| Archive for Active No-Carber Forums A veggie-free zone |
| Kristi31 |
Zero-carb, dehydration and cravingsI think some of the symptoms that creep up when I go VLC to ZC are linked to dehydration like bloating, constipation, dry mouth+skin+eyes, shortness of breath, increased histamine levels (to hydrate organs) leading to hives and increased allergic-like reactions, low energy, muscle cramps, tingling in extremities, sinus congestion, concentrated urine, low urine output, loss in skin firmness.Interestingly, I never get thirsty but do crave fruits which contain lots of water. If I drink some water, my craving for fruits disappears immediately. It works like a charm everytime.  Water definetly healthier than fruits all day long.
So, at least for me, a craving for fruits simply means I need to drink some water and voila! Craving gone and dehydration symptoms lessen. Salt, although useful for somewhat increasing energy levels and keeping cramps at bay, makes bloating worse. No salt for me. Dehydration symptoms also improve upon eating meat (raw) but usually the improvement is short-lived. |
| Elli |
It's great that you are learning more about how you react to different way of eating and how to cope with them. I'm not so sensitive myself and have that 'whatever' kind of attitude  My feet are swollen quite a bit right now and I'm not even sure if that's from eating too much salt or from walking too much today!
Keep us informed on your new findings. It will help me and others a lot. |
| Carnation |
I have a friend who used to get some of those symptoms while doing vlc, and was able to clear them by licking a little potassium salt every day. |
| Kristi31 |
Talking about salt...
This morning, I ate some meat, raw and plain. After my meal, I felt a little tired. I suddenly had a craving...not for fruits but for nuts. One could easily mistaken this craving for fat...but I realized I was craving salt as the nuts I eat are a little salty and each time I eat them, I crave fruits or water. After eating some nuts, energy came back up and I feel like I'm on top of the world. Shortness of breath which quickly followed my meal also disappeared. Yesterday, I needed water. Today, salt. The meat I eat contains water and I naturally crave salt while eating it but never salt my meat, thereby causing me to experience symptoms of not enough sodium. Then, when sodium is low (already exaccerbated by LC), dehydration follows as water leaves organs and cells, enters extracellular fluid to help the body retain sodium. So, I start craving water (or fruits). I've been going through thousands of these cycles in the last year without ever figuring this out. Seems so simple and yet... I earlier stated that I wouldn't consume salt but now realize how much I need it. If I experienced problems in the past with it, it is simply because I overdid it or wasn't constant enough in my consumption of it (i.e. too much fluctuation). A little iodized seasalt on the meat should do the trick. I've gone back and forth with fat and salt (not enough/too much). But, salt seems to be the real culprit here. I'm getting better at understanding what my body needs and pinpointing exactly what I'm craving. Seems so simple and yet... |
| waywardsister |
I don't crave salt like I used to, but I always use it with meat. I will go as far as to say I need it with meat. I can eat a bit of unsalted meat, but halfway through the meal I'm reaching for salt.
Eggs or other foods, no. I don't get the same urge to salt stuff. I used to salt EVERYTHING. Veggies, I'll put maybe a touch on (depending on the veg). Eggs, never anymore. I use the grey sea salt, the unrefined stuff - I've no idea if it's iodized, or what minerals it contains. Would it naturally contain iodine and potassium? I don't have my package anymore so can't check. |
| adwred |
I'm the opposite. I don't have to salt meat (but I still frequently do - not aggressively, but a bit)... but eggs tastes like nothing without a touch of salt. They cry out for it, like potatoes. I do admit salt makes food more edible, in the sense that you can keep eating after you've had enough when it's salty. Oh and glutamates!! It has that addictive factor. I could easily eat a pound of bacon, but would rarely eat a pound of plain pork belly. |
| Kristi31 |
Most sea salts do not contain iodine. I have some that contains iodine, just in case I need that too. |
| cabalco |
Hi Kristi,
my name is cabalco, i am new in this forum and i have the same problem with salt. Without i get problems, too much i am getting problems too. I live with about 5-10g carbs per day, sometimes none. The salt thing puzzled me the last few months, now with your post i realize the facts. Now i use about 2 pinches of salt per meal and this seems OK for me. But too much gives me bloating, stomach cramps and constipation. I know i have stomach acid without salt, but i need some to stabilize my energy level. How many salt do you all use per meal? Do you get dry skin without salt? I want to mention that i stopped all spicings too yesterday and today i had really bad headaches, but in the morning i used about 6 pinches of salt ;( That was too much i think, but sometimes i forget the salt thing, because i am used to have more salt... |
| Carnation |
Hi cabalco, welcome!
I've found that I've always needed salt. When I first met my partner, he was completely salt-free. After eating that way for a while, I felt slightly off. It may have something to do with the fact that I have extremely low blood pressure, or maybe not.  I very quickly went back to lightly seasoning my meat when while cooking, and eating it with a touch more if I had the taste for it. I eat about 3 pinches of salt per day.
Personally, I've only noticed two things with regard to salt. First, I need more of it in the summertime. And secondly, when I'm eating super high-fat, as in my butter shot days, I would end up with intense cravings for salt, so much so that I'd suck on rock salt. |
| Kristi31 |
At the moment, I'm not using salt and feeling better. I've even lost some weight. I just don't know anymore but as long as it works, I'm sticking with it. |
| cabalco |
I have the suspicion that too much salt let the meat just stuck in my stomach... But perhaps it is the potatoe which i eat? |
| Nicola |
Salt has always been a thing for me to question...so I asked Peter (Hyperlipid Blogg):
Nicola said... Hi Peter, It is said that we need extra salt to digest cooked meat / protein. I don't know for shore and when I ask others some believe we need salt but don't know for shore. Those following a raw meat diet claim that salt is not needed. How do animals on a natural diet of raw meat make hydrochloric acid? Nicola Peter said... Nicola, I'm not really sure where the question comes from. As I understand it the enzyme carbonic anhydrase splits H2CO3 in parietal cells to give a bicarbonate ion (which ends up in the plasma pool in exchange for a chloride ion) and an H+ ion which is pumped in to the gastric lumen with the Cl- ion. The bicarbonate ion, as NaHCO3, is used to neutralise the HCl in the small intestine giving NaCl. NaCl is easily absorbed from the intestine. I can see no net loss of sodium or chloride here. So is the cooked meat supposed to be doing something to this cycle which raw meat doesn't? Beyond me. BTW extracellular fluid is sodium and chloride rich, there is a fair amount in meat, especially if you drink the gravy. Our kidneys have phenomenal powers of sodium retention on a zero added salt diet. Serious sodium disturbance is fatal. I spend half my life pouring salty water of assorted compositions in to the veins of patients in which the control system has gone wrong for various reasons. Peter Nicola said... Hello Peter, The real human diet is a totally carnivorous one...but when it comes to salt? http://tinyurl.com/6kouyp http://tinyurl.com/589yul Do you believe/know if raw or cooked meat needs extra salt for our body to produce hydrochloric acid and meet all body needs? Nicola Peter said... I would agree that it is possible to be healthy eating a totally carnivorous diet but I personally doubt very much that it has been the pattern for humans world wide. To reject vegetable food complepetely would be too wasteful of available resources. This seems as contrarian as the vegan approach, except the full vegans do not seem to be healthy long term (not that I know any) unless they supplement, where as full carnivory allows this. Re salt, digestion cycles salt. Those who suggest cooking increases total body salt requirement need a mechanism. Without that it smells like religion to me. Full carnovores are perfectly well able to extract the 160mmol of salt from extracellular fluid and a few more mmol from intracellular fluid. Zero sodium urine is well within the ability of humans, dogs and cats. Where is the physiology to base the discussion around? Peter |
| Avalon |
Thank you Nicola. I do appreciate that you ask many questions of many people and share answers with us.
Though I am not sure of many things, I enjoy learning. That is always good, yes? Best wishes, Xeta
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| cabalco |
Hmmmm... i feel very dehydrated at the moment. Perhaps i do need more salt? Or potassium? Salt gives cramps... So it has to be potassium right? |
| Kristi31 |
I find that increasing fat intake helps. Dehydration is also a symptom of ketosis and it is best to either get out of ketosis or become adapted to ketones to resolve this problem. And not go in and out of ketosis. Not advisable either. |