Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

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I have read "Cupcake recovery" and "Does anyone have a hard time sticking to the diet when they eat at restaurants"? A lot of good advice there. . . especially the idea of fasting the next day. . . which is mostly the point of my question. How to recover from an overload of unknown oils and toxins.

We went to our local Asian buffet--all you can eat for $11.95. I thought I was making pretty good Paleo choices opting for Salmon, chicken wing, crab stuffed mushrooms w/ginger and wasabi, shrimp, mussels, ham with lots of fat, cheese covered steamed spinach and plain tea. About the only thing questionable re Paleo was the Hot and Sour soup (probably had Tofu and cornstarch) and tempura shrimp (breaded batter and probably fried in PUFA oils). Since I had fasted the previous 24 hours I was ravenous and ate two plates of the above. I don't know if it was the food itself or the shameful amount that I ate but my body reacted within four hours with diarrhea (sorry for TMI). Now, the next day I feel awful--almost like recovering from food poisoning.

I'm wondering if it would be better to fast all day (even though I have a rumbling grumbling stomach) or to have some kefir (to restore probiotics) or kombuchu or vinegar(to mop up the sugars) or a home-made coconut oil/dark chocolate wafer (for extra healthy fats). Which of these choices (alone or in combination) would you try to get back on track and feeling like oneself again. Or is there some other magical cure I'm unaware of? Suggestions that have worked for you are most appreciated.

flag	asked Mar 14 2010 at 15:02 Cee Mathers 510●6●13

Ed · Accepted Answer · 2010-03-14 18:03:44Z UTC

Hi Cee. I recommend that you fast for 18 to 24 hr, except for water to restore hydration. Asian buffet food is usually high in sodium, so you probably don't need extra salt (as in Pedialyte, Propel, etc.). Give your body some time to metabolize the cheat meal, then resume your regular paleo diet. I would take some extra fish or fish oil for a few days to balance the O6 PUFAs that you probably ate. I haven't seen any studies to back either the "fast after cheat" strategy or the "feed after cheat" strategy, but fasting after cheating seems to work best for me. Listen to your body and act accordingly. You have just illustrated a problem with the "fast before cheating" strategy, which is that it can make the cheat worse due to hunger.

42 · Answer 2 · 2010-03-14 16:22:53Z UTC

I bet the entire meal was soaked in some kind of hostile vegetable oil, not just the shrimp.

I'm not a doctor but I can play one on teh internets. Yogurt, kefir, kombucha would probably help, maybe a little coconut oil. An imodium or two won't hurt either if you're still a little leaky.

ScottMGS · Answer 3 · 2010-03-14 16:47:02Z UTC

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Considering the state of many buffets you might have actually been suffering from food poisoning. (I mean the bacterial kind, not the non-paleo-food kind.)

answered Mar 14 2010 at 16:47

ScottMGS
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Yes. I know what you mean. My family really looks forward to going to this place so I'm not sure I can avoid it. Next time though I'm bringing a stick of butter and only eating steamed seafood (and not so much of it at that). If I get sick from that--I'll know definitely to boycott the place. – Cee Mathers Mar 14 2010 at 18:57

Tim Rangitsch · Answer 4 · 2010-03-14 17:51:39Z UTC

I'd "vote" for the strategy to EAT very cleanly for quite sometime after a non-paleo binge. Get in the proper fats, protein and building blocks to help the body repair the damage and fight off the foreign foods! Fast sometime later, but for the immediate time after a slip up, I'd hoover in the Paleo goods! Think good red meats, fish, fowl, seafood, and organ meats, get some proper tallow, marrow, eggs and what not to let the body do what it does best!

Louisa · Answer 5 · 2010-03-14 18:42:24Z UTC

I was given some advice when I lived in China a while back, I ate a meal very similar to what you describe and felt kind of 'poisoned' afterwards. A colleague told me that if you eat a meal like this, that undoubtedly has been steeped in copious amounts of MSG and results in headaches and aching body - immediately afterwards drink lots and lots of green tea, like continuously for the rest of the evening. So, I drank green tea and nothing else, lots and lots of it. Then the next day, I ate lightly steamed vegetables (not raw) in chicken broth all day, nothing else (also his advice). I felt really quite bad that evening, but remember feeling OK when I woke up in the morning, feeling absolutely fine by the end of the day. I don't remember eating any probiotic food, but I think this would also be a very good idea as an additional support for your body in case of actual food poisoning, rather than just chemical poisoning.

Hope you feel better soon.

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