What are carbs?  Carbs - short for carbohydrates - are long chains of sugar molecules.  A really short chain carb might be table sugar, which has 2 sugar molecules.  Medium length chains form starches, and really long chains form fibers.  All but the really long chains turn quickly into single sugar molecules when we digest and then get absorbed into the blood stream as sugar.

There are only 4 kinds of food - carbs, fats, proteins, and minerals.  Everything we eat is made of these four basic kinds of molecules.  Carbs are used for energy.  Fats are also used for energy, as well as making hormones, brain neurotransmitters, and the cell walls of every cell in your body.  Proteins are used to make everything else in your body.  Minerals plus proteins make your bones, and also make the electricity that runs your body.

In a healthy body, energy comes from the burning of carbohydrates (sugars) and fats.  Immediately after eating, the carbohydrates in the meal are broken down into sugar, carried into the bloodstream, and carried into the cells for immediate energy use.  Between meals and during the night our body is designed to burn fats in various forms (ketones, fatty acids.)  If you have no food for several days, your body will first use up any carbs that have been stored in the liver and muscles, and then convert over to almost entirely burning fats for energy (only white blood cells refuse to shift.)

Often the body will get stuck using only one type of food for energy - just sugar or just fats.  The result is that we feel tired a lot of the time because we are only using half of the food properly to make energy.  The unused food gets stored in the body as extra weight generally.  Most obesity is really about an unbalanced energy production mechanism.  What causes this to happen?  We each are genetically programmed to work best with a unique balance of fats and carbs in our diet.  Some people need lots of carbs while others need lots of fat and almost no carbs.  Everyone is different.  We get stuck when we eat too far outside the balance that is right for us for more than three weeks.

To reset the body back to using both sources of energy, we have to force it to use the source it is not using by starving it of the source it has become overly dependent upon.  For instance if your body is only burning sugars, then you have to completely stop eating any carbs and force the body to start burning fats again.  It usually takes four to six weeks to bring the system fully back online, at which point we slowly reintroduce the food type that we have been avoiding until we achieve the balance that is right for us once again.

With the current American typical diet being so heavily loaded with simple carbs (sugars), most of us are being stressed and pushed outside our right food balance.  Very few people can handle the amount and simplicity of carbs in our average American diet.  Consequently a carbohydrate excess imbalance is the most common imbalance - not the only possibility, just the most common.

How would you know you have such an imbalance?  The most common signs are low or erratic energy levels and/or excess weight gain.  Significant mood swings are also a common sign.  Lab signs will show high triglycerides, high or unstable blood sugar levels, metabolic syndrome, or pre-diabetes signs.  Excess carbohydrate levels are also a significant cause behind fibromyalgia, candida, chronic fatigue, short term memory loss, dizziness, chronic or frequent infections, foggy brain problems, and more.

A simple indicator that suggests a carb excess problem that I use in the office is to see how long you can hold your breath.  Carb burning gives off a lot more carbon dioxide into your blood than fat burning.  The more carbon dioxide you have, the more frequently you have to take a breath to eliminate it.  If you can not hold your breath for at least 50 seconds, you probably are burning too many carbs and not enough fats.  People who can hold their breath for more than 70 seconds are likely burning too many fats and not enough carbs.

So if we decide your energy system is out of balance and you need to do a low carb diet for some amount of time, how do we get started?  The simple answer is to eat only proteins, fats, and fiber.  Completely avoid sugars and starches of any kind.  Fiber is ok to eat even though it is technically a carbohydrate since you can not absorb it.  The problem is that so many foods are combinations of all these foods.  Unfortunately, if the food contains more than 2 grams of non-fiber carbohydrate per serving, you have to leave it alone.  That means anything made from grains, legumes, starchy vegetables, or fruits has to be avoided.  Sugar in any form is definitely out.  Most artificial sweeteners trigger the same biochemical pathways as sugar so they are out also (the exception is stevia, and sugar alcohols like xylitol and erythritol.)

So what do you eat?  Fresh meat (poultry, fish, beef, lamb, pork, etc...), hard cheeses (no milk or soft cheese), eggs, leafy green vegetables, non-starchy vegetables (cauliflower, summer squash, radish, cabbage, mushrooms), and small amounts of some raw seeds and nuts (almonds, flax seeds, chia seeds), plus good fats and oils (butter, olive oil, coconut oil, grape seed oil, avocado oil).  The only "fruit" allowed is avocados.  Spices, herbs, and vinegars are allowed.

The simple mindset is that you are eating meat and salad, but you would be amazed at how creative people have become within these limitations.  For example, noodles made from pure fiber have been invented.  I have created a bread made from almond flour and egg white that is only 1 gram of carb per slice (compared to the 13 grams in normal bread).  Low carb recipes abound in cookbooks and on the Internet.

After the first three weeks the carb levels can generally be raised slightly to include tomato products, broccoli, and small amounts of berries and melon.  How do you know if it can be raised?  You test yourself at home using Ketostix urine dipsticks.  As your body begins to burn just fats, the kidneys will spill some ketones into the urine and they will turn the Ketostix purple.  This is what we are after.  We want to stay in the purple.  If we raise the carbs too much we will lose the purple color change.

It generally takes 3 - 4 days to slip into the fat burning state.  I recommend that you eat plenty of the allowed foods these 3 - 4 days to abate any sense of not getting enough food.  Food cravings will usually occur and try to make you believe you are starving.  These are addiction reactions that act just like coming off any hard drug.

Toward the end of the third day you will probably hit a real energy low when the last of your sugar stores are depleted.  It is best to start your diet on a Thursday so that this low point happens at home on the weekend.  Generally the next day you will find that you have a new even flow of energy and a nice sense of calm that comes with using fat as your energy source.  This is your payoff...a solid, reliable, even energy without the roller coaster highs and lows of unbalanced blood sugar.

If your desire is to lose weight, you will find that this is an excellent base to do this from.  The cycle of hunger that comes from low blood sugar is gone, and you can usually miss meals or reduce calories easily as the basic energy your body needs is coming from your stored fat and not from your diet.  You can either simply reduce your fat consumption levels to reduce your weight.  This is basically a low carb and low fat diet - very effective.  Alternatively you can do an alternate day very low calorie protocol.  With this you eat normal amounts of the allowed foods every other day, and on the low calorie days you consume no more than 500 calories.  For many people this is an easier process than staying low fat and low carb all the time while losing weight.  This alternate day very low calorie protocol has the added benefit of inducing liver cleansing and reducing inflammation in the body.  It is very healing for many conditions.

If you are just rebalancing your energy levels and not using low carb eating to lose weight then after 6 weeks you want to start slowly increasing your carbohydrate intake.  The goal is to find the maximum amount of carbs you can eat a day and stay balanced.  We know you can never go back to the level you were at before, as that level created the problem to begin with.  Your personal genetics will determine just how many carbs you can tolerate.  The glycemic impact chart available in the office I created can guide you through this process.

If you are trying to lose weight, then stay with this low carb lifestyle until you get to your desired weight and then go back to eating the allowed foods in normal amounts for several weeks to make sure you stabilize your weight.  This is a trial and error process to discover just how much is right and normal for you.  Once you have achieved stability, you can gradually increase your carb levels while watching your weight and energy.  Never let your weight raise more than 3 pounds above your desired goal.  Watch for sudden weight gains without a good excuse like eating a whole pizza.  Sudden weight gains are usually a sign of an allergic reaction to something you have eaten.  A little detective work is needed to eliminate any foods you are allergic to.  With diligence and perseverance you will succeed.  Good luck.

David  

 

 

david@fairoakshealth.com

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About Dr. DeLapp

Dr. DeLapp has been a philosopher, non-force Chiropractor, medical intuitive, and health innovator for over 30 years.  He began experimenting with  medical intuition in 1972 while studying physics at UC Davis.  In addition to physics he designed and completed an individual major in the philosophy and psychology of education.  Shortly after he choose to pursue a career in the only truly health oriented profession available at that time, Chiropractic.  He graduated with honors in 1981 with his doctorate and opened a private practice. 
Since that time he has continued his research into the effects of consciousness and learning on health. 
He developed the Biomagnetic Retraining system for correcting movement abnormalities. 
Since 1991 he has focused on developing a powerful system for uncovering and assisting the mind-body connection in health and personal growth.  The in-depth coaching, guided by the subconscious direction from the body, is called Heartflow and the simpler mind-body retraining for health and unfoldment he has named Gracework.  Both are available at Fair Oaks Health.

Dr David DeLapp DC
Chiropractor

Ellen Flowers FGM
Spiritual Life Coach

 

Somatic Therapies

 

Lorena Morales