Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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What has been the effect of zero carb on your skin?

edited Sep 25 2011 at 16:31

asked Sep 25 2011 at 16:18

Korion
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I think there is a big difference between a zero or low carb diet that is high in fat or one that is high in protein. I think my years of low carbbing the first time around did not do good things to my skin because I was taking in high levels of protein. This time I am going to focus on making fat my primary fuel. I suspect that will work better. We'll see. – none Sep 25 2011 at 17:36

I never go high protein honestly. Too expensive. And an update : my chin's skin has improved a lot during the 6 days of ZC. My stools are very loose though. I lose more fat, but apart from that there's nothing that changed. – Korion Oct 5 2011 at 10:13

David Rourke · Answer 1 · 2011-09-25 16:45:37Z UTC

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I do low-ish carb paleo/primal, not zero carb.

There have been significant skin benefits. I no longer have acne. I no longer have dandruff. I've been told I look younger (I'm 48).

answered Sep 25 2011 at 16:45

David Rourke
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	You definitely don't look 48! I'd have put you maybe at 40. – vdh1979 Sep 25 2011 at 16:49
	Thanks, David, for your input! I've been thinking about this since I started paleo, I though fiber was important for acne. Just a question : what do you eat, do you eat eggs, do you eat egg whites? Did you do VLC too? – Korion Sep 25 2011 at 17:06
	My diet is pretty normal within the paleo range, including eggs (while and yolk). I do have some whole and fermented dairy as I seem to tolerate it fine. I tend to randomly cycle carbs from high-ish (plenty of starchy tubers) to VLC. – David Rourke Sep 25 2011 at 17:14

Ambimorph · Answer 2 · 2011-09-25 17:30:28Z UTC

It's a bit complicated for me. First, I've had rosacea since before going ZC, and that got a bit better, but isn't cured, and I'm not really sure whether the improvement was ZC related or coincidence. Second, after over a year and a half ZC I started having very dry skin, especially on the backs of my hands. After a couple of months I started taking iodine and it cleared up.

So in sum, I don't feel ZC changed my skin. I didn't fix my only real skin complaint, and the dryness problem I had came way later, and was resolved independently of ZC.

Edit: I guess I should add that I've never had an acne problem, so I can't speak to that. The rosacea symptoms for me were not the acne/bumpy kind, but rather hot facial flushing and the skin turning red in colour as if sunburned. My skin texture is still soft and smooth despite all of this.

Sunshine · Answer 3 · 2011-09-25 17:07:01Z UTC

I was a former ZC'er and it messed me up big time. My skin dried out (also became puffy and inflamed), I had horrible sleep, and I was depressed. It was also not poo friendly either :-(

This all manifested in a matter of a few months. I quit after seeing all these symptoms manifest and have introduced a copious amount of safe starches back into my diet. I leaned out and feel happier overall :o)

I wouldn't recommend ZC, but who knows, it may work for you. Give it a shot.

Though I'm curious to know what your agenda is.

A at Grain Free Diet · Answer 4 · 2011-09-25 20:44:43Z UTC

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When I was ZC, my skin looked the best it ever has. It was positively glowing.

But at the same time I was ZC, I was also:

Off dairy
Eating a lot of fat
Living somewhere with well water
Living somewhere with a water softening system

So, was it ZC? Was it no dairy/gluten? Was it the well water? It's kind of hard for me to put my finger on just one.

answered Sep 25 2011 at 20:44

A at Grain Free Diet
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	I wonder how many zero carbers actually ate organ meat? Did you eat organ meat? – Cody Sep 25 2011 at 23:07
	When I was ZC, I ate braunschweiger here and there, but not on any consistent basis. Once a month or less. – A at Grain Free Diet Sep 25 2011 at 23:40

Rose · Answer 5 · 2011-10-31 13:36:46Z UTC

I can't say my skin has changed very much in the 2+ years I've been ZC/XLC. Of course, I'm a middle-aged woman, so no change is a good thing from my perspective. I do tend to get dry skin in the winter, but that's been going on for years, and is largely a function of being in furnace-heated air all the time, I believe.

Eating higher-fat (I naturally settle at around 65% fat, but can bump it up to around 75% with some concerted effort--80% is really hard) seems to have a slightly beneficial effect, and not just on my skin, but on overall health and energy. But it requires a lot of effort, and the small benefits are offset by the fact that I usually have to go to dairy to get that kind of fat, and that gives me mild stomach pains.

Bill · Answer 6 · 2011-09-25 18:25:26Z UTC

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ZC helped my acne somewhat but then I got dandruff. Both went away with starches and fruits.

answered Sep 25 2011 at 18:25

Bill
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Same for me (well, I don't eat much fruit, but my acne didn't resolve until I went from VLC to moderate carb paleo). – animalcule Sep 25 2011 at 19:59

Dean · Answer 7 · 2011-10-31 13:06:51Z UTC

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All in all my skin is very clear on ZC, but it's not 100% stable yet after a few weeks. My theory is that acne is a reflection of gut health and flora, and going zero carb causes gut flora to reduce greatly, which may also be the cause of loose stools in the first days of ZC. Then it could take a while, maybe months, for it to adjust to a carnivorous flora, and for the intestine to heal if that is a factor.

There could be a chance that if meals aren't properly digested (due to low stomach acid for example), unfavorable flora and inflammation result.

Gelatin might shift the amino acid balance towards a less inflammatory one and aid collagen formation. Zero Carb is a formality sind it might make sense to include liver and yolks for Vitamin A, choline etc, and those will contain small amounts of carbs.

A mineral supplement might be a good idea if you're not drinking mineral rich water. Also other supplements like iodine/selenium as mentioned on perfecthealthdiet.com.

answered Oct 31 2011 at 13:06

Dean
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	reducing endotoxin load probably helps a lot but i don't think the whole gut health/flora thing really makes a big difference unless you have some serious gut problems. I can cause myself to break out by just drastically decreasing my vit A intake. – cliff Oct 31 2011 at 13:15
	Sure it's not everything, there are hormones and whatnot involved as well. This is where the hormonal effects of low carb come into play. You eat a lot of sugar and I know you advocate carbs everywhere, something I don't agree with. Have you ever tried a similar approach but on low carb, and then reduced vitamin A? It sounds weird to have to take much higher doses than average permanently, like a symptomatic treatment. Adderal ist just a retinol derivate as well after all, only that one has major side effects. – Dean Oct 31 2011 at 13:31
	I've tried fairly low carb(~150g) with pretty bad results. Adderal is an amphtamine, do you mean accutane? Accutane isn't vit A, its a retinol derivative that only occurs in small amounts in the body. I have to take such a large dose of vit A because I'm likely depleted from chronically low intakes my whole life and I went vit A deficient on a vegan diet. A pound of liver has 76k iu so I would hardly call it a higher than average dose, it depends what your definition of average is. – cliff Oct 31 2011 at 13:48
	Yes, I meant accutane. Well, it's all relative - to me 150g seems fairly high and a pound of liver is more than I eat in a week. Your approach seems unconventional, it's very hard to compare to a ZC approach that also yields good results for many. For me, better skin was just one of the positive side effects, not the goal. – Dean Oct 31 2011 at 14:20
	zc seems to mess most people up. I would hardly call my approach unconventional compared to zc. – cliff Oct 31 2011 at 14:29

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Huey · Answer 8 · 2011-10-31 13:35:09Z UTC

I've got a sebaceous cyst on my shoulder that's looking more unsightly now that I've lost weight. What's the paleo way to bring it to a head so it drains as a boil?

EDIT:

I'm nearly zero-carb, I'm told I look like I've regressed ten years, but every time I neglect my grey beard, the kids at McDonald's still automatically give me the senior discount on morning coffee.

Being that it's morning right now, don't ask how I look. Please, never ask in the mornings.

Korion · Answer 9 · 2011-10-31 12:30:17Z UTC

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Just like Sunshine, my skin got worse on ZC. The first few days gave me some zits, though that stopped when cutting out eggs. After 3 weeks, nothing had changed. Suddenly my skin started to look a tiny bit worse every day (more inflamed). Now I'm going to shop for veggies, and maybe try some starch if that doesn't do enough.

Thank you all for your input.

answered Oct 31 2011 at 12:30

Korion
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	Probably your thyroid slowing down. I wish someone would give us the low-down on when/how to do zero carb and how to keep the thyroid humming along while doing it... – Cody Oct 31 2011 at 12:42
	@cody- you have to eat all the glandulars and organs of animals, this is how the eskimos do it. they aren't even zc though, zc is a modern day experiment. – cliff Oct 31 2011 at 12:57
	@korion- in my experience enough sugar to keep metabolism high and adequate nutrients(especially retinol) is the best way to permanently rid yourself of acne. Starch and vegetables will probably make it worse in the long run. Get a thermometer and get your temp up-to 98.6 after a meal and experiment with with vit a intakes(i take 50k iu personally but you can take all he way upto 100k iu if you get enough D&K.) – cliff Oct 31 2011 at 13:03
	I thought about thyroid issues and am now including more iodine (from seaweed) and selenium in my diet. I already take vitamin A (in cod liver oil), but I'm curious about the thermometer stuff : what's that all about? What exactly should I do? – Korion Oct 31 2011 at 13:26
	i would be careful with too much seaweed as its petty easy to OD iodine. Broda barnes say the only way to accurately test thyroid function is with body temperature, you want it to be 97.6 upon waking and 98.6-99 around mid day after eating. if its lower you are most likely hypothyroid. – cliff Oct 31 2011 at 13:54

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Zero Carb for the skin?

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