shrimp paste (optional)
    • 40 ml coconut oil,
    • 1 can coconut milk
    •  a good pinch of Celtic sea salt
    • cauliflower, to serve
    Method

    Put the spring onions, garlic, lemongrass, nuts, chillies, spices, shrimp paste if using a good pinch salt into a food processor or pestle and mortar and process to form a thick paste. Add a little coconut oil if necessary.

    Heat the remaining oil in a frying pan and fry the paste over a medium heat for one minute. Add the coconut milk little by little, stirring well after each addition. Remove from the heat.

    Transfer the sauce to a roasting tin or casserole dish. Tie the chicken legs together with string and put it into the sauce, breast side down. Cover with a lid or foil and roast in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.

    Remove from the oven and turn the chicken over carefully. Return to the oven, uncovered, and continue to roast for a further 40 minutes or until cooked through. Uncover for the last 10 minutes to brown.

    Remove the chicken from the roasting pan and set aside to rest for 15 minutes before carving. Drain the sauce into a jug and wait for the fat to settle on the top, then scoop off any excess and discard.

    Serve the sauce with the chicken, accompanied with cauliflower or cauliflower cous-cous and green vegetables or beansprouts.

    Original Text and image from Ideas Magazine

     

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