Hi all, really glad to be here and have enjoyed reading the posts and comments. I am learning a lot. I have been paleo for over 12 months and it had really helped with my hasimotos symptoms but I had stalled in weight loss. I came across Keto and decided to give it a go, a suggestion from my acupuncturist, I have been keto for about a month. I am feeling really great and sleeping so well. Here is my dilemma, I follow a lot of podcasts and one I listen to often is Sarah Ballentine. I listened this morning to a podcast with her really running down the keto diet, saying that it was a diet that was absolutely no good for a person with an autoimmune disease and that it was lacking in nutrients. I was so disappointed to hear all of this information. I have almost finished reading Grain Brain by Dr Perlmutter and also read and watched Dr Jason Fung, and I know that there is science behind the benefits to a keto diet. I am tired of always thinking I am on the wrong track and that I could be doing more damage than good. I feel good, I am not really eating any differently than before, added cheese back into the diet, so how can this be bad? Thanks hopeing to hear from some people who have been keto for a while to share their wisdom with me.
Confused and disheartening
I’m getting more nutrients and minerals from keto way of eating than I was before I started along this path.
Salad, veg, meat, cheese, cream, nuts, seeds, oily fish, flaxseed, hempseed, nut butters, olive oil, coconut oils, cacoa. Just a list of the top of my head I consume weekly.
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I feel that to, I guess that is why I was so dissapointed to hear someone I had admired speak about keto like that.
Sounds like another case of someone who’s never tried it and doesn’t really know what is involved talking too much when they really have no idea. Let your own body be the judge.
Hi Lorinda
Welcome. Are you convinced that keto will work for you? I listened and read both sides of the question. I listened to the science. I watched the video discussions from Phinney, Volek, Fung, and others. Then I looked at the alternative. Calories in, Calories out. Eat less, move more. Which didn’t work for me. I gained a lot of weight. My heaviest 208 lbs. I was a type 2 diabetic. Thanks to keto I lost 30 lbs and am no longer diabetic. I love my food. I love me. My moods improved, I have pep in my step. I eat more vegetables then I ever did on SAD. I read the remarks here on the forums from others with autoimmune diseases and how well they’re doing. There are many out there who feel like your podcaster and there are many of us who know what works for us. Did I try other forms of eating? Yep. Vegan, vegetarian. Gained weight, blood sugars increased. Not for me. I am so glad I found keto. I am convinced it’s for me. Do your due diligence.
Between conflicting studies, pseudo science, and flat out made-up stuff, you can find and support any opinion. And don’t forget that much of what we see hear read is also very much about marketing. That includes marketing a product (eg a powder of some sort) or an idea (self hatred and insecurity are big in the health care industry). You have to pick what seems to make sense, look for real life results, and then experiment on yourself.
Maybe ignore the haters and trust how you feel? N=1 is more important than people who think they know what’s best!
Thanks for that, I am a mad researcher. I never go into anything on a whim and that is why I have read and researched everything I can get my hands on. I do feel so much better on Keto just the sleep alone has improved out of sight. I am going to stick to it as at the moment it feels right for me. I am so glad you found that it works for you, it encourages me to keep going.
Yes, a very good point. I was thinking that perhaps that particular Dr could not change what she is saying as she is making way too much money out of what she is doing.
The 2 dudes are all about the science,that’s their motto, SHOW ME THE SCIENCE,they even have the shirt,type science in the search on here and see the results you get,the science is what kept me from not having doubts about keto,the proof is in the pudding, sugar free of course
If only more researchers would do like you and question their findings. Question previous research. Don’t blindly trust what others have researched. You might admire or trust someone, that person may genuinely be try to give good advice, but they then trust all previous research.
It’s a pet peeve of mine. Doing research without the science involved in it being present. I could do research to find the cheapest gas in my neighborhood. I could trust what I find on the internet, where plenty of people are updating maps everyday with the latest prices. Or I could call every gas station to get their price, or I could drive to each and every gas station and see it for myself. Only one of those methods meets the criteria of science. The other two, have too many variables to be trusted.
So… Good on you! Question! Question like you life depends on it. That’s what led me to Keto. I was diagnosed with T2D. My HBa1c was 11.8, with my BG at 594. I was at risk of falling into a coma at any moment. The treatment, didn’t seem to do much as far as I was concerned. A little research of my own led me to question my doctors and nurses. In my opinion, they should have known the answers to what I was asking, and they knew not. Actually, they were flat out wrong or lying. “Diabetes is a PROGRESSIVE disease. It only gets worse, never gets better. I’ve been off my meds three months now. BG under control for four months. In those four months I brought my HBa1c down to 5.8% from 11.8%. Don’t tell me something can’t be doneđź¤
Welcome to the forum. Brace yourself. I’m willing to bet you learn a lot more here than you bargained for.
Welcome!! Still need to eat lots of greens. Not true for some, but is for me. Keeps me regular and provides nutrients. I buy into the keto version touted by Dr. Berg.
K
I find that podcast came across as one size fits all. She sounded angry and just throwing out “bad consequences” but I don’t see the “science”.
I have a close friend who is Paleo and his diet looks very similar to mine, as in I am on Keto. When we go out, we mostly order the same big salad with salmon/chicken, he might have a bit of complex carbs such as quinoa/sweet potato with it and me with avocado. Or we both get steak with asparagus/brussel sprouts. Now, is she really suggesting that my way of eating is “dangerous” compared to a Paleo guy? I just find it hard to believe. I don’t know a ton about Paleo, but I do know tons of us who are doing Keto in a “modified” way. Slightly more carbs from berries from time to time, or having fats from mainly plants, no dairy, or even carnivore diet. As far as I understand, you can be as low carb as a Keto person on Paleo too. It’s really just a spectrum of “carbiness” if you may.
But indeed, disappointed. Not at the diets, but certain someone. KCKO!
Paleo has been distorted over the last 20 years. The real paleo macro is 60/35/5%, which results in lipolysis/ketosis. Now, that macro is basically ignored and nonpaleo foods are allowed. Paleomom’s list is a good example of corruption.
Not too long ago Danica Patrick was on a Morning show, showing a “Paleo” breakfast dish. It consisted of eggs, cheese, and sweet potatoes. Two of the three ingredients are nonpaleo, and the macro of the dish is clearly not paleo, but a fat/Carb combination that would result in massive insulin release. Very sad how good concepts get corrupted.
Yes! I’m doing my thesis on the efficacy of evidence-based medicine - one piece of this: what if the evidence sucks? This can be due to bad science, bias, population generalization, and just flat out lying about research results, plus a few more. It sounds like Ballantine either hasn’t done much research on Keto or has only looked for information that matches her views. Good researchers try to prove themselves wrong. We want to further medical knowledge, even if it means eating crow.
I share your frustration. When Ive heard the opinion being argued that Keto is dangerous or doesnt provide enough of or any nutrients, Ive found that the speaker is talking about the worst case scenario way to eat Keto, and then over-generalising it to every way to do Keto.
If Keto is done very very badly, yes people could miss out on valuable nutrients. But the same can be argued for any WOE done badly and in its extreme: vegetarian, or vegan, gluten-free, paleo and even SAD.
If we flip it, then the opposite is the same: if done well and in a careful way, then we can have a Keto WOE and get enough nutrients. PLUS get those wonderful health benefits.
When I hear the negative naysayers blather about nutrients, I just get more determined to look at what Im eating and keep it varied and keep my supplements up. I’ve found myself getting into the swing of throwing together small portions of vegetables to keep it varied: 1/4 a carrot instead of 1-2 carrots, 2 cherry tomatoes instead of 5 large ones, 1/4 of a bell pepper instead of a whole one. And that way i can have varied small salads with my main meals and still be within macros. When Im missing fruit, I can hav 1/4 of a piece of fruit for dessert, with a few fat bombs! And compared to pre-Keto, Im eating mountains of spinach and kale and cabbage cooked in butter. And dont get me started on my avacado and walnut intake. Then there are daily multivitamin and nutrient supplements, and fish oil.
So the haters can hate, but theyre not thinking broadly. When they get you down, take what theyre saying on board to see why they might have come to that conclusion, then outsmart their small-mindedness and move on and above them Because there are always going to be haters, and its not an indication that what youre doing is actually wrong. I try to remember the old saying “you can please some of the people some of the time, but not all of the people all of the time.” It keeps me sane 
Hope you keep it up, and thanks for sharing
EDIT: this post was written in a PMS-laiden crankiness fest. You may have to work hard to find the true points underneath the rant-iness of “people in the world suck, grrrrr, people are the worst, arrggghhh, stick it to the machine, grrrrrrr, this wooooorllldddd!!! [shakes fist at sky]”
In keto one probably should take a multivitamin, and possibly supplement magnesium, potassium and calcium and also increase salt intake. Some salts come with extra magnesium and potassium. Listen to the 2ketodudes podcasts, there are those who have eaten meats and organs ONLY for a year and were perfectly healthy. Organ meats are full of vitamins and minerals. A lot of educated naysayers are ignorant of the Ketogenic diet and how good it is for most people. I would venture to say only that very, very small percentage of people who can’t metabolize fat are the ones so unlucky that keto life can’t help them, everyone one else it wouldn’t hurt to try for 3 months or longer. I could be wrong, but that’s what I currently believe.
I have hashimoto’s and followed AIP for over 2 years. I kept eliminating foods as I developed more and different symptoms or food reactions. I lost 7 pounds in 2 years. I started keto in November and lost 5 pounds right away, in December all my symptoms disappeared after 3 days of fasting. No symptoms have returned and the variety of foods I can now eat has more than tripled. Everyone is different but the dogma that thyroid disease means only AIP and no fasting or the sky will fall is just ridiculous in my mind. If you feel good keep doing what your doing and don’t worry what so called experts say. They are not experts on your body, but you are. KCKO, unless you need to tweak it…
Dr Ballayntine fared worse on a very low carb, Keto diet. I had the chance to talk to her in person after her talk at Paleo FX in 2015. Not everyone does super great on a keto diet but many of us do. She does not. So she speaks her truth. That is good -IMO.
Sarah has given a lot to the auto immune community. I’ve learned a lot from her and from the podcasts at 2Keto Dudes.
Take what works for you and do that. That’s the great thing about low-carb, Paleo, keto is that it is meant to be customized to your own age, weight & auto immune status.
You can pull out scientific studies to say almost anything. The most important thing is how you feel and how you age and if you are getting better or worse. Then tell us.
I can’t do under about 30 g of total carbs a day because I do get very, very sick, fast. I’m not a bad person because I can’t do 20 like everybody else. I had Hashimoto’s in 1997. I can’t do dairy either. It’s no biggie. At least I lowered my own personal risk. So far nobody has taken my keto card away from me.
Onward and understand that the keto lifestyle is a spectrum of different applications for different diseases and different reasons. Very varied. For a good reason.
There’s your first 12 problems! Sarah Ballentine is a moron and VERY known for being anti Keto. She’s been busted time after time with cherry picked info, “proof” that ignores all fact and then just straight up lying about things keto related. She’s been called out by all the big players on her nonsense to defend her made up positions and to defend her “facts” As far as I know that’s never happened. If your gonna do keto, you gotta ignore everything that comes out of her mouth. I’m not for Paleo myself, but I know a lot of people have gotten a lot healthier with it so that’s good, what I wouldn’t do is make up stuff and lie about it to push my side on people that may not choose it if they had credible fact to deal with. Sorry for getting rantish, just hearing her name infuriates me.