Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

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I've been reading Paleohacks every day for the last 6 weeks as I've been trying to clear up my skin. I haven't had perfect success with that yet, but it seems that it usually takes 2 to 3 months to resolve skin issues, so I'll continue to wait (though I'm frustrated). My diet is: grass-fed beef, some fish and oysters, some chicken or pork (once a week or less), some liver and marrow, lots of vegetables, beets, yams, all green vegetables, carrots, cauliflower, coconut oil, beef tallow, occasional bone broth, fermented sauerkraut, no eggs, no dairy (including no butter), no nightshades, no nuts. I cut out the occasional glass of wine a few weeks ago. Recently I cut out coffee as well. I supplement with zinc, magnesium, vitamin D, K2, and sometimes I take a probiotic.

I still have some slowly healing break-outs from accidental gluten ingestion a few weeks ago (gluten gives me cysts and large areas of swelling on my face... lovely) but I was pleased because since I've been following this strict diet, my skin has been feeling softer and I wasn't really getting any new breakouts. Except two weeks ago, when I ate maybe 1.5 cups of grapes and the next day got 4 or 5 new break-outs on my temples (which had been clear). I didn't really think much of it. But then over this weekend, I ate several medjool dates, and again broke out all over my temples the next day. Additionally, I felt mildly depressed for about two days afterward, and my digestion (which is usually strong) was off.

I haven't really been eating fruit apart from those 2 instances, but now I'm scared to eat it at all. Does this mean that I likely have fructose malabsorption? Will I eventually be able to tolerate fruit again? I'd like to be able to eat it (along with a lot of other things, haha) but I really want to have nice skin. I'm willing to continue to be this strict with myself but it would be easier if I saw more improvement.... Thanks to all for your help!

flag	asked Apr 2 2012 at 20:46 Jula15 61●4

	Your nutrition looks really good, well done. I had never had an issue with cystic acne but about 6 months ago tried to eat at a farm to street food truck. The meat was grass fed and I never got bread as I have tested sensitive to gluten, but after a few meals there I got a serious case of cystic acne on my back. It was either gluten, the vegetable oil they likely cooked the meat in, or both. While this doesn't address your fruit question, could there potentially be any sources of vegetable oil in your diet? – Todd Apr 2 2012 at 20:56
	Thanks, Todd. I cook everything myself and can say there is no trace of vegetable oil EXCEPT for one night when my parents were in town three weeks ago and I ate roasted chicken at a nice restaurant with them. I really hoped the chicken was not doused in canola oil or something but I was too self-conscious to ask. Oh, and a friend prepared a "gluten-free" vegetable stir-fry for me a couple of weeks ago and I did not inquire as to the oil he used. It's possible it was vegetable oil. I'll try to be even more careful about this. Thank you for sharing your experience! – Jula15 Apr 2 2012 at 21:13
	Most welcome. I only mentioned it because my reaction was so bad and it really caught me off guard. Best of luck tracking down your culprit :) – Todd Apr 3 2012 at 3:04

Derek · Answer 1 · 2012-04-02 21:01:43Z UTC

It's possible yes. It could also be from polyols though. A lot of the sweeter fruit has a lot of polyols in it like the dates and grapes you ingested. Lots of people have issues with them also. Try some fruits with less in them like melon, honeydew or blackberries. Google it to find more fruits with high/low polyol content. Good luck, I hope it helps!

Lucas · Answer 2 · 2012-04-03 02:06:39Z UTC

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http://groups.google.com/group/sci.med.nutrition/browse_thread/thread/d6e79da57651301e/266fb22047bab32a

answered Apr 3 2012 at 2:06

Lucas
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It's interesting that that person reports suffering from constipation after eating fruit because that's what happens to me too! Normally I have pretty much perfect digestion, like clockwork, so it was very unusual to not go for a day and a half after eating that fruit. That makes me think I am reacting to the fructose. Thanks for the link. – Jula15 Apr 3 2012 at 15:09

James · Answer 3 · 2012-11-09 13:27:17Z UTC

I just came across this post, hope my comment will still be relevant. I've suffered from an extreme 'change' to my body since I was 40, guess that's the magic age that things go to hell. At any rate, I've spent the past 3 years suffering from cystic acne and a destruction of my face that never existed before. My desire to get to the bottom, I'm mean the real reason, of it all has led me to an pretty consistent answer: Candida. Look it up, I can't explain it all here. In short, saturated fats(oils, egg yolks, beef, the skin of any meat, dairy) and sugars (fruit, art. sweeteners, syrups, malt) all feed Candida. Candida is a yeast, it's like making bread, you add sugar and milk to get the yeast to rise. I have cut nearly everything from the grocery store out of my diet, since our culture thrives on oils and sugars to preserve and make food tasty. I have also dropped 20 pounds, but the good news is I don't have cystic acne and I will never be fat! Unlike you, I cannot kick coffee. Coffee kills the good bacteria in your stomach and intestines that keep the Candida under control. I take a probiotic like you, but I still struggle with a pimple now and then because of it.

Oh yah, another thing to know, our culture's definition of 'fruit' is culinary=based. In other words, what tastes sweet and works with other foods for consumption. This will kill a fructose-malabsorber. Go by the botanical definition and you'll be saved. Tomatoes are fruit after all!

Hope this helps. Everyone is different.

Could this be a reaction to fructose?

3 Answers