Atkins/Low Carbers Support

[Wifezilla]

Just a quick thought...

While most people think "ATKINS" when you mention low carb, there is more than one way to do it. I am a big fan of Barry Groves who wrote "Natural Health and Weight Loss" and Mike & Mary Eades, authors of "Protein Power".

The best thing about Barry Groves' plan is NO INDUCTION!!!!
You simply eat under 50g of carbs per day and eat in a way you can for the rest of your life.

What I love about the Eades is their Paleo approach and focus on evolutionary eating. Their book "Protein Power Life Plan" is a good one.

The Eades blog... www.proteinpower.com

 

[Lunachick]

Here's another one:

http://www.carbwire.com/

 

[Robin'sBrood]

Please be careful if you're doing Atkins or other strict, low carb diets. If you feel pain in your kidneys while doing this kind of diet, STOP! I did Atkins for a few months 6 years ago but stopped when my kidneys started hurting. A few years later I decided to give it a try again, because I did lose weight, and once again started having bad lower back/kidney pain. Well, now I know the reason for that pain... in Feb. I had to have a MAMMOTH kidney stone (10x5mm) removed surgically. My urologist told me they call Atkins the "Kidney Stone Diet" due to the number of people who develop stones while on it. Not everyone is prone to developing stones but if you're one of the unlucky ones who is (but doesn't know it, like me) please be aware of any kidney pain -- before you're in the ER having surgery.

Oh yeah, and drink TONS of water!!!!!

One more thing... y'all could try to avoid high oxalate foods (cause calcium/oxalate kidney stones) while low carbing... maybe.

Here is the list http://www.branwen.com/rowan/oxalate.htm

 

[Lunachick]

hmmm - I have medullary sponge kidneys. I am supposed to be prone to kidney stones. I've done this diet a few times. Never had a problem. Never had a kidney stone either. (knocks on wood)

But thanks for the warning..!

 

[Robin'sBrood]

Quote:
Hopefully you aren't prone to calcium oxalate stones! I think I've been trying to pass the one that is/was in my left kidney for the past couple of days. It's small though (1mm) and even though I'm having some pain and discomfort, it is nothing compared to the one in Feb. My next urologist appt. is in 2 weeks so I guess I'll find out if it was passed then.

 

[Robin'sBrood]

I had been doing South Beach in the months leading up to my kidney stone incident, because it wasn't as restrictive as Atkins. However...

Precautions

The South Beach diet is not recommended for people suffering from or at risk of kidney problems. The diet's high protein content can place increased strain on the kidneys, possibly causing long-term damage as well as kidney stones and bone loss. Additionally, the possibility of ketosis-induced dehydration during Phase one can increase the risk of further kidney impairment. Dehydration occurs when the body experiences water loss with accompanying loss of important blood salts like potassium and sodium. Ketosis occurs when carbohydrates are not available and the body burns an excessive amount of fat, during which some ketones, or fat fragments, are excreted. The restrictive nature of Phase one may also induce mineral and vitamin deficiencies. Remaining in Phase one of the diet for longer than two weeks greatly increases the risk of losing bone and muscle mass. Dieters should remain in Phase one for no longer than three or four weeks.
http://www.answers.com/topic/the-so...olproof-plan-for-fast-and-healthy-weight-loss

and

Kidney problems were reported by 19 percent of registrants: 10 percent reported kidney stones, 1 percent reported severe kidney infections, and 89 percent reported reduced kidney function.

One registrant reported, “I have recurring kidney infections with elevated leukocytes and blood in my urine. I have tender flanks and am currently under a urologist’s care to find the cause of the blood and the pain.” Another noted that he had three kidney stone episodes in the four months he was on a high-protein, carbohydrate-restricted diet. A person who experienced her first kidney stone episode while on a high-protein diet stated, “Even though I lost weight on the diet, if it’s responsible for my experience with kidney stones, it’s not worth it!”

High-protein diets are associated with reduced kidney function. Over time, individuals who consume very large amounts of animal protein risk permanent loss of kidney function. Harvard researchers reported recently that high-protein diets were associated with a significant decline in kidney function, based on observations in 1,624 women participating in the Nurses’ Health Study. The damage was found only in those who already had reduced kidney function at the study’s outset, but more than 40 percent of adults over age 40 in the United States already have reduced kidney function, which suggests that most people who have renal problems are unaware of that fact and do not realize that high-protein diets may put them at risk for further deterioration. (9), (21) http://www.carbs-information.com/kidney-problems-on-low-carb-diet.htm

I'd rather be fat than have kidney stones. I'd rather give birth, naturally, to an elephant than have kidney stones. Yeah, they're THAT bad!​

 

[Wifezilla]

Please be careful if you're doing Atkins or other strict, low carb diets. If you feel pain in your kidneys while doing this kind of diet, STOP!

The kidneys are NOT damaged by a low carb diet. This is one of those myths that WILL NOT DIE.

YOU DO NOT GET KIDNEY STONES FROM LOW CARB DIETING

"Research has shown that there is no link between low carb diets, high protein diets and kidney disorders. Eating protein cannot affect a healthy kidney.

For example, Elizabeth Ward, president of the British Kidney Patient Association told the BBC, "If you have healthy kidneys, you can't eat enough protein to damage your kidneys.

The kidney's job is to filter the blood of waste products. One of the things the kidney looks for is extra proteins. But humans evolved eating meat, and the kidney is set up to handle a daily intake of meat as its normal job.

Note that it's proven that being OVERWEIGHT causes kidney problems. The extra body mass and blood circulating puts a huge load on your kidneys, sometimes leading to kidney disorders. So if anything, losing weight HELPS your kidneys by removing the work they have to do."

http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/lowcarb101/a/lowcarbmyths.htm​

 

[Robin'sBrood]

So my urologist doesn't know what he is talking about?

 

[Wifezilla]

"Why Protein is Not Bad for Your Kidneys

Since Doctor Atkins popularized the Low Carb Way of Eating, detractors and critics have continuously proclaimed, "Yer gonna kill yer kidneys!". This has been a particularly thorny criticism to refute because of the biology involved, so most of us have had to counter by pointing out the fact that no patient or adherent who started with healthy kidney function has ever sustained kidney damage through a ketogenic diet. This statement is true enough, but not exactly conclusive.

Where did the idea come from in the first place? It came from the very real association between ketones in urine and kidney damage suffered by diabetics. When a diabetic is in the more severe stages of the disease, his blood sugar is grossly elevated, his metabolism is vastly compromised, large amounts of aceto-acetic acid are found in his urine, and sure enough, there is frequently severe or even fatal kidney damage. The reasonable mind associates the presence of ketones in the urine with kidney damage; and the reasonable mind is wrong. To understand why, we must (briefly) examine how the kidney does its job.

The kidney is a size-exclusion filter (just what it sounds like). A small filtering unit called a glomerulus (about 6 million of them per kidney) is fed a stream of blood. Small molecules such as glucose, salts, urea, and ketones, along with all sorts of other (small) waste products, are filtered out of the blood through small pores and drained off to the bladder. The issue is a good bit more complicated than I am presenting here, but the principal is real. Small stuff is filtered out through these pores, while larger molecules are retained in the blood stream. When all is normal, an excess of protein is not harmful in any way. Proteins are *big* molecules, and will not fit through the pores. When a person's blood glucose levels are grossly elevated, many bad things happen; one of which is the formation of gluco-protein complexes in the blood. Glucose has a slight positive molecular charge, and the pores are negatively charged, so glucose will fit though and flow through the pores in the glomerulus. If that glucose molecule is dragging a protein with it, the protein end of the complex gets stuck in the pore. Blood pressure behind the protein will quite frequently shove the protein through the pore, physically damaging the pore in the process. Multiply this scene by several million times, and severe kidney damage is the result.

What does this mean? The protein did the damage, right? Yes, but it would not have done that damage if it weren't stuck to the glucose molecule. And the gluco-protein complex would not have formed if blood glucose levels were normal or near normal. The conclusion then, is obvious. If you are concerned about your kidneys, monitor your blood glucose levels. Many stores sell blood glucose monitors at reasonable prices. It's a small price to pay for something which can tell you exactly what is happening in your body, and just maybe save your life. And no, you don't have to be diabetic to buy one.

So now you know what to say when someone says, "yer gonna kill yer kidneys eating all that protein!" You can tell them that is a bunch of baloney; the sugars and starches kill the kidneys, not the protein. "

 

[Wifezilla]

So my urologist doesn't know what he is talking about?

Many don't when it comes to diet and nutrition. According to Doctor Mike Eades, they get about 1 hour of training.​