Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Now call me a hypocondriac if you like, but heres what happened (I dont think I am, I was pretty darn relaxed about everything today).

Cooked some nice new tastes for dinner (which BTW was yum), my using 1/4 teaspoon tumeric, and 2 pretty darn heaped teaspoons cinnamon, along with some oregano and tomato for a chicken stirfry sauce.

About 3/4 of the way through the meal, i started to feel spacey. Then sweating alot, clamy hands, mildly accerelated heart rate (not dangerous, but higher than my normal), and pretty dizzy.

I got online and found both these spices lower blood glucose. After I found that out I drunk a small amount of glucose dissolved in water. It seemed to settle, over an hour. I have read that with low carb (I am 50-80grams/day), the body saves its glucose for the brain. These things seem to offer some kind of explaination...

Yes, I probably overused the spices. But in an average diet person who wasnt diabetic, I doubt they would have noticed any effect.

So my question is, has anyone else got a weird response from these spices on lower carb diets?

(Or is there an alternative explaination for why they had this effect)

Cheers!

(update, it wasnt hypoglycemia, it was hyperthyroid, probably induced by a very large increase of iodine in the diet. Think now my iodine is reduced, my thyroid is better - at least no notable symptoms,bu blood test is next week)

edited Aug 27 at 0:23

asked Jul 29 at 8:17

Jamie
5,972●1●5●18

I have tried brushing teeth with turmeric (because I cannot stand it in food) for whitening purposes, but I find the taste nauseating. I have tried cinnamon as well and cannot stand it. I cannot tolerate any spices in my food. My alternative explanation is food sensitivities due to my "sluggish" liver. – VB Jul 29 at 8:19

I am not low carb though. I am "normal" carb. – VB Jul 29 at 8:33

Yeah its an interesting one. Herbs and spices tend to have medical type effects do to things like polyphenols (stuff the liver has to shunt out of the body as quick as it can, lol), but I think partly based on this experience, and what ive read, spices are the worst offenders. Ive always had trouble with garlic and chilli, but this is a new one for me. I think probably with anyone with liver troubles, its probably worth avoiding spices. One should probably be careful with herb or spice and medicine combos too. – Jamie Jul 29 at 9:00

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I know! I can probably work for security now - I smell chemicals 10 yards away. I am amazed at my body. Sometimes I feel like Alice in Wonderland. I just hope it is not forever and at some point I will get back to normal. Or at least semi-normal. – VB Jul 29 at 10:31

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@Jamie - thank you for appreciating my sense of humor... I guess I have nothing left but make jokes in my situation. And watch The Colbert Report. I am working on my liver at this moment (Chinese herbs, Milk Thistle, bitter greens, raw vegetables) - I hope I will get some relief after all. Next on my agenda - lemon juice and beet kvass. – VB Jul 29 at 16:00

show 7 more comments

Crowbar · Answer 1 · 2012-07-29 15:53:52Z UTC

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I use allthose spices by the bucket load, even when I did have diabetes type 2. Do you have type 1? Maybe if you eat them with a carb? Or try to build a better tolerance by starting with small doses?

Anyways, sorry you felt that way, I have and it feels awful.

answered Jul 29 at 15:53

Crowbar
7,481●1●3●17

	No I dont have diabetes at all. I just am low carb (muscle insulin resistant, low blood insulin so my glucose is saved for my brain), I just excercised, had a green tea (blood sugar lowering), and the spices which are both blood sugar lowering. I now symptathise more with diabetics I have to say! Ill be much more careful about proper refuelling after exercise now. Ive had a few pinches of cinnanon before, on non exercise days, without the tumeric and green tea, and been fine. – Jamie Jul 29 at 22:49
	why do you think glucose is "saved" for your brain? it runs just fine on keytone. and i put cinnamin in my morning coffee every day and work out fasted, but i started doing this a long time ago, so i guess i may be accustomed to it. – sage_ Jul 29 at 23:48
	^ Low carb muscle insulin resistance. The brain can run on mostly ketones, but not entirely. I am probably oversimplifying though. – Jamie Aug 27 at 1:37

Aglaee the Paleo RD · Answer 2 · 2012-08-26 17:30:07Z UTC

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did you check your blood sugar levels? it would be interesting to make sure that low blood sugar levels were the problems.

another potential causes would be an excess of mycotoxins (often found in high amounts in many spices)...

answered Aug 26 at 17:30

Aglaee the Paleo RD
3,974●4●16

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Actually it turned out to be hyperthyroid i beleive from too much iodine in my diet. Still getting another test in a week, but had not notable symptoms since cutting the iodine. – Jamie Aug 27 at 0:18

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Typical superstitous human nature, blaming the thing I was doing at the time of symptoms. – Jamie Aug 27 at 1:39

Have you been tested to see if it is the autoimmune form (Grave's disease)? – Aglaee the Paleo RD Aug 27 at 7:03

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Getting that test next week, along with more t4, t3 etc... – Jamie Aug 27 at 12:46

Liloo · Answer 3 · 2012-08-26 17:46:48Z UTC

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Low carb diets under 150 grams of carbs a day will wreak havoc on your thyroid and mess up blood sugar regulation and the ability of your liver to produce glucagon. hypoglycemia is the result.

Google low carb diet and hypothyroidism

answered Aug 26 at 17:46

Liloo
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I have heard of this. Id be quite happpy if low carb slowed down my thyroid because, I discovered since this post its overactive. Doc thinks all my symptoms are because of an increase of iodine in my diet (cranberries, lotsa eggs, iodised salt and fish). My symptoms went away since I cut down on iodine, so I think she may be right. Ill find out it a week, when I see if my t4 is back down to normal range (and tsh up again). – Jamie Aug 27 at 0:20

Michael · Answer 4 · 2012-08-27 12:24:31Z UTC

I've been using turmeric (in my daily scrambled eggs breakfast), ginger and cinnamon and I'm fine unless I go low carb.

When I eat less than 200 grams of carbs per day (I'm very skinny though) all my problems come back. Most of all my insomnia which skyrockets.

I'm still experimenting but whenever I reduce carbs for too many days in a row, all the symptoms knock my door.

P.S..I still have issues with my health with moderate/high carbs diet, but much less than when I do low carbs.

Michael.

Kashkillz · Answer 5 · 2013-01-12 21:07:05Z UTC

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Cinnamon is the natural source of Coumadin. It's a powerful blood thinner. It also has thermogenic properties. 2 tsp is A LOT to eat at once. I remember reading somewhere that it's not a good idea to ingest more than 1 1/2 tsp a day.

answered Jan 12 at 21:07

Kashkillz
3,394●1●1●9

Cinnamon & tumeric & low carb…anyone got any weird responses?

5 Answers