Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

2

I just started making bone broth after reading about how healing it is for your gut. I made two batches of beef bone broth using grass fed beef bones from Whole Foods. I've tried drinking it twice, once at night and once in the morning, and both times it made me get really hot/sweaty, nauseas feeling, and gave me extreme brain fog for a few hours.

Any idea why I might be having a reaction to it? If this matters I didn't strain any of the fat/meat out and have been eating/drinking it with the broth.

For some background I'm 28, was diagnosed with Celiac Disease 7 months ago and have been strictly gluten free since, just recently finished a 20 week candida cleanse/diet, and have been strict Paleo for 4 weeks.

EDIT: Also posted as answer but should have just edited...If anyone is curious it was the fat that was making me sick. I strained it and made sure I wasn't ingesting large chunks of fat and my nausea went away. That was with the same batch, so no other variables changed

edited May 16 2012 at 0:29

asked May 13 2012 at 13:48

Shawn
1,495●1●8●26

1

Did you follow sanitary preparation procedures? It might be contaminated - if you've experienced multiple negative reactions I'd trash it and try again. See if a new batch also makes you feel sick. – Matthius May 13 2012 at 14:02

What sanitary precautions should I follow besides making sure the crock pot and all utensils were clean? – Shawn May 13 2012 at 14:13

Yeah, you need to confirm whether it's all broth that does that or just that batch. Try it from multiple sources if you can. – Carl_Stawicki May 13 2012 at 14:14

Multiple sources meaning chicken/etc? Or beef bones from difference sources? – Shawn May 13 2012 at 14:28

1

I suspect a too high sudden ingestion of fat especially after a cleansing diet. try taking smaller amounts more frequently and build up to a full cup. I doubt it is due to bacterial contamination simply because of the prolonged heat which is pretty much like pasteurization and the content of the broth (bones and fat primarily.) and that is not a typical response for pathogen infection. – jo60 May 13 2012 at 19:32

show 2 more comments

Shawn · Answer 1 · 2012-05-16 00:28:11Z UTC

3

If anyone is curious it was the fat that was making me sick. I strained it and made sure I wasn't ingesting large chunks of fat and my nausea went away. That was with the same batch, so no other variables changed.

answered May 16 2012 at 0:28

Shawn
1,495●1●8●26

1

Thanks for updating. I had the exact same experience when I ate bone broth with fat for the first time, and removing the fat helped a lot though I prefer gelatin by far. – Korion May 18 2012 at 20:44

Lee · Answer 2 · 2012-07-03 23:37:25Z UTC

2

if your still wondering about your reaction to the fat, my guess is that you may have a sluggish gall bladder and therefore need some gall bladder support. look for bile salts or go to your wholistic care provider and ask for a product called Beta TCP by Biotics - it's excellent for gb support!

answered Jul 3 at 23:37

Lee
21●1

I kind of just gave up on bone broth after 4 attempts all giving me the same bad reaction (nausea, extreme brain fog). I appreciate the advice though, it's worth trying since other high fat drinks like 100% coconut milk give me a very similar reaction. – Shawn Jul 4 at 11:28

Aughra · Answer 3 · 2012-05-13 14:01:49Z UTC

Are you sensitive to MSG? Does slow cooked meat give you issues too? I know it's a long shot but it could be the free glutamates that occur when slow cooking meat. I've NEVER heard of a celiac having issues with bone broth and slow cooked meat, though. I mean, it's prescribed by many protocols for healing celiac and other autoimmune issues.

It's also possible that it went bad. Did you bring it to a boil and then turn it down low? How long was it off the burner before you drank it?

Kelly · Answer 4 · 2012-05-13 14:17:29Z UTC

Could be too much fat in the broth? I had the same issue with chicken, I now strain it though a coffee filter to catch the fat and to catch any bits and pieces-so its just broth. It helped.....

I keep some in the refrigerator and freeze the rest. You should reboil the broth every 4 days or you'll have to toss it.

Karin · Answer 5 · 2012-05-13 15:03:46Z UTC

I wonder if perhaps the bones were "bad"... Just because they're grass fed doesn't mean they aren't susceptible to poor sanitary practices or just a sanitary "mistake" in the store...I would just try it again, let the bones cook in crockpot ovnight if possible and see if it was tha batch of bones gone bad or if bone broth may just not be your thing.

Nicole S · Answer 6 · 2012-05-13 14:23:29Z UTC

0

I just read that when adding salt to slow cooked beef-while it cooks actually creates MSG. Maybe try adding salt at the end right before you eat it.

answered May 13 2012 at 14:23

Nicole S
1

I didn't add any salt during or at the end. – Shawn May 13 2012 at 14:29

Roberto · Answer 7 · 2012-05-13 15:10:53Z UTC

0

Maybe you are histamine intolerant? Do a lot of spinach or smoked salmon make you sick?

answered May 13 2012 at 15:10

Roberto
646●1●8

I don't typically eat a lot of either, however I did eat smoked salmon last week randomly and felt sick for the rest of the day. I also ate bacon that may have had gluten in it (in a restaurant salad) so it could have been that as well. So hard to pinpoint it with various allergies and tough to limit controls/variables when eating out. – Shawn May 13 2012 at 19:07

Paul · Answer 8 · 2012-10-22 12:13:29Z UTC

You say that it is OK when You eat it without fat, but how You react to eating other fats, without broth, with other foods like vegetables?
I have got something similar - about 30 mins after eating, it may last few hours. After i drink some of broths (i noticed this after chicken or lamb so far) i feel bad, very tired, sleepy, but I though it was celery or parsley added to broth. But i made broth - lamb leg with carrot only, 8 hours cooking - and i had that bad feeling after drinking. There wasnt too much visible fat. Maybe it depends on the way You cook it? I was changing a bit power of fire during cooking, sometimes it was boiling faster and sometimes slower. When it was bone-meat chicken broth, i had this bad feeling after eating meat alone.

Greetings, P

Robin H · Answer 9 · 2012-11-30 19:03:21Z UTC

Glad to see this thread. I spent an hour throwing up last night after consuming a bunch of bone broth. I did skim most of the fat off, but there was still a decent amount I guess. I will try again after getting rid of the fat. It's odd to me, because I'm no stranger to high-fat foods. I always thought my body loved fat. I have had reactions to eating straight coconut oil before, but that was more of a stomach ache. This was straight nausea. Weird.

Morrigan · Answer 10 · 2013-01-29 18:45:59Z UTC

I get this reaction to and according to this article it's because of the free glutamates affecting people with compromised

http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/stock-vs-broth-are-you-confused/

It would be weird if the tallow fat was causing me anxiety since I normally get calm when eating saturated fats, doesn't matter if it's liquid.

Maybe your gut healed and you're not reacting anymore?

Beef bone broth making me feel sick, any ideas why?

10 Answers