Serious problem with keto

(Al) #1

I’ve been doing keto for almost 6 weeks and I have noticed some amazing changes. In the past week however I’ve been having problems breathing (I think I had my first anxiety attacks in my life). In desperation I went off keto and it worked. I now feel like shit compared to when I was on the diet and I want to do it again. Has anyone experienced this or have an idea of what I may have done wrong? I tried eating more magnesium and potassium but coffee would set it off. Since eating carbs there is no hint of an issue even after 5 consecutive cups of coffee. Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks.

(Carl Keller) #2

Hi Al.

Your respiratory problems sound like an electrolyte issue. Too much potassium and magnesium from supplements can be just as harmful as too little of those minerals and cause problems when eating LCHF. It’s also very important to make sure you are getting at least 2+ teaspoons of salt over the course of your day. Sodium helps balance the other electrolytes and we excrete it much faster than we are used to because of our lowered insulin levels.

Anecdotally, after about six months on LCHF, I noticed I had a faster heart rate and could hear it drumming in my chest when I went to sleep at night… So I started taking magnesium citrate and the HR normalized within a day. Gradually I started eating more avocados and stopped taking the magnesium citrate to the same effect. No more anxiety and my HR has been fine ever since.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #3

I had occasional panic attacks during a couple periods of my adult life. The last were in the weeks just prior to going keto 9 months ago, I was also in a serious depression funk. It all cleared up after my first week starting keto when my glycogen stores were depleted and was in ketosis. I honestly haven’t had a depressed day since then. I think @CarlKeller is onto something with the electrolytes. Also I think you should watch this video by one of my favorite keto experts Ken Berry MD and Dr. Paul Saladino. I hope you get back to keto and have a better experience this time. :cowboy_hat_face:

#4

I’ve noticed a drastic decrease in the amount of coffee it takes to stimulate (or over-stimulate) me while in ketosis.

(Jane- Old Inky Crone) #5

And I thought it was just me!

(Brian) #6

This is interesting. It must affect people differently. When I was earlier in my keto experience, I had to switch to half-caff and decaf because it seemed like the caffeine was too much. After a year and a half going on two years, I notice that I’m a lot less sensitive to coffee and have switched back to regular for most of the time, decaf only late in the day if I’m having some then.

#7

Sometimes I switch it up with tea or green tea too. Less buzzzzy.

(Edith) #8

A slight correction: 2 teaspoons of salt which is about 5 grams of sodium per day.

(hottie turned hag) #9

Me. Not a coffee drinker but I had to go to herbal tea from regular Lipton’s I’d been drinking for decades. Was feeling agitated, wth!

I used to consume lots of Coke too but stopped that cold when I started keto so my assumption is I had a caffeine tolerance that then diminished with the drastic drop in intake.
However as upping carb intake fixed it for you I’d warrant caffeine not the cause in your case; I’d think it goes more to the electrolyte issue abovementioned.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #10

Your comment seemed unclear to me, so please forgive a clarification: the optimal sodium intake for human health appears (from the PURE study and others) to be in the range of 4-6 grams of sodium a day. This translates to 10-15 grams of sodium chloride, or 2-3 U.S. [edit] TEASPOONS (Imperial TEASPOONS are, I believe, slightly larger).

(Edith) #11

One teaspoon of salt has approximately 2300 mg of sodium.

One tablespoon of salt has almost 7000 mg.

The person to whom I replied said, “2 teaspoons of sodium.”

Edith

(Carl Keller) #12

That’s correct. Thanks for catching my mistake. And 4600 mg per day is on the hgher end of optimal.

(less is more, more or less) #13

Funny. Coffee doesn’t stimulate me. I merely (dearly, with a nearly disordered passion) love the taste. That said, I have lost my former copious appetite for coffee. Not on purpose, I just simply drink less these days.

It’s cool when low-carb does that.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #14

Thanks for catching that! :+1: I have corrected my post.