Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Been eating Paleo for about 6 weeks. Couldn't lose any weight until I went to 10-15 carbs a day, which means no nuts or fruit right now, but now I am losing so that is good. However, I have developed a terrible stomach ache that goes off and on from morning to night. It is a deep cramping stomach ache with no vomiting or stool issues. Here is a typical day under 20 carbs:

2 poached eggs, two strips turkey bacon for breakfast spinach salad with chicken or beef strips and pepitas for lunch beef or chicken and veggies with salad for dinner turkey jerky for snack

I have also been eating a few Paleo muffins a day. They are made with coconut flour, walnut oil, eggs and stevia. On the chance that it was the coconut flour causing the cramping, I switched to hazlenut flour with no change. All meats are no antibiotics or hormones, grass fed (beef), free range organic veggie fed eggs. Organic veggies.

Thank you in advance for any advice or ideas!

edited Feb 6 2011 at 0:48

Elizabeth
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asked Feb 5 2011 at 20:38

Annie
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	A FEW paleo muffins A DAY!? Yep, I imagine cutting those out could do the trick. Remember, eating something resembling the food that our ancestors ate is probably a good guide, and mountains of ground nuts was probably never it. – Nico Feb 8 2011 at 12:02
	i think too that you should cut out the bacon and muffins, just think to eat what people back then would have eaten...hope you are feeling better – verena May 6 2011 at 4:20

Dexter · Answer 1 · 2011-02-06 01:28:45Z UTC

I have experienced the same thing and it turned out to be that I was not drinking near enough water. Once I increased my intake to 100 fluid oz a day, the ache deep in my stomach went away. It takes about 3 days to go away.

Paleo people tend to not drink enough water because they are statiated and never feel the thirsty pangs.

A good rule of thumb. Take you weight in pounds, divide by two, and that number in ounces is a good number to drink in water. I tend to add about 25% to my number.

Annie · Answer 2 · 2011-02-06 18:30:25Z UTC

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I think Rebecca and Karen win the prize of the day. Less than 24 hours after cutting out the nut flour I am feeling better. Thanks everyone!

answered Feb 6 2011 at 18:30

Annie
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it's evvvvvillll – Bread-Eating Beelzebub Feb 6 2011 at 18:57

Adam Crafter · Answer 3 · 2011-02-05 20:50:18Z UTC

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Do you think you have enough fat in your diet? Might they be hungerpangs? Do look into this, keep your health in mind.

I'm not sure if this is applicable to you, but whenever my stomach bothers me, ginger tea is my first stop.

answered Feb 5 2011 at 20:50

Adam Crafter
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	Hi Adam, definitely not hunger, feels like stomach flu pains, only I never end up in the bathroom! Ginger tea sounds good. – Annie Feb 5 2011 at 21:47
	Agree, does not sound like enough fat. – Elizabeth Feb 6 2011 at 0:48

Rebecca · Answer 4 · 2011-02-05 21:15:32Z UTC

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I just wanted to point out that you are eating MUCH more than 10-15 carbs a day...with all those veggies, if you looked up nutrients, you are probably well over 50-75, not a bad thing, just knowing what your carb intake is realistically is important I think.

I would cut out the nuts and nut flour which can cause some stomach issues and be sure you are drinking enough water.

answered Feb 5 2011 at 21:15

Rebecca
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	The carb intake depends on the veg in question. ex. 10 oz of spinach (a huge pile) has only 10 gms of carb including the fiber. I wonder about the nut flour also. It seems worth eliminating it for a while to see what happens. – Karen Feb 5 2011 at 21:28
	Thanks Rebecca, it might sound like a lot of veggies, but I am careful to count. I have two servings of spinach and one serving of asparagus or something similiar a day. Not many carbs there. Less than 1 carb per muffin with coconut flour or 1.3 carbs with the hazelnut flour. I will definitely consider your suggestion of eliminating the nut flour all together to see what happens. Thank you! – Annie Feb 5 2011 at 21:45
	Thanks Karen, I think I will take yours and Rebecca's advice and try eliminating the nut flour all together. – Annie Feb 5 2011 at 21:50
	Hey Rebecca, I realized that I miscommunicated the carb count. I only count effective carbs, which is carbs minus fiber. That is probably why it seems to you that I am taking in more than I am counting for. Thanks! – Annie Feb 6 2011 at 5:13

Chickenosaurus Rex · Answer 5 · 2011-02-05 21:20:56Z UTC

Could it be coincidental that this happened after you switched to a paleo diet? Perhaps this has nothing to do with diet and is something independent of it. I recommend getting it checked out if it persists.

If it isn't coincidental, maybe as Adam said, you could need more fat in your diet to feel sated.

Egk · Answer 6 · 2011-02-05 23:40:06Z UTC

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What's in the turkey bacon?

answered Feb 5 2011 at 23:40

Egk
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Well Whole Foods is out of Applegate turkey bacon, so we have been using a less desirable one for the last week (stomach ache before this brand of bacon): Organic turkey thighs, water, sodium lactate (from beets) sea salt, celery powder. – Annie Feb 6 2011 at 5:16

Annie · Answer 7 · 2011-02-06 05:09:42Z UTC

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Hey Rebecca, I realized that I miscommunicated the carb count. I only count effective carbs, which is carbs minus fiber. That is probably why it seems to you that I am taking in more than I am counting for. Thanks!

answered Feb 6 2011 at 5:09

Annie
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Got it! I just count carbs, without deducting fiber. For me it's more realistic since I seem to be super sensitive to carbs. Hope your feeling better soon. – Rebecca Feb 6 2011 at 8:01

Earl Cannonbear · Answer 8 · 2011-02-06 02:18:10Z UTC

The symptoms you describe have all the tell-tale signs of an extremely serious condition.

In my professional opinion and many years of clinical experience I must sadly inform you that you are suffering from a terminally malignant stomach tumor.

The prognosis is certain death over the very short term.

My advice to you is to make peace with your maker because you will be meeting Him soon.

Stomach Ache on Paleo

8 Answers