most recent 30 from http://paleohacks.com 2013-05-19T14:09:35Z http://paleohacks.com/feeds/question/154018 http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/rdf http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog Keeks333 2012-10-06T18:37:01Z 2012-10-28T21:58:10Z

<p>Last night, I ate a plaintain (cooked in coconut oil) after dinner for the first time ever. Afterwards, I had a SURGE of energy and happiness through my body. It was like the fog was lifted and I felt so happy. It was truly bizarre. </p> <p>Could eating more carbs be the answer to curing my chronic brain fog? I have been relatively low carb, not really on purpose but just due to the nature of paleo eating (fruit maybe 1x/day, squash or sweet potato every other day, broccoli/carrots/other green veggies every day) </p> <p>Any insight or similar experiences would be helpful! </p> <p>background: I went gluten free over a year ago for bloating, brain fog, slow digestion-- it was clear I had an intolerance to it. I have since gone soy, sugar and dairy free and the past 2 months I have gone full paleo. Although my digestion is better (still a work in progress-- years of birth control and antibiotics really did a number on it!), my brain fog and overall unhappiness is just as bad as ever. I have attributed this to possible adrenal fatigue and have been working on getting more sleep and less stress, but it doesnt seem to help. I stopped taking my birth control, and am also taking Vit D, Fish Oil, Magnesium, Vit C and a Multivitamin and the fog will not lift! I am female, 5'6, 130lbs, workout 4-5x/week</p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/154021#154021 JakeA 2012-10-06T18:52:46Z 2012-10-06T18:52:46Z

<p>I feel best when eating low carb during the day and moderate carb at night. Try what you did the day you felt great again and see how it works out for you. </p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/154025#154025 Amber 2012-10-06T19:00:15Z 2012-10-06T19:00:15Z

<p>I had the same experience after being low carb for three months and then having (could've chosen a better carb source I know) garbanzo beans. Literally I felt a SURGE of energy/HAPPINESS exactly like you described afer having them. I don't think it was the garbanzo beans themselves but just having some carbs in general after such a long time w/o them. I hadn't felt like that for basically THREE WHOLE MONTHS. I was SO happy that day. I think after being low carb for a long time, once you are at the weight you want to be (why i'm low carb), that adding in a few carbs at dinner, say some potatoes is totally great/good for your body. And you sound like a perfect weight so some carbs might be exactly what you need!</p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/154039#154039 Melmac 2012-10-06T20:04:18Z 2012-10-06T20:04:18Z

<p>I've found that when I eat sugar, I just want more of it, and as long as I don't eat it I feel fine. And lose weight :-) So I just avoid sugary/starchy things in general, I only make sweet things on occasion. It's up to you though, do what feels best, and you probably have different goals health-wise than I do. This is just from my personal experience.</p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/154046#154046 matthew 2012-10-06T20:24:24Z 2012-10-06T20:30:57Z

<p>you might want to try adding in cold showers start off slow. I think the fitter you are the faster your body will adapt to the cold. Give it a go </p> <p>anything that controls blood sugar I find helps with brain fog. So try adding in Cinnamon or you could add coconut oil to your coffee as well the cinnamon. up to you really </p> <p><a href="http://wakeup-world.com/2012/04/11/ten-health-benefits-of-cold-showers/" rel="nofollow">http://wakeup-world.com/2012/04/11/ten-health-benefits-of-cold-showers/</a></p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/154050#154050 RawNut 2012-10-06T20:55:44Z 2012-10-06T20:55:44Z

<p>I experience the same thing but it doesn't last. Carbohydrates increases serotonin in the brain but after a while the brain down regulates serotonin receptors. You end up searching for that feeling like 'chasing the dragon.' It's part of the reason carbs can be addictive. </p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/154054#154054 Leannmean 2012-10-06T21:13:36Z 2012-10-06T21:13:36Z

<p>I actually had the same thing happen to me this week. I had been feeling down, moody, and grumpy for a couple of weeks. Normally, I eat between 70-100g of carbs a day. However, last Monday I was just feeling so down in the dumps and moody that I decided to give myself a carb-up night. I ate a ton of white rice and some maple syrup and honey. I actually became ecstatically happy as if I taken a drug. </p> <p>The good feeling has stayed with me for the last 5 days and my moodiness has disappeared. I'm not sure what factors are behind the massive mood lift, but I'm happy it's worked. I have been doing a ton of exercise recently (running 40+ miles a week, trying to work through some anxiety issues) and working out besides. Perhaps that's a factor, or perhaps it has something to do with getting down to single digit body fat. I've eaten low carb for years and this is the first time I've noticed such a pronounced mood change from eating carbs. </p> <p>Whatever the case, my girlfriend's quite happy the grumpy me is gone!</p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/154134#154134 Anna 2012-10-07T10:34:53Z 2012-10-07T10:34:53Z

<p>Ive noticed this too. I think I just do better on occasional paleo, rather than all the time paleo. My weight stays stable too. I also do better on more oils, so I make sure I take super primrose oil, krill oil in addition to coconut oil while cooking. It just makes me a happier person in general.</p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/154135#154135 Irene 2012-10-07T11:01:41Z 2012-10-07T11:01:41Z

<p>very interesting, i was feeling so low yesterday, down in the dumps and depressed, was low carb all week, i had a high carb meal yesterday and my mood lifted, i was happy, so i think in future i am going to try have some carbs at the weekends as i hate being a misery to my husband and kids, and myself!! I eat low carb as it controls my weight, but i'm not willing to sacrafice my mental health for low carb, so i'm going to eat carbs without guilt at weekends</p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/154261#154261 matthew 2012-10-08T09:19:16Z 2012-10-08T20:14:39Z

<p>I got bored trying to copy this post. So good old copy and paste. I really don't know why I'm trying to impress some paleo people on the web I got better things to do. &lt;--- joke</p> <p>LINK <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mercola/coconut-oil-benefits_b_821453.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mercola/coconut-oil-benefits_b_821453.html</a> </p> <p>Coconut oil is also nature's richest source of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), also called medium-chain triglycerides or MCTs. By contrast, most common vegetable or seed oils are comprised of long chain fatty acids (LCFAs), also known as long-chain triglycerides or LCTs.</p> <p>LCTs are large molecules, so they are difficult for your body to break down and are predominantly stored as fat. </p> <p>But MCTs (7) , being smaller, are easily digested and immediately burned by your liver for energy -- like carbohydrates, but without the insulin spike. MCTs actually boost your metabolism and help your body use fat for energy, as opposed to storing it, so it can actually help you become leaner.</p> <p>Back in the 1940s, farmers discovered this effect accidentally when they tried using inexpensive coconut oil to fatten their livestock. It didn't work!</p> <p>Instead, coconut oil made the animals lean, active and hungry.</p> <p>Coconut oil has actually been shown to help optimize body weight, which can dramatically reduce your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes (8). Besides weight loss, boosting your metabolic rate will improve your energy, accelerate healing and improve your overall immune function. </p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/156348#156348 Ari 2012-10-17T17:34:52Z 2012-10-17T17:34:52Z

<p>wow! i have never met anybody like me and your whole statement it so true for me..even the height and wt!...i feel that i tolerate carbs better when fried. I asked my nutritionist and she said that it is possible because of the oil/fat &amp; carb ratio. I have been gluten/dairy/sugar free but issues continued until we discovered that there is so much more to it..like fodmap, fructose and histamines in food. I finally got rid of feeling down and mental slowness when these issues where addressed..but it was a difficult thing since can't eliminated all those food so need to work w a good integrative nutritionist to determine which are causing problems and supplements to help...so for some, it is not as easy as following one diet</p>

http://paleohacks.com/questions/154018/is-higher-carb-the-answer-for-better-mood-and-no-brain-fog/158649#158649 Daydreamer 2012-10-28T21:58:10Z 2012-10-28T21:58:10Z

<p>I experienced the same thing. I'm not VLC by any means, I eat around 80 to 150 grams of carbs a day from vegetables and some starch sometimes. However, I was experiencing hunger, sleep problems, brain fog... Had a "carb refeed" that lasted 2 days last week end, with plantains, white rice, sweet potato. Now I feel better, even back on moderate carbs. My muscles look good too haha. So now I've decided to have a carb refeed every week to boost leptin levels and help my hypothyroidism to be less difficult to stand.</p>