Would Low Carb Work for Everyone?
 

I want to hear your opinion. Does it?

Are the people who claim they can't do low carb just messing with us?

Are there people who need less protein, less fat, and more carbs to function?

Are the people who "failed" on low carb just not doing it right?

Is this something for everyone?

How are you defining low carb?

Wanda

I went ahead and chose choice 3, allowing for the few people I know who are very active and seem to be able to lose on 200 grams a day..<sigh> I guess compared to MY CCLL, that would be "high carb". :)

I do think grains are okay, but I see no use for sugar... except a doorstop.

adkpam:
If by low carbing you mean Atkins and other ketogenic low carb diet, then I'm this person. I can't function on less than 70 g of carbs a day, I do really good on about 100-120 g from low GI vegetables, low GI fruit, nuts, plain yougurt, kefir and feta cheese, eggs, chicken and/or fish or seafood, olive oil, seeds and nuts. Ocationally, I'll have 1/2 cup of slow cooked oats or barley. No sweets, sugars, no low carb junk, bars, candies, etc.
I'm not messing with a die hard Atkins followers but understand those who feel horrible on this diet, myself included. It's not about carbs cravings, I don't have them and don't have sweet tooth in general. It's more a quality of live, which sufferes once I get into ketosis (<50g carbs). I can't concentrate, getting depressed and have panic attacks almost every day. add digestive troubles like heart burn and increased stomach acidity, fatigue, headaches, and in general, no desire to live. I've struggled trying to lose remaining weight for a while now, but everytime I tell myself, hey, don't be such a whimp, everyone else does it, and cut my carbs to 30g a day, I get all the sympthoms back and have to get back to my otherwise healthy diet. Add that I've started shedding too much hair, my usually very nice complexion becomes gets of greyish and liveless. I love working out but being on too low cabrs makes it very hard on me. I have nocturnal muscle cramps, painfull tingling and twitching, throbbing in my legs despite all the suggested supplements I take religiously. So, you got the picture.
So, we are not messing with you guys, not everyone benefits from hard core low carb diet. I believe there is no one size fits all diet and while some thrive on protein/fat, others like me, would feel miserable if put on this diet for a long time. I also believe that those who need to lose 20 pounds don't have to go into ketosis, they would do just well by cutting processed and junk food, sodas, juices, etc, simply put, empty calories. I'm pro low carbs, just can't do meat/fat/vegetable for the rest of my life, and diet means lifestyle. so, I'd rather keep those extra pounds, but feel good and energetic, exercise and eat healthy, then lose all the weight just to regain it back, and feel miserable, tried and true, at least, for myself. I'd like to hear from others too. :)
Dina

I don't think there is any biological need for carbs other than fiber. And sugar, well Potato said it best - it could be a doorstop. I believe that carbs have been marketed to us all of our lives, because grain is cheap. And fruits have no nutritional benefit that cannot be found in vegetables.

Physically, I feel on top of the world. I have had IBS and getting away from carbs and sugars cured it. I think the need for carbs is psychological - just my humble opinion :).

Orchid

I honestly believe that many health problems , today are caused by the overconsumption of the "precious" carbohydrate. Over time, the human race began to believe that carbohydrates are the main building blocks to build strong bones and bodies. The foods that we are calling carbohydrates such as pasta and breads did not exist at one time. Are we to believe that humans became healther once we learned how to refine these things then add vitamins to them? Many, even medical professionals, don't have a clue as to where carbs come from if you don't get them from breads and cereals. The reason many have had gall bladder and kidney problems is because high carb diets don't allow these organs to do their jobs. Then when low carb becomes ones lifestyle their organs cannot do the job that they were s'posed to.

I truly feel that this diet is the way we were all meant to eat.Everyone has livers and gall bladders. We all ( unless T1 diabetic ) have insulin, we all have kidneys. These organs were meant to process a low carb diet. When these organs ain't happy...nobody's happy. JMHO!

B57

While reading posts in another site, I went to check out some of the PETA site pages.

Funny thing is, they say the same thing....only they blame meat, not carbs! LOL

They then go one to explain that heart disease, and alzheimers were non-existant until the early 1900's (it was, but as "senile dementia" of "pre-senile dementia" and other names, not alzheimer's:rolleyes: ). They also talk about a bunch of other diseases (no, bad breath isn't a disease, it's a side effect! :D ) that were rare until the last century or so.

The thing is, they rationalize that the reason for the dramatic increase is due to eating more meat? Huh? Over the past century or so....and especially in the last few decades, the consumption of carbs, especially refined carbs!

So how can they blame the meat? :confused:

I do agree that some people can and should handle higher carb levels, but even at 100g/day, that's still way lower than the recomendations....not to mention the "average" american's daily count!

I see a place for sugars and flours and such...Special occasions, in very small amounts, and very rarely. (VERY rarely!) But I don't think they're bad on occasion. Again, some people can handles high GI, empty carbs, but none of us should have them on a regular basis!

I picked #3 because I don't believe everyone does their best on super-restricted carb levels.

Some people have much better metabolisms than I do. My dad, for one, has never had a blood sugar problem in his life. He'd get up in the morning and take a bowl out of the cupboard that held about a quart, fill it full of corn flakes, mash those down, fill it again, mash those down, then when he finally got the bowl full of mashed cornflakes he poured milk and sugar all over it. I'm not saying sugar is good--I don't think it is for anyone, but this is what he ate for breakfast almost his whole adult life! Once he retired he started eating eggs and bacon but that's because he then had time to cook them.

His metabolism slowed down once he reached his mid-30s and my mom cut out the candy bar and dessert from his lunch. That was all he needed to maintain a healthy weight. Geez, you should've seen his dinner plates! Plenty of meat, high pile of potatoes and gravy, tons of veggies, bread and butter (usually two or three for each meal). And outside of having Alzheimer's, my dad is healthy at 73 years old.

Low-carb is very good for me and my husband, and our kids who've struggled with blood sugar issues pretty much their whole lives. But I think overall people who don't have insulin problems most likely don't need something as restricted as Atkins. At this point my teenage daughters eat a lot more carbs than I do--but the focus is on healthy, whole foods.

I'm sorry about that LilaCotton. My own grandmother had Alzheimer's, so I know how difficult it is.

But with the recent research linking Syndrome X with all kinds of problems, I wonder if there isn't a connection.

My own feeling is that even among people without a weight problem, excess carbohydrates can be creating health problems. That's why I feel it's probably good for everyone, but maybe I'm a little biased in that my own carb levels are pretty low for me to feel my best.

I voted for option #3

After LCing for 3 years, I believe that unprocessed starchy carbohydrates are not the evil they are made out to be. Just as there are good fats and bad fats, I believe there are good carbs and bad carbs.

Many find such carbs essential for weight training, which I believe is a mandatory program for everyone, with one or two exceptions. Many also find they need those starchy carbs to prevent depression. We don't all fit the same mold. Just because someone does well on very LC doesn't mean EVERYONE should do well.

I don't think too many people became obese eating unprocessed carbs like butternut squash, steel cut oats or brown rice in moderation. It saddens me to see people fretting about eating 5 extra carbs of non-starchy vegetables as if they're some kind of evil food. That kind of stuff just gives the anti-controlled carb advocates fuel for their fire.

The beauty about the human race is that we're all different. The same goes for diet. I won't fall into the trap of zealously believing that one diet suits all. I've done it in the past and come to realize that it's unfair.

Wanda

--edit-- I'm assuming LC as ketogenic.

Hi CindySue48:
Thank you for being kind to my 100g a day:lol: . I agree with you
:agree: and IMHO, if you stick to non-starchy vegetables and low GI/GL fruits, full fat milk or yougurt as your carbs sources, it's hard to fit more into your diet. You need a more refined sources of cabrs, like sugary drinks, fruit juices, sodas, candies, etc to get 300-500 g a day.
Regards,
Dina

Hello Wanda:
Thank you so much for your post. I agree with you 100% and was trying to make this point all along. You just confirmed it.:)
Cheers,
Dina

I fret from carbs not because of a few carbs here and there. I fret because over the years, I have eaten high carb meals, in between snacks and in between the in between snacks and meals. It was the over-use of carbohydrates over the years, that caused my problem. If I never introduced candy, cakes, pies, chips into my body things like steel rolled oats, butternut squash or whole rice would never have negative affects on my health. We can say that the good carbs are healthy because they are-but many, like me, who hugged bad carbs so tightly have harmed the way that we can metabolise the good carbs.

Just one bad carb can ruin it for all the rest.

I've a feeling quality and timing of carb intake matters.
For example carby meal before bed is bad. Low GI carby
meal followed by an workout ( anareobic) is ok.

20gm of simple starch worse than 70gm carb from egglant+avacado+brocolli+carrot etc , well IMHO

I voted for #3. I exercise a LOT (down to 18-19% bodyfat now!) and I personally need 'good' carbs in my diet or I feel like crapola and can't function.

I have 125-150 carbs per day (occasionally more), mostly low GI carbs, whole grains, etc and I feel great! Even before dieting, high sugar things really didn't bother me, I just was eating too many calories and too many processed sugar carbs and thus I gained weight. But YMMV, as I know some people can't handle carbs very well at all.

Steel cut oats.. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.. :)