[bikerdad911]

I have been reading many posts in the various forums and have gained a lot of good knowledge...I sure wish I had found this site before I experienced the stroke that I had last January 10th at 110pm. My neurologist agreed with me when I said that my stroke was caused my my diabetes. Since finding you folks I have changed my diet to LCHF and have been checking my BG as recommended. I have seen what foods effect my BG and have made many adjustments. I have found that I can even eat at various buffets and find foods that will keep my BG low. I still havent lost any weight...My son-in-law thinks I am not getting enough carbs in my diet as I try to not eat any if possible. What do you guys think about too low carb intake?

 

[John.in.France]

Carbohydrates contain nothing you can't get elsewhere. So a zero carb diet is theoretically possible but next to impossible to achieve in fact since these beasts are everywhere and not always documented.

My guess on your lack of weight loss is that you might be eating too little. Have you compensated for the reduced carbs by upping your fat intake? If your body perceives you're 'starving' it protects you by slowing your metabolic rate rather than what it perceives as cannibalising your fat reserve.

 

[Shanny]

John is spot on, BikerDad . . . carbs are not the answer, so please Please PLEASE turn a deaf ear to the advice of your son-in-law. Either you are not eating enough overall or you are not eating enough fat.

I always shudder when people get distracted from controlling their blood sugar to losing weight. Our priority MUST be lowering blood sugar. Being overweight will not rob you of your sight, your kidneys or your feet/toes, but high blood sugar can and will. This is why it's such a crime that medical professionals either don't know or won't tell people the truth about carbs & how they affect our diabetes.

Reduce your carbs as much as you possibly can and replace them with the best natural saturated & unsaturated fats.

 

[VeeJay]

Also, you could be eating too much protein. A percentage of excess protein above what is needed for maintenance and repair (and it isn't all that much, either) will be stored as glycogen, and later converted to glucose by our ever-helpful liver.

And, of course, eat lots of fats. I know, it seems counter intuitive to eat a lot of fat. But it IS what is needed for both blood-sugar control and weight loss.

 

[gotsomeold]

VeeJay, post after post you keep taking the words right out of my fingers!

bikerdad911, I am really glad to hear you are regaining control!

And, if your macro-nutrient proportions are good, please give LCHF a little time. It is possible things inside you are healing and your body is conserving everything it has to do that job. As the healing frenzy calms down, you may begin dropping weight.

Are you seeing other, non-weight and non-BG improvements?

As example: I always know when the healing thing is stable because arthritis in a damaged finger does not hurt.

 

[VeeJay]

VeeJay, post after post you keep taking the words right out of my fingers!

Nancy, I think I get up earlier than you do.

 

[bikerdad911]

Thanks to you all for your replies. I have been having the same breakfast each morning, bacon, 2 to 4 eggs cooked in bacon grease, with sharp cheddar cheese, and 3 cups of coffee with 1table spoon of coconut oil and 1 tablespoon of butter with 1/8 cup of whipping cream. I usually don't eat again until around 5 or 6pm then have a couple of cucumbers with Jalapeno ranch dressing (2gm carbs per tablespoon) and I may use 4 or 5 tablespoons of this. I may have a little cheese or meat also but this is my main diet. When I eat out I will go mainly to buffets where I can get mostly meat and cheese with veggies. I have had good experience with this as my BG will stay around 120 or so. This morning fasting was 114 and after breakfast is now 126. If I check later today will probably be around 105 or less. I also have developed trigger finger in several fingers since changing to this diet which is very painful. I read that others on this site have had the same problem but have seen improvement after a while.

 

[Janknitz]

Personally I think your diet is deficient in micronutrients that will catch up to you eventually. That's why humans eat varied diets. I would suggest mixing up the protein sources to include organ meats, fish, and other types besides pork, eggs, and dairy, and add some leafy green and other colorful veggies in there. Fermented foods and bone broth would be helpful, too.

Trigger fingers can be the result of a lifetime of nutritional deficiencies that affect collagen and calcium control (eg Vitamins A, D, and K2) and advance glycation end products. Your diet sounds lacking in many vitamins and minerals.

I know it's popular to say we don't need carbs and we can survive on a diet of meat and cheese, but imho we do need to eat some vegetables (besides cucumbers) and have variety for those all important micronutrients they bring. See the work of Dr. Terry Wahls whose protocols are meant to address the diseases caused by deficiencies in these micronutrients.

 

[gotsomeold]

For my trigger finger, first I grip the finger and very gently and slowly pull. Not trying to truly extend the finger, just stretch it a tiny bit. Hold for slow count of five. Repeat a few times.

Then place the tip of the finger in the palm of the opposite hand. Again gently and slowly push the finger back - against the normal bend of the joint. Push just until I can feel the pressure of the extension. Hold for count of five. Release. Repeat.

I do every finger on every hand. Gradually, the fingers are regaining flexibility and the 'click' only happens if I forget to exercise the hand for a few days.

In my case trigger finger seems to be genetic. One of my brothers has done so much stretching - trying to avoid surgery - that his fingers bend so far backwards they almost touch the back of his hand.

 

[optimist]

I`ve learned that men should try to stay at 15 catbs a day and women at 25 carbs a day, and most of the carbs should come from vegetables.
If one is eating various food, not more proteins than the body need to bulid and maintain the muscles and fill up with various types of fat we will both be in ketoses and also get all the stuff our body needs.

Egg and bacon alone can never give us all the nutrition we need even if they are filled with protein and fat and just a bit of carbs.

 

[Janknitz]

The tendency toward Dupytren's contractures can be hereditary, but as with many things "genetics loads the gun, but lifestyle pulls the trigger."

Good nutrition can only help, whether you end up needing surgery or not.

 

[bikerdad911]

I mentioned the trigger finger because I had this problem several years ago, also had hip and knee stiffness when sitting for a brief time. At that time, about 7 years ago, I began following a raw food diet where I ate only raw fruits and veggies, nothing cooked. Within a few days all the stiffness and trigger finger problems disappeared and I lost over 70 pounds of weight over a years time and felt great.Then I gave up because I was fighting all my family members to keep on that diet and went back to the standard American diet and gained it all back but I haven't had the problem of stiffness and trigger finger again until I started the LCHF diet. It may be because of a lack of the proper vitamins or something else. I would like to know if anybody else had the same problem and if there was a chance it could be temporary.

 

[skb]

I will also agree with what some of the others have said. A rotational dietary policy would serve better than the same food every single day. Let's say that you need 2500 cal/day and 10% of these were to come from carbs. That would still mean a daily carb intake of 62 gms (C/P provide 4 cal/gm, F 9 cal/gm). If these could come from a diverse variety of vegetables that would be the ideal situation.

For the joint / finger pains, I also suspect collagen and a nutrient deficiency. My suggestion would be to try Vitamin C chew-able tablets (maybe 500 mg x 3) for 2-3 weeks and see if that helps. Also keep yourself well hydrated.

 

[gotsomeold]

Home made bone broth is a great source of collagen and trace minerals.

I like the idea of rotating vegetables based on what is currently in season. Or swinging grams of carbs eaten from very low to as high as your BG allows over a series of days. ..... That is to say I like the idea. Implementation of that plan is dependent on remembering the plan at mealtime

 

[walkerwally1]

I have Dupytren's contracture in both of my middle fingers and my little finger of my right hand which appeared long before I started on LCHF. My little finger is bent at about a 90° angle and has remained at that for over 10 years. My understanding is that surgery is possible and sometimes helps but often does not. I have learned to live with it. I also have trigger finger but not bad and only happens once in a while. A few years ago I had trigger finger in my thumb and it was horrible. My Dr. gave me a cortisone injection and it has never bothered me since. As far as being genetic, maybe, but no one in my family has had this as far as I know.

 

[bignick]

Thanks to you all for your replies. I have been having the same breakfast each morning, bacon, 2 to 4 eggs cooked in bacon grease, with sharp cheddar cheese, and 3 cups of coffee with 1table spoon of coconut oil and 1 tablespoon of butter with 1/8 cup of whipping cream. I usually don't eat again until around 5 or 6pm then have a couple of cucumbers with Jalapeno ranch dressing (2gm carbs per tablespoon) and I may use 4 or 5 tablespoons of this. I may have a little cheese or meat also but this is my main diet. When I eat out I will go mainly to buffets where I can get mostly meat and cheese with veggies. I have had good experience with this as my BG will stay around 120 or so. This morning fasting was 114 and after breakfast is now 126. If I check later today will probably be around 105 or less. I also have developed trigger finger in several fingers since changing to this diet which is very painful. I read that others on this site have had the same problem but have seen improvement after a while.

Your early morning WOE sounds OK as far as fat, maybe limit to 2 eggs for a while and see what happens. I found the hours without eating actually raised my BG levels, may stall the weight loss as well. I now eat a bit every 2-3 hours, even a slice or 2 of cheese or a few almonds.

I eat often at buffets and will focus on raw veggies with olive oil and blue cheese dressing, any steamed veggies with butter, small amounts of fatty meats. You can eat leafy greens, cabbage, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, peppers, kale and such for your carbs and micronutrients.

Gotta keep up the vitamins. Too much meat may increase uric acid and painful signs of gout could surface. Overall it sounds like you're on the right track. Strive to becoming keto, you'll feel great and lbs will come off.

 

[Janknitz]

I mentioned the trigger finger because I had this problem several years ago, also had hip and knee stiffness when sitting for a brief time. At that time, about 7 years ago, I began following a raw food diet where I ate only raw fruits and veggies, nothing cooked. Within a few days all the stiffness and trigger finger problems disappeared and I lost over 70 pounds of weight over a years time and felt great.Then I gave up because I was fighting all my family members to keep on that diet and went back to the standard American diet and gained it all back but I haven't had the problem of stiffness and trigger finger again until I started the LCHF diet. It may be because of a lack of the proper vitamins or something else. I would like to know if anybody else had the same problem and if there was a chance it could be temporary.

I think you just proved my point. An LCHF diet does not need to be devoid of vegetables and even small servings of low glycemic fruits (watch your meter!). A nutrient dense, omnivorous diet high in natural fats, moderate proteins and low carbs from vegetables is the best approach.