QuestionArlene
I fell off the low carb wagon on Friday at a dinner party and had potatoes,white bread buns,cake,etc.
I didnt really overeat though.
On Saturday I awoke with a feeling of nausea,and have had gas and heartburn all weekend.
Is my body just not used to the carbs,or could I be allergic to them?
I must say I have had much less gas and felt better all over since cutting out the carbs.
AnswerOuch, a nasty fall. But you got up again, right?
You know, I had the same observation, like I had gotten somehow allergic or something to carbs! Besides that, there is the possibility that we just quickly forget how crummy overeating carbs makes us. So when we go back to it, it hits us like a train.
But let's consider the "allergic" possibility. A lot of people seem to be sensitive to wheat, one of the major carbs in our diet. Not allergic per se, since you don't mount an immune response to wheat replete with antibodies and the whole shebang. But that they just don't feel good when they eat it, like your description of nausea, gas, heartburn. This has led to a lot of gluten-free foods being developed and identified (gluten is a part of wheat). Just like with sugar, most of our human time has actually been with a minimum of wheat and other agricultural grains. Maybe we are eating more of this stuff than our bodies have adapted to. Or maybe even, like with milk, we lose ability to digest them as we get older. Whatever it is, just as you have observed, it does exist.
This wheat sensitivity may be part of how we feel regularly when we are eating a "normal" high carb diet, or may be enhanced in some people, or may be stimulated by cutting back on all carbs, with wheat incidentally, followed by overeating wheat once more. Or a combination of these possibilities. I did do a little gluten-free snacking to check this out. It was inconclusive since I just didn't eat lots of potato chips and stuff since at the time I was on a roll and not willing to risk weight gain for an experimental question. However, a gluten-free diet may be fun for you to try, though. You are on a moderate low carb diet anyway, so keeping a gluten-free diet will test whether carbs in general or wheat is the reason for your gastric distress. Since so many carbs we eat have wheat, just cutting this out will probably lower your carb intake enough for you to keep losing bits of weight. Then you can see how you feel. It means that yummy potatoes will be okay to eat - big benefit.
I do know one thing. When I have high carbed for a long time, like 6 months, I did get over the gastric distress you have described. I did get better at eating all carbs again. I got that normal sleepy, yucky feeling, but not the nausea etc.
Let me know what happens if you get the chance. It may be worth your time to learn about gluten-free eating. I know a little about it, so we can figure it out together if you want some help.
Eat well, Arlene
- Prev:Weight Doesnt Go Away
- Next:weight loss again