IF you ARE gonna cheat and you know it

(Brian) #1

OK, I know there will be the comments, “Just don’t do it”, etc. I completely understand. But I have a more “technical” question that I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone ask.

IF a person KNOWS that they WILL be cheating for a few days, for whatever reason, it doesn’t matter what the reason it, but they KNOW they WILL be eating standard fare, is there any value in including at least a minimal dose of some type of NSAID while under the “influence”?

(Yes, I totally get that a person can’t medicate their way out of a bad diet, especially long term, and expect good health.)

I have heard that there is an inflammation factor involved in the damage done by carby meals and had wondered whether it would actually be a good practice for the rare occasions when it IS going to happen.

I would bet it happens a LOT at this time of the year, all of the holiday eating, and people who are good most of the year that just, well… they’re gonna eat it this time of year even if it’s off the plan, and it’s not a single meal but extended.

A single meal here or there on rare occasion, that’s noise. But if it turns into 2 or 3 days, or even a week or more, at that point, is it worth considering an NSAID?

I know it’s not a question most wanna hear. But it is an honest question.

Please note, I did not say I’ve fallen off the wagon, intend to eat copious amounts of carbs and sugar, or any such thing. But it’s something I wondered about. Call it hypothetical if you want to. But the premise is not altering the eating, it is dealing with the aftereffects when someone does with close repeat offenses.

Any thoughts?

(Joey) #2

@Bellyman Fascinating question!

Putting aside the semantics of the term “cheating” (which I’m not fond of) for eating in a way one knows is not healthy for them, I’ll focus on your larger point and question…

I think of inflammation from poor dietary choices as a v-e-r-y s-l-o-w moving train. That’s why we make it through life long enough to slowly develop the associated inflammation-based diseases.

As such, I would think that taking an NSAID for a few days would make little difference - but then again, eating poorly for just a few days would also make little difference.

A common NSAID - baby aspirin - is prescribed for post-primary CVD incident patients (including stroke) as a helpful preventative for subsequent events. Its effects have been proven repeatedly to be statistically effective - but not highly so. The stats are typically presented in “relative risk” terms rather than “absolute risk” term because the effect is observable but not compelling.

It is deemed worth the minimal risks - e.g., stomach bleeding - since these adverse effects are also rare but statistically meaningful. From my reading on the topic, the benefits and the associated risks of taking an NSAID like baby aspirin (81mg daily) are about even. It’s a push. To be clear, I do believe that for post-primary CVD patients, the benefits are worth the risks. But that’s not your question.

It’s worth noting that in the case of aspirin, the reason it is prescribed is not for its anti-inflammatory effects in post-primary CVD patients, but because it is a “blood thinner” by affecting the surface of the red blood cells to keep them from “sticking” to each other (unlike an anti-coagulent, which also functions as a “thinner” but by interrupting the serum protein that would otherwise work to bind individual red blood cells to each other).

So… Would I recommend someone take an NSAID who is typically eating a low-carb diet but wants to eat carbs for some stretch of time - in hopes of staving off the inflammatory effects of the carbs? Heck no, I certainly would not.

But that’s because I don’t think the benefits - if any - are worth the adverse effect risks - albeit small. The longer one eats carbs the more tissue inflammation is likely to occur.

Taking an NSAID like aspirin on a regular basis is not likely to mitigate this … but it will make it more likely you will bruise easily and have a harder time forming a scab if injured. Doesn’t seem like a good game plan to me. :vulcan_salute:

#3

I noticed an improvement in tendinitis I’ve had for a while pretty quickly once I started keto, & have noticed it’s flared again after just one day off keto, so for me I believe the inflammation happens pretty quickly! We’re all different…

#4

No…you can. Just not something most are actually willing to do, but an NSAID isn’t doing anything, other than maybe wreck your already pissed off stomach.

If you’re gonna be normal and over eat on holidays, you want Berberine or Metformin, Digestive Enzymes, and maybe another Glucose disposal agent.

As far as eating actual garbage, which doesn’t just mean “evil carbs”, because that’s stupid, meaning real trash, High dose Omega’s, Activated Charcoal, Vitamin C.

(Brian) #5

Interesting thoughts! And thanks for sharing!

It’s not that I intend to go eat a bunch of garbage, it’s just something I wondered about. I ponder such things in my tiny brain. :wink: And I figure some of you are pretty smart when it comes to things like this.

And also, thanks for reading the question as intended, not a moral question, not an ethical question, not even a will-power question… but a chemistry question. :slight_smile:

Ifod14, interesting thoughts on Berberine and digestive enzymes, etc, I hadn’t even thought of that.

(Joey) #6

Fair enough - that’s an experience of relief from joint stiffness somewhat similar to my own (albeit not quite as immediately).

I would guess that we got to this stage where inflammation effects arise more quickly upon eating carbs results from many decades of eating them well before we got to this point. :thinking:

(Peter - Don't Fear the Fat ) #7

Glad this thread came up.
In prep for Christmas I did a little experiment, I ate a little fruit after being Carni for a while.
Didn’t go well, frequent toilet visits, poor sleep and stomach cramps.
Think it’ll be a carni christmas for me.

(Brian) #8

Yikes, that’s definitely not something you want to deal with.

I’ve never been 100% carnivore for more than a day or maybe two and haven’t had things like you mention happen since shortly after I went keto about 8 or so years ago. I’ve had varying levels of carb inputs, sometimes more, sometimes less, but don’t really see a whole lot of symptoms in a dramatic way. My symptoms when I overeat the carbs are more like the scale creeping upward, the mental clarity getting a little fuzzy, generally not feeling quite as well, more subtle stuff. In a way, you’re kinda fortunate in that you get a nearly immediate and recognizable response.

Anyway… it’s an interesting topic to me even though I’m a kindergartner compared to many here when it comes to things like organic chemistry or human physiology.

(Joey) #9

Have yourself a very Carni Xmas. :christmas_tree: