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Low carb low fat?

  • Thread starter Thread starter gemma6549
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gemma6549

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This may seem like a really silly question but I've read a lot on here that seemed to suggest doing a low carb high fat diet.

Personally I live on a low carb low fat diet, just believing that fat isn't that great for you (other than the good fats in nuts etc)

I wondered what the reason was behind the high fat idea? Is it just to help add calories?

If anyone can clarify id be really grateful. Sorry if it is as I said a silly question.
 
If you eat low carbs then you need some other fuel or energy source to replace the left out carbs. There are two choices, either proteins or fats.
If you eat too much protein your body can convert some of it into glucose, its called gluconeogenesis. Fats and oils dont exhibit this behaviour to any significant extent, so that the choice falls on fats as the make up source of calories [energy]
By the way there is a saying, as follows, "there are no stupid questions, only stupid answers."
 
I guess that's why I'm tired a lot ! I'm trying to tailor my diet to suit Crohn's as I'm undergoing diagnosis so I'm avoiding fat and dairy etc. I eat lean meat for the protein part which I would normally bulk up with nuts but obviously they are a no no!! I think eggs and meat and fish are my only real option right now.

Thanks for the explanation :)
 
Hi. Fat isn't the problem for weight gain and cholesterol as we have been told. Obviously with Crohns it may be relevant but you need to separate that out from standard NHS diet mantra. My wife has UC and has been told so many things about diet none of which have proven to be relevant. You need fat as part of a 'balanced diet', to provide energy that low-carbing reduces plus there are other nutrients. So you don't need to do high fat but have enough protein and fat to feel full. You should find you don't gain weight and your LDL/HDL ratio should remain good. Obviously Crohns might affect these things.
 
I know nothing about crohns so please excuse my ignorance.
Most of my fat comes from dairy and nuts and olive oil and coconut and fish ... and Polish sausage.
I take it Chrons has specific dietary no no's?
 
It's not a silly question. The fact that you're asking it means you're looking in the right direction.
 
Yes fat and dairy seem to make things worse, particularly nuts which I loved. Fried food is a no no too so I'm struggling to see ways to include things that will fill me up whilst sticking to low carb. I don't enjoy carbs anyway as they make me really tired. I'm currently filling up on cups of tea!!
 
Hi @gemma6549,
Extreme tiredness is a symptom of Crohns so it is difficult to pinpoint whether the Crohns or lack of fat is the cause. Once you get a diagnosis you can ask to be seen by a dietitian and there is usually one attached to the Gastroentorolgy department.
You may be offered medication that will help you feel better, depending on the severity of your symptoms.
 
Where there's a will there's a way. I'm full of platitudes but not much advice. However I've definitely seen posts on here from people who can't eat much fat so help is on the way.
*EDIT* There you are, @catherinecherub to the rescue ;)
 
Hi there, I have to be careful with fat, with no gallbladder. 'Fraid I don't know much about Crohns, but through experimenting have found some fats much easier to tolerate than others. You mentioned nuts no good for you, just wondering about say avocadoes, olives and oily fish? Salmon not as oily as some oily fish but I can eat that but not mackerel etc. (fresh, smoked, tinned salmon). Also do ok with small amounts of olive oil in salad dressings etc. full fat greek yoghurt might be worth a try.

Hope you get a full diagnosis soon. I've seen posts from others with Crohns on here so might even be worth a new thread re dietary advice for those of us with crohns.

All the very best

D
 
gemma6549 said:
This may seem like a really silly question but I've read a lot on here that seemed to suggest doing a low carb high fat diet.

Personally I live on a low carb low fat diet, just believing that fat isn't that great for you (other than the good fats in nuts etc)

I wondered what the reason was behind the high fat idea? Is it just to help add calories?
Click to expand...

Yep, it's basically for calories/energy.

Protein is an essential nutrient, and we all need it, but we simply can't get the majority of our calories from protein. We need about 15 to 30 percent protein in our diets, but over that amount more is not better. It's literally toxic to the liver to try to get the majority of your daily calories from protein.

So for most people that leaves about 70 to 80 percent of our calories that must come from either carbs or fat. Mathematically nothing could be simpler, if you reduce carbs then you have to increase fats, if you reduce fats then you have to increase carbs.

To be completely honest, when I hear someone say that they're on a low fat low carb diet I think that often times they are probably deluding themselves. Maybe if someone was extremely sedentary it might be possible, but any active person requiring 2000+ daily calories is going to have a very hard time (almost a metabolic impossibility) getting the majority of those from protein.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
It is difficult to devise a plan for all Crohns sufferers as triggers are hard to pinpoint and may not even exist.
You may think you have found the culprit and eliminate it from your diet, only to find that you still get a flare up with another meal. It may be a vegetable or a fruit as opposed to protein or fat.
Flare ups mean that you find it difficult to eat anything and may have to rely on a bland diet and/ or steroid therapy. You may also need vitamin supplementation.


This article is worth a read,

http://www.webmd.com/ibd-crohns-disease/crohns-disease/creating-a-crohns-disease-diet-plan

You also have to consider that you have diabetes as well so some of the suggestions to help you have to be balanced against what is necessary to manage your diabetes and Crohns. It is a minefield.
 
I am unclear by your comment about nuts being a "no no".
Is this because you can't tolerate nuts with Crohns or you think diabetics can't handle nuts?
I find nuts to be a good filler.
Best wishes
Adam
 
Hi Adam, yes my nuts comment was in relation to Crohn's. As a diabetic I love nuts and I'm missing them already! But yes the fat content in them definitely effects flare ups in relation to ulcerative colitis or Crohn's, at least in my experience.

Sometimes if it's really bad it just doesn't matter what you eat!!
 
Hi uart. In general I think a low carb low fat diet like you say is a very difficult thing to maintain and also leaves you with very little energy.

Unfortunately the combination of diabetes and an IBD are making eating at all rather difficult.

Carbs don't help and fats really don't help!!

Following a low fat and low carb diet is really the only way of getting anything to stay in my system right now, hence I needed a bit of guidance on this from others with experience.
 
gemma6549 said:
Following a low fat and low carb diet is really the only way of getting anything to stay in my system right now, hence I needed a bit of guidance on this from others with experience.
Click to expand...

Yeah that does sound difficult Gemma.

BTW. Have you looked at your diet and tried to work out your total Calories and approximately what percentage come from carbs and what percent from fats?
 
I generally follow a low carb diet anyway so used to get my extra calories from things like nuts, cheeses and popcorn. Now all of those things are off the list so I'm finding it very difficult to get to more than around 1000 calories per day.

I guess it's a bit of a catch 2/ because if I ate the things I'm avoiding I would get more calories in but would then be losing most of them from the IBD.

I was tired all the time from that and now I'm tired all the time from lack of calories!
 
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