Weight gain with kefir?

[brill]

I started making my own kefir last year, in an effort to improve my gut health. After some early mishaps, I got a good process going and have been drinking about 100ml every morning for the last 25 weeks. However, over the same period both my weight and my A1c have gradually crept up despite sticking to the 5:2 diet, which has always worked for me in the past. I was at a loss why until I spotted this link https://www.empowher.com/healthy-eating/content/my-short-love-affair-kefir
I tried making skimmed milk kefir, but my grains refuse to work in low fat milk.

Has anyone else found this problem? I think I'm going to have to give it up, at least for a trial period.

 

[Krystyna23040]

I started making my own kefir last year, in an effort to improve my gut health. After some early mishaps, I got a good process going and have been drinking about 100ml every morning for the last 25 weeks. However, over the same period both my weight and my A1c have gradually crept up despite sticking to the 5:2 diet, which has always worked for me in the past. I was at a loss why until I spotted this link https://www.empowher.com/healthy-eating/content/my-short-love-affair-kefir
I tried making skimmed milk kefir, but my grains refuse to work in low fat milk.

Has anyone else found this problem? I think I'm going to have to give it up, at least for a trial period.

Kefir had really improved my gut health and I don't find my blood sugars have increased while drinking it. I was able to come off the insulin while having kefir - not because of the kefir but because I cut carbs to 20g.

When I am away I don't drink it but have found my blood sugars actually go up. I have realised that this is nothing to do with not having kefir (which I actually did think initially) but more to do with my body making glucose from excess protein as I eat more protein when I am away as hotel portion sizes tend to be a lot bigger than I usually eat at home (for me a 10oz steak is way too much). I find exactly the same after a restaurant meal.

 

[brill]

Thanks Krystyna, that's interesting. I was wondering whether it was all the extra protein in the kefir that was doing the damage as there shouldn't be much sugar left

 

[Krystyna23040]

Thanks Krystyna, that's interesting. I was wondering whether it was all the extra protein in the kefir that was doing the damage as there shouldn't be much sugar left

I don't think it is the protein as I checked the label of Sainsbury's Yeo kefir and it only had 4.7g of protein per 100g which is tiny compared with meat (26g per 100g).
Could the carbs be the problem (6.4g per 100g). Maybe it takes you too high in carbs.

Although I keep to the 20g carbs I do notice that sometimes blood sugars run higher than usual for no reason and then other times they run much lower than usual. Trying to work out why this is happening when I haven't changed what I am eating is a nightmare.

My theory on the protein could be a 'red herring '.

Sometime ago I found that eating a little more dark chocolate lowered BS significantly. A month or so later it did the complete opposite. I meticulously log my food intake and.macros in an effort to find out why 20g of carbs works sometimes but other times I have to go much lower. It's a real puzzle.