Low Carbing issues.

Psyllium (sp?) husks. Fairly expensive but effective - in my case anyway. Or if you really get bunged up Movicol - gain without pain.

Cheers
Ailz

I recommend sprinkling flax seeds in joghurt, for example. They add a lovely crunch.

Sorry to lower the tone but I just cant resist
Do they add the crunch when going in or when they achieve the desired effect?
CAROL

Depends which you want 8)

It's the only problem I have with low-carbing, simply_h, and I understand your problem!

Proper live yoghurt, preferably organic, is good for your gut; add the flax seeds, and eat with stewed rhubarb sweetened with Splenda or similar. There are differing opinions on here about the carb values for rhubarb (ducking hurriedly :wink: ) but it does work. I like sheep's or goat's yoghurt.

Drink plenty of water, and make sure your veg intake is fibrous eg cabbage and leafy greens.

Also oat bran (health food shops etc) which you can sprinkle on/add to almost anything. Shove it in with the stewed rhubarb). I think it's very low carb; someone will tell me if it isn't (Ken?).

If all else fails, I use Andrews LIver Salts (known in my household as 'blasting powder') - a couple of teaspoons in a glass of water at bedtime.

A lesser-known cure, which works for me, is red wine. If necessary, I sit down at about 6pm with a glass of red to watch the news, and am usually on the loo before I finish the glass! Why it works I don't know, but it usually does! Relaxes the system, I suppose.

Also Lindt 90% proof chocolate - which is fairly low carb - has a disastrous effect if you eat too much!

Plenty of options, but I don't recommend trying them all together :shock:

It will remain a problem, I'm afraid. I occasionally eat a small amount of Lizi's Granola (health food shops and some supermarkets) which pushes my carbs up a bit but adds to the fibre.

Best of luck!

Viv 8)

Try some diabetic chocolate. Don't overdose though... :shock:

This interesting topic comes up now and again.

Is it that you need to go but can't or you feel you should be going as often as you did before ditching the carbs?

I'm three years down the line and for me, no constipation, I just don't go as often as I did.

wiflib

Hi wiflib

A good point! I don't expect to go as often as before because of the lack of bulk in my diet, but I start getting a little concerned at around 3 days. It's about then I'll start with the yoghurt.

Us Yorkshire folk are obsessed with being 'regular'! :lol:

Viv 8)

I eat two slices of Burgen soya and linseed bread every day , seems to keep my inards happy Also make sure that I eat lots of green veg , favourite of the moment being Kale, which goes into just about everything I cook , even curry . Lots of water helps too .

I find a tablespoon of coconut oil in hot drinks, tea and coffee, through the day keeps me fine...

Drinking LOTS of water seems to do the trick for me...

(Or a nice big Rump Steak w/greek salad! 8) )

Interesting. The 'Aktins Diabetes Revolution' (written after Robert Atkins' death by some of his colleagues) recommends adding a ltlle salt ( half-teaspoon daily? can't remember but can check if anyone wants me to) to avoid constipation.

I don't add salt to anything normally, but it is possible I'm not taking in enough . . . on my 'natural' diet ( :lol: ' . . .

Viv 8)

I don't add salt to anything, but I do have bacon for breakfast every morning - since going on Viv's diet - I hope that will do it. I haven't had cramp (touch wood) in the night since I started this - only a week or so - but I do take quinine as I was getting it most nights.

Ailz

canuck1950 said:

Drinking lots of water without increasing salt intake will make the problem worse. Adding fibre is also not the answer. Add salt.

Click to expand...

Salt....really...... let's hope any Members that read that comment don't have high blood pressure then. :roll:

The amount of salt you eat has a direct effect on your blood pressure.

Salt makes your body hold on to water. If you eat too much salt, the extra water stored in your body raises your blood pressure. So, the more salt you eat, the higher your blood pressure.

The higher your blood pressure, the greater the strain on your heart, arteries, kidneys and brain. This can lead to heart attacks, strokes, dementia and kidney disease.

Also, eating too much salt may mean that blood pressure medicines (such as diuretics) don't work as well as they could.

Click to expand...

Salt's effects on the body from the Blood Pressure Association :

http://www.bpassoc.org.uk/microsites/sa ... ltseffects

I don't think anybody should be advising people to ADD Salt to their diet........we should be advising them to eat less. See here :

http://www.bpassoc.org.uk/microsites/sa ... atlesssalt

Could sugar free chewing gum be helpful with this issue?

I find it useful as a treat whilst I am cutting down my food intake, and I understand you have to be careful not to have too much of it because of it's laxative properties, but I don't know if it contains anything else that is unhelpful for use by people who have diabetes.

Pac

I see the former mod labelled my post on this topic "Troll Content" and deleted it. This is unfortunate as the answer is quite simple. When you cut carbs your kidneys release salt. If you do not increase your salt intake to compensate and, especially if you drink lots of water, you will suffer the symptoms of mild salt depletion: constipation, headache, weakness, orthostatic hypotension and possibly muscle cramps. The answer is to make sure you are getting adequate salt. One of my knowledgeable colleagues (MD and PhD in nutritional biochemistry) recommends a cup of bouillon twice a day. He was a co-author of the recent Atkins book which also contains that recommendation. I know this goes against the conventional advice to restrict salt but when you cut carbs, it is such a metabolic game-changer that the old rules do not necessarily apply.

Hi Canuck

I picked up that salt tip from the 'Atkins Diabetes Revolution' book that you mention.

I now add a little salt to my morning omelette and to home-cooked meats, and I have found it does make a difference, particularly to ease of elimination! :lol:

I don't use salt in cooking, so most of my dietary intake previously has been from preserved foods eg bacon, ham, cheese, olives. I'll bet my daily salt intake is still below RDA! My BP is fine - a little elevated because of my obesity, but coming down as I lose weight. I presently take 2.5mg of Lisinopril daily; I'm willing to bet I'll be off it by September.

I find in very hot weather, if I taste the sweat on my upper lip, if it doesn't taste salty I need salt; so I add a little to my next meal.

After all, we may have spent part of our evolution partly living in the sea; makes sense that we can't do without salt!

Viv 8)