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  #1   ^
Old Tue, Jan-05-21, 01:07
MatthewA MatthewA is offline
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Posts: 1
 
Plan: Schwarzbein
Stats: 255/260/180 Male 69 inches
BF:
Progress: -7%
Default Low Carb and Mood

Hello, I am a 51 year old male diabetic who like many of us let things slip a little(well a lot) in 2020. I want to get back to a low carb way of eating. One problem I have though is I also suffer from depression and other mental health symptoms which I take anti-depressants for. Whenever I have done very low carb in the past I have had an increase in my symptoms, especially anger and irritability, so I need to mix in some level of healthy carbs into my diet. I am curious if anyone has had similar experiences and found a diet or way of eating that worked for them. I am curious about and looking into Kathleen DesMaisons, David Perlmutter, and Diana Schwarzbein. Are there others people can recommend? Thanks.
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  #2   ^
Old Tue, Jan-05-21, 02:34
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Kristine Kristine is offline
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Posts: 25,581
 
Plan: Primal/P:E
Stats: 171/146/150 Female 5'7"
BF:
Progress: 119%
Location: Southern Ontario, Canada
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Hi and welcome, Matthew.

I'm not too familiar with DesMaisons and Schwarzbein, Dr Perlmutter I think I heard speak on a podcast a long time ago.

I'd say my favorite mental health practitioner who is also a supporter of carbohydrate-control is Dr. Georgia Ede. Here she is on the dietdoctor.com podcast, and there are quite a few interviews if you search her name on YouTube.

Dr. Chris Palmer is another psych doc supportive of diet and mental health, although I haven't really explored his website or youtube content... yet.

Hint: don't be too turned off when those docs and LCers are discussing a ketogenic diet for mental health; I know you said you're not interested in that. I believe they're approaching it from that direction because of the effects of ketogenic diets for epilepsy and other neurological conditions that affect the brain. Since there are mental illnesses that respond to anti-seizure meds, the question gets asked, "let's see if this type of diet can help mental illnesses, too." There doesn't seem to be much research (who wants to pay for a study that doesn't result in a billion-dollar drug?), but it's a good starting discussion point.

If you're going to stay at a higher carb level, I suggest considering completely eliminating wheat. That is a definite trigger for my anxiety and depression. I've just about taken peoples' heads off over nothing after 'getting glutened.' I never would have believed it, but it was one of the things that clued me in that I had a problem with it - going back through my journal (not here) and connecting the dots at the timings of my meltdowns. On a celiac forum, a young lady who's mental health issues virtually disappeared once she was diagnosed with celiac disease and went gluten-free asked for similar stories. Her therapist was very interested. There were 10 pages of replies to this thread. Remarkable stories. Something to consider.

Best of luck finding something that will work for you.
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  #3   ^
Old Tue, Jan-05-21, 03:45
RonnieScot RonnieScot is offline
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Posts: 352
 
Plan: LCHF, no breakfast.
Stats: 256/178/140 Female 5ft 3"
BF:
Progress: 67%
Location: Scotland, UK
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I would suggest tweaking and recording your diet and effects over time. I cut out dairy for a few years among other things and when I tried reintroducing it suffered dreadful depression. I couldn’t get myself to stand up at one point.
I do eat dairy now but quite sparingly and if I have a bit more I notice it effecting me: actually is negative on the following days when I don’t have it/less of it. This makes it harder to pin down but I have.
Might be one to think about. I have no doubt different foods cause issues for different people, it may be when low carb you rely on your depressing foods more without realising it? I’m very interested in gut microbiome health.
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  #4   ^
Old Tue, Jan-05-21, 06:42
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cotonpal cotonpal is online now
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Posts: 5,283
 
Plan: very low carb real food
Stats: 245/125/135 Female 62
BF:
Progress: 109%
Location: Vermont
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I attribute an almost complete alleviation of my depression and anxiety to sticking completely to a low carb diet. When first switching over from high carb to low carb it takes the body some time to adjust. Could this possibly be what is causing your mood issues? As Kristine said, Dr Georgia Ede is really the expert on mental health and low carb eating. She is a psychiatrist. It is worth checking her out. She has website.
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