My Carnivore Insomnia Fix - Finally Found the Cause | It Took Me 6 Mos. of Tracking
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- Опубликовано: 23 май 2024
- Waking up at around 3 AM while eating keto or carnivore is fairly common. Feeling like you're "always hungry" is another problem for some people. I've majorly struggled with both of these issues & I believe mine are related to unstable glucose levels and insulin suppression due to eating low-carb for years now. This video will tell you why that is.
I spent the last 6 months tracking every aspect of my daily life + getting every lab and blood test imaginable, to figure out why this is happening & how to resolve it. I'm here to share my recently updated labs, my experiments, and my results with you. I've chatted with so many of you who are dealing with similar issues. You were a bit motivator for me to find answers here. So, I hope this helps.
Please share your experiences in the comment section below to help others. Thank you so much for watching - Holly.
PS - If you want to chat about this more, please join my forum at: www.lifeanddiy.com/forum/.
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VIDEOS & RESEARCH STUDIES CITED⤵
Dr. Cywes & Dr. Ben Bikman's Chat About Insulin Suppression
• Ep:363 BRILLIANT EXPLA...
@DrCywesCarbAddictionDoc
@Paulsaladinomd
Dr. Andrew Huberman video on hunger hormones • How Our Hormones Contr...
@hubermanlab
Dr. Cywes Video about Paul Saladino & His Client - Insulin Supression explained
• Ep:323 WHEN PAUL SALAD...
Dr. Cywes Video on the Insulin Paradox - Insulin Suppression (LMHR) - confusing explanation
• Ep:247 INSULIN PARADOX...
Physionic Study on Insulin and Ghrelin
• EX-e: INSULIN - How do...
Study: Interaction Between Specific Fatty Acids, GLP-1 and Insulin Secretion in Humans
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12436...
Study: Adaptation to High-Fat Diet Accelerates Emptying of Fat But Not Carbohydrate Test Meals in Humans journals.physiology.org/doi/f...
Nick Norwitz PhD's explanation of Lean Mass Hyper Responders LMHR
• THIS is Why There is C...
Cholesterol Code: Must-read articles about LMHR
cholesterolcode.com/lmhr/
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TIMESTAMPS⤵
00:10 Eating Keto/Carnivore
01:00 Age-Related Wake-Ups
01:28 Tracking
02:24 Insulin Suppression
02:50 Dr. Cywes Clips
04:31 Lean Mass Hyper Responders (LMHR)
05:23 Thoughts on Carnivore
05:51 Haywire Hunger Hormones
05:58 Low Insulin
06:31 Excessive Hunger
07:48 Dr. Huberman Clip on Ghrelin
08:11 Ghrelin & Sleep
08:28 Physionic Video: Insulin & Hunger
10:23 GLP-1 & Insulin
11:37 Gastric Emptying
11:50 Study: High Fat Gastric Emptying
12:18 My Issue with Hunger
12:54 Fat Intake
13:25 Carbohydrates
13:47 Sleep Issues & Glucose
14:50 How to Improve Sleep
17:30 Carbs & Ketosis
17:55 Hypoglycemia Warning
18:20 Honey Experiment
18:40 My Reactive Hypoglycemia Symptoms
19:28 Tips
19:49 Recommended Labs
20:24 My Insulin Labs
20:43 Latest Cholesterol Labs
21:37 Food Sensitivities
21:49 What Now?
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FOOD-RELATED VIDEOS⤵
Carnivore Insomnia Video Part 1:
• My #1 Biggest Issue on...
My Carnivore Experience 60 Days In, Plus Past Health Issues: • Video
Always Hungry on Carnivore? One Sneaky Little Cause: • Always Hungry on Carni...
Bloodwork on Carnivore - My Results:
• Bloodwork on Carnivore...
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MY FAVORITE PRODUCTS ON AMAZON⤵
lifeanddiy.com/AmazonFavs
* These are my favorite products! I earn small commissions if you purchase anything through here.
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#carnivore #keto
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DISCLAIMER⤵
The Video Content has been made available for informational and educational purposes only. The video creator does not make any representation or warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability, fitness, or completeness of the Video Content.
The Video Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
The video creator hereby disclaims any and all liability to any party for any direct, indirect, implied, punitive, special, incidental or other consequential damages arising directly or indirectly from any use of the Video Content, which is provided as is, and without warranties.
*Update:* Thank you for all the comments! For anyone who wants some clarification on what can happen if you do low-carb, keto, or carnivore for a really long time (as it relates to insulin and insulin suppression) I just found this other video by Dr. Cywes: ruclips.net/video/A3JduWLj_0E/видео.htmlsi=pgSya4e0n5XWkHRS and he talks about it sometime after the 10 minute mark. I highly recommend it as he explains things a lot better in this video than any others that I've seen. It's really interesting to hear his perspective on it and what he's learned through his clients.
I forgot to include something in the video that I think is important. I recently had a hormone panel done - a comprehensive test called DUTCH Complete. This tests sex hormones, cortisol, some neurotransmitters, and more - at five different times so you can get a picture of what is happening day and night. The results showed that my cortisol levels were very low. This can occur for many different reasons from autoimmune disorders to chronic stress. I suspect that cortisol issues are more common than we know about because so few people get tested.
When blood sugar dips, cortisol helps the liver produce glucose through gluconeogenesis, while insulin is the primary hormone regulating blood sugar levels. If one or both of these are low, it could potentially contribute to blood sugar issues.
If anyone is interested in the DUTCH Complete test, it's pretty expensive and not covered by insurance. It normally costs $500 but I purchase the test from DHALabs for $350. I'm not affiliated with them, but I've been using their services for a decade and highly recommend them.
If you're struggling with your health even after making dietary changes and if you feel like your doctor isn't really helping you, I highly recommend looking into seeing an Integrative Health doctor. Most major hospital chains in the U.S. have these types of specialists that you can see or do virtual visits with, and for me, it's covered by insurance. I'm really grateful that I have one because she has a lot of patients who eat low-carb, keto, and carnivore and she stays on top of the research.
I recommend a fasting early morning BLOOD cortisol test to confirm as well. Also, a blood DHEA-S done at that time will also show if your adrenals are struggling. If both DHEA-S and Cortisol are low, it could potentially be caused by not taking in enough carbs. Sorry if that goes against the carnivore people. Cortisol plays a role when the body is primarily in fight or flight (under stress). If indeed you do have low cortisol, then something is stressing you out big time! What is it in my opinion? DIET! Considering of course IF your cortisol was NORMAL before starting your carnivore way of eating. Hopefully you did some baseline testing before making that drastic change in your diet.
Sounds like your doc has a grip on it, but as an integrative functional medicine practitioner myself, I was always using the Dutch test with patients, but you will find some discrepancies in the results. The idea behind testing urine is that the body WILL excrete any excess hormones that it does not need through the urine and if the urine shows low then that means YOU are low on that particular hormone. Well, that is NOT entirely true because the body has a unique way of hanging onto things AND storing those things - which in this case can be hormones. For example, I had a female patient with severe acne about 6 weeks from testosterone pellet insertion. We did a repeat Dutch test and she still showed low on testosterone. I then decided to test serum, and lo and behold she was sky high and had DHT levels out of the range. Since then I have used the Dutch test as only one tool in my arsenal when it comes to testing.
I have frequent meetings with other physicians and functional medicine practitioners to share thoughts on this. Conventional medicine calls the Dutch test quackery - lol. However, it does have its use in my own professional opinion when done with some serum testing as well and I have been doing this 30+ years. The thyroid is another one. You can have someone with autoimmune issues have a perfectly functioning thyroid and then they eat something that triggers MCAS, and their thyroid numbers hit the roof within minutes. It's not the thyroid doing it, it's the mast cells that are releasing thyroid hormone due to the foods they ate. Yes, thyroid hormone is stored in peripheral tissues as well. This is why someone with an autoimmune disease can eat certain foods and go into a full blown panic attack. Not many docs know this one..... Sorry for the long comment.
@@Total_Body_Fitness_USA Thanks so much for sharing this! I did have both of those early morning serum tests done too (on DHEA-S and Cortisol) and they correlate with the DUTCH results. That's very interesting about the serum labs of your patient vs the Dutch results. I am fortunate my doctor ordered those labs with a bunch of other ones. The only unusual thing I've experienced with thyroid testing is that if I take my thyroid medication the morning of the test, it shows that my TSH is greatly suppressed and in the past, some doctors would think that I was hyperthyroid when I was not. If I skipped it and took it after the test, I was within a normal range. I've told this to some past doctors but they don't really listen. So I tend to just avoid taking it before the labs and then things are fine.
@@LifeDIY Sounds like you have a good doc which can be hard to find. Yes, do not take thyroid meds before testing because it will suppress TSH for a short while. Keep an eye on your antibodies as well to see if your diet is helping if indeed you have Hashimoto's. If your antibody levels are fine and you still have low thyroid, then look at iron/ferritin as a start. Not sure if you've ever done a GI-MAP test, but that one is very good when it comes to finding underlying gut issues, and a lot of gut issues can contribute to autoimmune issues. Oh, and hopefully your doc is checking Free T3 as well. You want to be at the top of the range, but without tanking your TSH. I'm sure you have it all figured out as much research as you do. Keep up the good work!
You're clearly not exercising nearly enough. Also how much water do you drink a day?
@totalbodyfitness6103 Definitely! I'm grateful I haven't had any antibodies in many years. Thank you for recommending the GI-MAP. I just looked at the website and sample report, and I did do a very similar test to this months back. I was very curious and wanted to do it while eating strict carnivore. I forgot to post a video about it. My doctor is also testing FT3 and some other thyroid labs. She's very comprehensive luckily and I have a really good endocrinologist. I can't believe I'm saying that as in the past I've had the most horrendous experiences with endos. But, this lady is excellent. I have been in the process of very slowly titrating down on my thyroid medication and I was so happy I was in a good range the last time it was checked. I know it shouldn't just be normal, but optimal. Plus, I am not having any symptoms of hypothyroidism. I'll get it checked again in a month. Thank you so much for all your insights and helpful guidance. I wish you had a YT channel!
I have had sleep issues for over 20 years - been mostly carnivore since October 2023. I recently discovered a sleep remedy - I drink a cup of bone broth to which I add a tablespoon of butter an hour before bedtime - slept for a solid 7 hours after that.
Might give this a try, Thanks.
Great 👍 idea, I’ll have to try it.
I just do a tablespoon of butter. Then go brush my teeth and go to bed and that has worked wonderfully.😊
@@Habanero777 Same! Just eating butter just before going to bed and I sleep like a baby! Such a deep sleep and nothing wakes me up lol! I love it.
I am going to try this. I stopped taking melatonin and it is now taking me 2-3 hours to fall asleep, ugh.
To everyone watching this remember carnivore is really hypercarnivore as Prof Bart Kay tells us meaning even if you eat some carbs in the form of vegetables for example and its below 30% you are still doing carnivore. Eating a bolus of protein will also bump up your glucose levels. You always want a bump and not a spike. If it's working for her then all good. Everyone is different as our ancestors come from different parts of the globe with different climates and environments to deal with. This is why some can tolerate dairy and others cannot. The most important thing to stick with is consuming a majority animal based diet. Stay away from smoking, alcohol, all seed based oils and carbs especially grain based. Remember plant food was only ever emergency food for our ancestors when hunts failed or animals were scarce.
But don’t you think that grains are getting a really bad wrap, our ancestors ate grains I think it’s how we are now making our grains so processed and over indulging in them
@@alicesais770 grains have no place in our diet. Better left to birds. They are at the foundation of so many non communicable diseases which ultimately lead to mitochondrial damage. Stay away from them at all costs. If I could give you any advice whatsoever, it would be to completely stop eating them in all forms, as well as seed based oils and fruit. Just eat animal based food. That is our species specific species appropriate diet
For the majority of our species existence we have not eaten grains.
@@leemanwrong yes true, it has been mostly the flesh and associated fat of mainly large ruminant animals
@@alicesais770until agriculture was invented, the amount of grains we ate was tiny. Imagine trying to gather enough grains from the wild.
So yes there is evidence that we ate grains but it was tiny. And the carbon isotope ratio in ancient teeth shows that, too.
"Insulin suppression" is just people not eating enough protein in their meals. Either through undereating protein, or by having multiple meals that are too small, rather than having one or two big meals per day. Treating carnivore like "keto without the vegetables". You need to eat a LOT of protein in at least one of your meals to provoke a daily bump in insulin. Carbs are not necessary for this.
How much is ‘a LOT’? Is the amount related to body size or is it a threshold number?
@@asarcadyn2414 Eat something close to either: your ideal body weight (in lbs) in grams of protein, or your height in cm in grams of protein.
It would vary depending on your activity level. Sedentary people could maybe have a little less, and very physically active people may need more.
Also try to eat the majority of that protein in one meal. Like have one large meal and one smaller meal or something.
Doesn't count for me, I eat a lot of protein (2,5g /kg lean body weight) , I have foamy urine which could be from to much protein so I don't think not eating enough protein is my problem
@@Misty_J I'm assuming you're not splitting it up into several small meals?
You probably shouldn't be getting foamy urine even if you're eating excess protein, hopefully it's not a sign of kdney damage (I mean pre-existing kidney damage, protein itself isn't bad for kidneys except maybe when you're on the verge of total kidney failure).
@@CommodoreGrayum yes, I'm splitting it up into 3 meals.
Finally! Someone not dogmatic. I am underweight, trying to go carnivore for the last year. I cycle and try to acclimate while maintaining weight. I struggle to digest tons of fat and can't do dairy, even ghee. I enter hard ketosis very quickly. Morning glucose always stable, and ketones would be in the 'ultimate' zone in 2-3 days of no carbs. I would feel great for a period of time and then feel less satisfied, then tired, try doing more fat, try electrolytes... no good. Tracked macros the whole time, I would try more protein, more fat, more exercise, more electrolytes, more small meals, more big meals... People who can't accept this always circling a wheel of excuses, all bs from dogmatic people. Started getting painful cramps in my calves each morning. What I found is adding banana and blueberries with some honey worked out fantastic. Red meat every day, a pound or more and add extra fat. Always eaten first. Wait till hungry then add fruit. You can 'prime the pump' for your insulin. Doesn't take long. No vegetables, no grains. Just fruit, which I NEVER really tolerated well. Now I have mangoes and kiwi along with many bananas and cups of blueberries. This gets me more calories throughout the day than I was (3000+). I have more appetite but feel satisfied. I have no blood sugar issues and just feel better and more sustainable eating this way.
Thank you for sharing this! Your comment is so refreshing. I also appreciate your approach to all of this. And, I can relate to so many things you mentioned. I can imagine it's hard to do carnivore if underweight. Some people really struggle to keep the weight on - my son has this issue. I was pretty much underweight when I started carnivore & I lost a couple lbs in the beginning, but I gained it back and about 5 lbs more so I am in the normal range now. I can completely relate to how you'd go through cycles of feeling ok and then more tired, trying to add in more fats, etc. Been there so many times. I consume as much fat as my body can tolerate and if I go over a certain amount then I get very, very ill from it. It's happened many times. I know most people wouldn't like this, but I found it helpful to eat 2-3x a day in order to help with the digestion of the fat.
I can't tolerate dairy either (or ghee). I like to use duck fat when cooking eggs and certain other items and coconut oil is fine for certain things. I also love coconut milk (the Thai kitchen brand that has 2 ingredients is the best one if you ever want to try it. Others have gums in them). I like your approach of always eating the meat first and then having some fruit. I do the same thing. I didn't have muscle cramps but when in deeper ketosis, I kept having my left eye twitching like crazy. It was very annoying. I have about a 1/4 c of blueberries here and there but it doesn't seem to impact me much as it's a small amount. I am in such a habit of having low carb low sugar items, it'll take time for me to adjust to adding things in. As far as fruit goes, I used to love Papaya, and kiwis are really good too. It sounds like you have a lot better energy levels now. And, I've just been experimenting with adding things in more recently, but I've noticed the same thing. I feel better and more energized and it helps if I am getting better, longer sleep too. Thanks!
I'm in the same boat I'm more than happy to be totally carnivore, but, I've always been a lean person and have difficulty keeping weight on, and so after trying all sorts of different things have found for me, dairy is ok, very small amount of milk each day in my cuppa, a small amount of broccolli just to keep things moving and I love it, and a peeled apple after my main meal, and so far this seems to be my best method I feel balanced note the (I as in me), this is what I do, sick of all those that try to say that people are not doing it the right way. You do you I'll do me, whatever works and is healthy for the individual.
Same 4 months pure carnivore and suddenly same things started happening and non stop twitching in my triceps for a week was nuts. Nothing helped same as for you, until i got carbs from fruits. Now adding 50-100gr of carbs and all good. And yes i tried all possible solutions to stay 100% carnivore-doesn't work for me and i am training in a gym for 20 years so know everything about nutrition in various ways:) Just not for all some people just need small amount of carbs for electrolyte balance and not from protein as people say but from carbs. No dogma when its your health please:) I would stay carnivore with pleasure since it's my favourite foods :))))but it doesn't work for me. Sad but true.
So glad you found a solution. I was one of those people that commented on your other videos. I had been mostly carnivore for over two years but I had to keep in honey because no carbs wrecked my sleep.
Thank you! 🙏 I appreciate your comments. I'm glad the honey has helped you. Has it totally fixed your sleep issue? How soon before bed do you consume that?
How did you consume it, when and how much?😅
@@LifeDIY Still hungry after eating can be PARAISTES!! YEP that is one of the signs of parasites. Vets know that if a pet is overeating they have parasites.
parasite vds on these chs Dr Ken Berry, Dr Berg, DR Group, Dr Axe, CanXida eric bakker naturopath (he is a gut expert), Brenda watson road to perfect health.
ALL Humans, pets, livestock, wild animals, birds etc get parasites. In the old days doctors were educated on cleaning parasites. Now the big pHram controls the medical schools and this is not taught, ON top of that the Govt health officals & govt ABC agencies say "Parasites are not an issues in the US". THIS IS A BLANTANT LIE
EVEryone gets & has parasites.
Parasites will also cause sleep issues and cause you to wake up in the middle of the night as worms/parasites are active that time of night.
Do a parasite cleanse. Eric bakker has protocal vds etc
Start parasite cleanses based on moon phases.
Library will have books on parasite cleansing & herbs.
SERIOUSLY look into this.
@@LifeDIY I have been giving the same advice add 30g carbs 3-4 hours before you sleep, I have also noticed this only happens to people who are lean and active which makes sense as my glucose level has always been normally low so when I lost all the weight and fat reserves the sleep issue started. I think its important to select the type of carbs you can tolerate as some may react differently, I am having my heavy protein first then an hour later eat some carbs seems to be the sweet spot for me. I too have noticed that my trigs has slowly been rising two years in Carnivore which corresponds to the lean mass hyper responder type. I will try your carrot experiment as carbs in the form of dairy, breads grains tubers has triggered joint pain, gas,gut,skin,gum issues. Thank you very much for making this video it has answered some of my theories it seems in the long term a low carb diet with close to 90-95 percent Carnivore is the solution for some of us. please keep giving us updates as this is helping a lot of people.
@@steaksaltwaterguy9485 Have you tried raw cultured dairy as Weston A. Price observed did well for humans. I am moving back to the mainland from Hawaii so am going to try that.
Already excited about this channel!!
I've experienced same issues, so glad I'm not the only one
Thank you! 🙏
I'm in my late 60's, and have been strict carnivore since the first of Feb. I have had sleep issues for the last fifteen years...I thought carnivore might help, but it hasn't change. I am rarely hungry, and eat only two meals a day, getting about 1500 cals a day. I'm losing weight very slowly, and this is frustrating. I was pre-diabetic when I started, and now that's fixed, but I still can't sleep. Your information here is compelling, and I'm sure my issues are yet another aspect of insulin resistance, but no one seems to know. Thanks for sharing your experience, it has inspired me to dig deeper...
I also have had sleep issues for years and it seems to get better, then again I have them in phases so I really don’t know why I’ve had him when I wasn’t keto. I had them when I was keto. I had them when I was keto or so. I just don’t know.
Try eating a tablespoon or two of butter just before going to bed. I used to have sleep issues too and somebody told me to try this. I was sceptical at first, but I tried it and it worked! I sleep like a baby all night long and I fall asleep instantly. I don't even hear my husband coming to bed or anything for that matter.
Also, it seems like you are not eating enough? 1500 calories seems to be very little food.
I've been in healthcare 30+ years trained in integrative functional medicine and thought I would make a couple of suggestions regarding testing so you don't throw money away.
1. Check your fasting insulin levels.
2. Check your thyroid function - TSH, Free T4, and Free T3.
3. Check your hormones - Testosterone, Estrogen, and Progesterone
4. Check your iron - TIBC that includes Ferritin
5. Do a basic CBC and CMP.
6. Optional ONLY if you have gut issues - GI-MAP test. Checks for gut infections like H Pylori and other gut infections. People with H Pylori have elevated histamine levels which in turn causes sleep issues as well.
You can ask your PCP to order the tests if you have health insurance. If not, you can order labs yourself online. Once you get the results you can share them with your PCP and go from there.
I PROMISE you that one or more of the above tests will come back abnormal.
I had sleep issues for over a decade. It took being on Carnivore for about 6 months before my sleep improved.
BTW, I've been wearing a CGM for self-study since last year and my blood sugar was never low and had nothing to do with my sleep.
Agree with the comment about your calories being too low. Try increasing by 200 calories a day for a couple weeks, and keep increasing by 200 if you're still not losing weight. Your metabolism will thank you.
I can't wait to sit down give this my undivided attention. I've suffered with middle of night waking for two years now, but i've only been low carb for about one - so i don't know that this definitely the issue but i'm excited at any prospect of a solution to waking up at 2:30 every morning. Thank you for sharing your tireless and thorough efforts with us!
Thank you and I hope you find a solution!
do you have any other histamine issues? between 2 and 4 our bodies increase histamine to start the waking process..if we go to bed with high histamine then this increase can cause symptoms waking us up
Increase your saturated fat intake.
Carbs give no benefit to humans whatsoever.
Have you tried a grounding sheet?
I had terrible sleep issues for 5 years and discovered that if I sleep in a room with no electrical items turned on then I slept a lot better. It appears I am sensitive to electromagnetic radiation - I suppose we all are to some extent and it is all around us these days with electric gadgets galore.
The addition of a grounding bed sheet on top of that meant even better quality of sleep. You can physically measure its effect of lowering blood pressure too. Scientific peeps say it lowers the viscosity of the blood.
Wearing shoes all day and not being in contact with the earth leaves us positively charged. Beach holidays are popular for relieving stress. I am beginning to wonder if walking bare foot on the sand has more to do with this than you would think.
It's well worth a try - good luck :)
superstition
@@monnoo8221 I wrote a response but it was deleted. I submitted a truthful account of my personal experience but someone somewhere doesn't want it to be seen for reasons unknown.
@@monnoo8221 Two responses to your message have now been removed. Who is censoring this?
@@doctormarazanvose4373 no clue... usually the algorithm removes it when there is a link contained, or even a resemblance to a web address... which I avoid ... or if it is longer than "3 words"... which would apply... It is the general education to fake behavior. Serious responses get censored
@@monnoo8221 It certainly was a serious response because I have personal, measured evidence of its efficacy with BP and heart rate results. All I was trying to do was expand upon this and share my success to possibly help others.
No hyperlinks - no brand influence - just hey this worked for me - try it for yourself and here's why.
Years ago my dad warned me about this as he was Type II who naturally preferred a more carnivore type diet and would wake up starving in the middle of the night when he had an evening carnivore meal. This really derailed him as ge ended up moving more toward standard doctor recommendations with way more plants and carbs than he wanted to eat, using the night hunger as "proof" he shouldn't be that low carb. He eventually passed away from diabetic kidney failure, so there is a middle ground here that I am glad you have found! He was trying to listen to his body, but there are so many loud voices about diet out there, it's so hard to do that!
Thank you for sharing your experiences.
Carnivore is a useful therapeutic diet, but I'm personally finding adding berries and allulose to my diet in the evenings has improved my quality of life dramatically by reducing the nausea I experience while eating only carnivore.
I'm so sorry about your dad. Thank you for sharing some of his experience. It must have been hard for him to find the right balance with listening to his body and the doctors. You are right that it's not easy to do! I totally agree with you that carnivore is a great therapeutic tool. I'm so glad to hear that the berries and allulose are helping so much! I also sometimes have issues with horrible nausea and when I've had nothing else to turn to (when adding more meat would make me feel worse), I have eaten some blueberries and it's helped me a lot at those times. Have you ever thought that it could be your gallbladder? It's hard to figure out because some people do well eating massive amounts of fat and others cannot do that. So it's hard to know if it's a gallbladder issue or if your body just isn't meant to over-consume the fats. When I've been really nauseous, I sometimes take a couple charcoal capsules and it takes about 20 minutes, but it then improves.
My experience with keto is that, while eating a lot of macadamia nuts that are like 90% fat and about 80% of those fats as monounsaturated, they did little for my hunger suppression. I was on this for months and it was only after adding about 75g if carbs per day did my hunger subside. I think in a lot of ways we do need carbs since I remember Chris Masterjohn saying that carbs spares protein in ways that fat can't. He's totally right in my experience because I was fuller despite eating fewer calories with carbs than eating a ton of protein and fat and more calories.
I totally understand that about the macadamia nuts. I like to add them in here and there but they are not filling enough. I used to eat some of them with some meat sticks and that was decently filling at the time....but that was a long time ago. I also completely understand what you're saying about having fewer calories and feeling more full if you've added in some carbs. I have that exact experience. I can add in such a small amount of carbs and I am balanced again and not having insane ravenous monstrous hunger issues as a result. I'll check out Chris Masterjohn's video - thank you! Dr. Ben Bikman also has some great insights and content on the topic of insulin and glucose. Thank you for sharing some of your experience here.
Nuts are NOT food
Good to know. So far, carbs make me hungry. I do add carbs on certain days here and there or when my husband buys sourdough bread ( my weakness :).
Great vid; super thorough, I love that. After 2 years of carnivore, I've never quite experienced what you're describing, other than being hungry first thing in the morning, but that usually goes away when I get up and start moving around. On days it doesn't (like today) I eat. I just listen to my body. As far as eating a rib-eye and still being hungry, what a lot of people tend to fall victim to is the "numbers" game. We tend to think the numbers (calories, or blood test results) are more of an exact science than they really are. If you chase those numbers you're bound to run into a lot of things that don't add up. For example: if you think you're eating plenty of calories based on the numbers but still feel hungry, then you're not eating plenty of calories (other than in the scenario when it really is a hormone issue, which generally corrects within 6 months, from what I've seen.) We also tend to not eat enough fat after a lifetime of avoiding it, so adding cold butter to bites of steak/burger etc. should help with satiety. You seem very thorough in your research so you probably understand all this, but you're also (imo) putting too much faith in the numbers. Listen to your body. Just eat when you're hungry. As far as sleep goes (which is why I clicked on this vid) I've always slept like crap, regardless of the diet. That was one thing I was bummed about when hearing so many other carnivores had improved sleep and I didn't. My sleep didn't get any worse, but it didn't necessarily get better either. But what did get better in that regard is that when I have terrible nights of sleep I am much more capable of going about my day without any trouble at all (even working out), whereas before carnivore my entire day would be ruined if I got anything less than 6 hours of crappy off-and-on-again sleep. But, regardless, keep doing you. Whatever works, works, and could help a lot of other people, so thanks for sharing. 😊
As a LMHR myself and only one year into low carb diet I had to introduce carbs again, I´m stillstrugling to find the right balance. Great video by the way, thnx 👍✌
Misty, thanks for sharing this! I think it takes time to find what works best.
I freeze sliced sourdough bread which is supposed to have a low GI and then toast it. Have two medium size slices with butter. It truly helps with mental clarity etc. I am 204 lbs at 5 feet and have been medically judged obese
@@ktermalkut8332the only way to check how the bread is affecting you us to test with a BGM. I experimented with a lot of different bread types and sourdough was just as bad, as was German Rye. And yes, it was frozen.
I think weight training will help you. Exercise is not being discussed and it is imperative to build the maximum muscle your frame can hold.
@SusanMarie-eq8ho Yes! I am doing it and loving it.I will talk about it in an upcoming video.
I so appreciate you taking the time to share what you learn with the rest of us. You are the dive master Holly! I had been picking up the occasional pint of strawberries at the farmers market and sort of discovered a bit of the same. It seems that when I eat a small bowl of strawberries usually with a scant teaspoon of raw honey drizzled over the top, I sleep much better that night. I do have trouble with the sweet taste but now that I know, I can investigate a less triggering option. Thanks again!
Thank you for such a nice comment! I really appreciate it. :) It is understandable that it might help with your sleep. I've seen a lot of comments where people say they have honey or fruit before bed. But, I don't know the full details of it or if they have it a certain number of hours before bed or if they eat it on its own or after a meal. Hopefully you can test out some other options that aren't triggering problems with the sweetness. I'm trying to think of some other ideas besides the carrots.
Suggest to try instead the strawberries with a little sugar free maple syrup 😊
@@SchastyeZ For me it's just the sweet taste, in general, so the strawberries alone trigger the cravings. Thanks tho! I'll find something that works.
Subbed and liked, thank you....Been carnivore since Oct. of '23...My sleep cycles have
changed dramatically in this period. And the dietary experimenting has been ongoing.
Must admit to a strong aversion to any kind of medical involvement. The 3-4 AM waking
is something I've gotten used to. Especially since my normal bedtime is now around 9 pm.
Generally, 6 hours of sleep seems to be fine for my 70 yr. old body. I'm eating pretty good
breakfasts now and drinking morning coffee with heavy cream. Every few days I will have
some blueberries and whipped cream after dinner, but noticed a fat gain around the belly since starting this addition and have had a felt decreased desire to eat this food treat.
I'm convinced that my food addiction issues have been improving steadily with this
lifestyle. And it seems likely that much of this imbalance and craving had been due to constant hormonal fluctuations from the typical SAD lifestyle. I'm just not as prone as you are to engage in the "scientific minutia". I prefer to just try to be more mindful of this
body and the effect that the fuel can have on its performance.
Thank you for sharing this. I appreciate it! I'm glad to hear that food addiction issues are improving. That's wonderful.
Please tell me what you eat for breakfast. Do you eat it at an early hour ? Then what kind of meals do you have later?
@@cathyweaver1449 Apologies for the delayed response. I'm still
in flex with experimentation, but will try to be informative.
My hunger signals have altered to the point where I am not hungry in
the morning. I sometimes will eat bacon and eggs but mostly out of a concern for maintaining my energy levels for the day, and can't say for
sure that I see much difference between breakfast and no breakfast
days. Typically, I had been having breakfast at around 6 am, but it
wasn't a disciplined or scheduled choice.
Recently I've started reducing my vitamin intake to less than half the
usual regimen. And this seemed to have a good effect on my overall
digestion, though there was a noticeable drop in energy levels throughout
the day. I am now trying Tongkat Ali, Lion's Mane, And Black Maca supplements and I have noticed a better and uninterrupted sleep as well
as an improved and more consistent mood/energy level. I'm now waking
a little later, (around 5am), and feeling much more rested. I'm going to begin taking Shilijit as well after hearing how well my 36 yr old son has been doing with it and Tongkat Ali. His coffee addiction has vanished and he is sleeping much better with greatly increased stamina.
As subjective as all of this tends to be, the results cannot be denied....
I have a theory that carnivores react differently to supplementation and likely need less of it because of the nutrient dense and far less toxic diet....I'm nearly 71 yrs old, a cancer survivor, and widower. ( Living alone makes this diet much more do-able).
Forgot to mention that Costco beef(choice grade), is my go to meal. I rarely get bored with this meal. My air fryer gets a daily workout and now I'm just cooking from frozen.
I'll have a steak at around 4-6 pm. If I'm hungry later , I will warm up a Costco, high quality hot dog or 2. And an occasional treat of blueberries.Hope this helps....
Interesting stuff! The vast majority of us will not be LMHR, but it is fascinating to see that you are such an outlier. Nick has probably the best LMHR content out there. Enjoy your Oreos!!! 😂😂😂
Hahah!!! Love the comment! Thank you.
I just realised you are Kerry’s sister! And I’ve been following you both for a while. What amazing siblings. God bless ❤
Thank you!
Thanks for taking the time to put out such an informative video.
You're welcome and thank you for taking the time to watch it.
I've been following Paul Saladino's way. It's good to see he is being vindicated, at least for some of us. Thank you so much for showing us the research and your personal experience that many of us can relate to!
Why was it that Paul added carbs again? Was it insomnia or exercise/activity related?
@@rojodiver3344 He has a video explaining why.
Paul Saladino lives a completely unnatural life. He surfs for three hours a day, every day and works out on top of that! Are you really following him?
Thank you! 🙏
Why do they call it saladino way
It's the late ray peat method
Great video! Very well done. I had zero appetite, diarrhea, intermittently poor sleep and no energy on 4 mos of strict carnivore. Adding back some carbs was necessary for me to be able to function. Trying to carefully craft a way of eating that works is definitely a process. Thank you for doing this and sharing your lab work, etc...
Thanks for sharing your experience and I'm glad you're doing better. I've been so used to not having many carbs but after doing carnivore for a period of time, now my body really seems to need some in order to function really well and get good sleep.
Thank you for your research, it's nice to see people trying different things and finding what works for them.
Thank you! I really appreciate the comment.
Thank you so much for diving into this and working hard for an answer... I started eating lower toxin fruits/veggies which helped tremendously. I was still curious of why. I couldn't give it anymore time to 'carnivore harder' which is typically the advice given. every aspect of my life was impacted tremendously. I got to the point i couldn't drive anymore because i was so sleep deprived and my headspace was 'swimmy' if that's such a thing. Not to mention the financial burden of eating so much. Extremely hard to do when kids and a husband rely on you!! Here's a big virtual hug for putting yourself through all that to provide answers. ❤
Probably didn't have enough saturated fat while doing it.
I thought my issue was the same as you described then I started increasing my saturated fat intake to get my body to relax and lower cortisol.
So many ppl still shy away from proper fat do to programming of the food industry.
Kristen, I am so sorry for my late reply and also sorry for what you're going through. People don't seem to understand the massive impact this can have when you change the diet like this. And you're right - they'll say you did it wrong or do carnivore better or harder. It's insanity because everyone is different and that is not the solution to all our life's issues, especially if that is what caused our issues! I didn't even think I had a drastic change in diet as I was eating so low carb prior to my carnivore experience, but it had a huge impact on my life - causing disrupted hunger signals and my sleep. I'm still dealing with it now. I have to be so strategic with it. I've found that the only way I sleep is if I add in some carbs. My son and I have been watching these little RUclips clips from Men's Health - sharing the diet of different muscular celebrities and apparently I can eat more than the Hulk! :) lol. It is definitely expensive and time-consuming to have to eat so much every day. Do you mind sharing any of the foods that have helped? Do you have any methods that are working? I find that I can't eat within a couple hours of sleeping or my sleep is more messed up. It's a slow process to add things in as the body is no longer used to the veggies after eating carnivore. If you ever need someone to chat with, please reach out to me. I also have a forum on my website. I may end up shutting it down in the near future and just moving things over to locals, but I'll make a post if/when that happens (www.lifeanddiy.com/forum/).
@devintompkins9626 - For me personally, I heard people say this so much and that was a huge priority for me. I consumed so much fat to the point of making myself sick semi regularly (on accident) as it's hard to know how much is ok versus too much, for me. I always monitored ketones so I know that I was burning fat and must have had plenty, but that never helped me to increase it even further. For me, my sleep worsened significantly when I upped the fat.
Thanks for the great insight on insomnia. I have been Carnivore for 16 months and I too have been having issues. Like clockwork I wake up between 2:30 to 3:00AM. It has been better lately but thanks for all your research and this terrific informative video
So happy to see your comment here. Thank you! I hope your sleep gets better. :)
another example of how listening to how you feel is more important than a particular lab level. At times my glucose has been in the 50’s and I felt fine. To base life changes solely on a lab level is a fools errand. Glad you found something that works for you.
Thank you and I totally agree!
@@LifeDIY Yes to both of you! One thing that concerns me about the 'carnivore' community (which is a generalization I realize) is the hyper-focus on the blood glucose level and HbA1C, especially the view that glucose spikes are bad and to be avoided at all costs. I understand this b/c it appears that most people come into this way of eating metabolically damaged; with excessively elevated glucose, and spikes that don't return back to baseline in a timely manner because of insulin insensitivity. However; uber low sugar and NO 'spiking' are not good either. In fact a healthy spike is normal and desired in response to food and hormonal triggers (i.e cortisol, adrenaline) . It is the metabolism (i.e mitochondrial function) that is impaired in these ppl. i.e they aren't processing the glucose properly, not the glucose itself. If you put a CGM on a young healthy child (if one can be found these days), you would see the blood glucose level going up and down all the time.
I did a lot of research trying to understand myself; b/c I came into carnivore one of the rare people without impaired glucose metabolism. Eating mainly carbohydrates, my weight was 100-105 lbs at 5'5" (I was not vegan , and not low fat either - I just didn't eat a lot of meat, but some, a lot of cheese and butter). My lab values were always good; and my fasting blood glucose was often 100-110, although I didn't have it measured much, and that was not likely true fasting. A couple years ago, I did test my blood sugar for a short period, and the highest 'spike' I ever recorded was 130 - after eating a high carb/sugar load. I really should have my insulin checked (Dr. wouldn't order) , but based on my other labs and experience and the fact I've stayed at this for decades (I'm 63) , I assume it is good.
After 4 months on carnivore, my fasting blood glucose was no different - actually on the high end at 110. Just one reading though so who knows. I gave straight 'carnivore' an 8 month try - but for me; I did not get the benefits I hoped (GI) and definitely not all the energy , mood lifting and mental clarity I hear others speak of! And I really expected that - so placebo effect alone should have done something! I also gained about 7 unwanted lbs of fat (not muscle).
I believe that strict carnivore is wonderful for many people permanently, but I also think it could be a strategy used for a time, and then later modified a bit; like it seems you are doing; and many others have done. I know for me - the controlled adding back some carbohydrates, especially simple sugars (opposite of the high glycemic index foods) has made me feel much better, right away. I'm still experimenting. Just some fruit - berries and melon with honey, has helped me feel a lot better in the evening. I've even had some white rice and sugar.. real sugar.. which may freak those not familiar with the bioenergetic approach out - but it's absorbed quickly and my insulin manages it. Ironically the low GI starches people are told to favor stay around a lot longer... and your body needs to produce more insulin over time. There might be less of a 'spike'.. but the reaction is more prolonged. Also has negative GI effects. One more example of how doing the opposite of what mainstream medicine preaches is wise :).
Doubt anyone will read this. but buttom line; keep learning and figuring out what works for you, and don't get hung up on numbers are following anyone's 'rules'. Good luck!
@@scoobydadog246 I've been following the bioenergetic approach for quite a long while - watch a lot of Jay Feldman and Mike Fave, and although some of the ideas don't work great for me (orange juice doesn't love me!) I think much of their science really makes sense. It seemed scary to add so many carbs after many years of believing so much in strict low carb, but I know a lot more now about nutrition science!
Excellent content, Holly! Glad you are on to your issues. Great information. I ran across this the other day since I did the same, but some folks I have listened to said they reported salt was disrupting their sleep. They cut the salt and their insomnia went away. Maybe not going to work with you, just wanted to mention that to you in case you wanted to give it a try. Strangely enough, when I cut out salt, my cramping stopped. Very weird and not what I expected. I changed nothing but stopped eating extra salt on my foods, and the nausea stopped completely, the cramping stopped, and overall I feel better. Now the steak doesn't taste as good...but I am getting used to it. Bacon tastes like a salt lick now!
Hey Adam, thank you! 🙏 I really appreciate your comment and extra insights. That is so interesting about the salt. And, I am really glad to hear it's helped with your issues. I am open to trying it, but I think I may need the salt though as I have low blood pressure that can become a problem at times. That's funny about the bacon! I can imagine it might taste too salty now. :) Were you having nausea when eating a lot of fat? I think my taste buds have changed from carnivore and it's so strange because sometimes things don't taste salty at all and I oversalt and my son informs me of it. :) And, other times it's the opposite. I wish I would have spent even more time on this video but I got stuck in editing overload and I kept finding more things to include. So I forgot to mention that I also have low cortisol and I suspect this is an issue that may be more common than known about because it's not commonly tested for. A great test is called Dutch Complete and it takes cortisol levels at 5 different times, plus hormones (testosterone, estrogen, lots of other ones, etc., neurotransmitters, etc. it's very detailed). So I forgot to share that and it can definitely play a part in my issues because insulin and cortisol are needed for gluconeogenesis - to make and maintain glucose levels.
I suggested earlier that copper deficiency was causing your insomnia. Frank Tufano got insomnia on carnivore and used copper. Also, as copper expert Morley Robins mentions, copper is necessary for GLP1, which Dr. Cywes mentions at 2:47. The issue with carnivore diet is that it is high in iron and zinc, but the soil is deficient in copper and zinc blocks copper and iron has be balance with copper to release iron and prevent iron overload. The other thing is that high protein diet depletes retinol and retinol is used for the sleep cycle. Retinol is in liver. You can test retinol. I don't know this is the issue and maybe you should have carbs, but I would try doing the copper and retinol. Iodine is also deficient in just about everyone and there are people using 50mg of Lugol's iodine per day. See Lynne Farrow "The Iodine Crisis". You can take at least 6mg of copper per day and I believe much more is fine as copper advocates say it is not a problem. Morley Robins has much more information and suggests doing some blood donating to get ferittin below 150 for women and below 300 for men, and ideally between 20 and 50. The soil is copper deficient so the beef liver will be deficient. One person had their grass fed beef liver tested and it was zero. So, just supplement. You can see Morley Robins mentions Incretin GLP1 at time index 18 minutes in the video "Is Copper the Key to Weight loss?" with Dr. Amie Hornaman. EDIT: I think he used copper, maybe I'm remembering wrong. One other thing to check which causes many other problems though is toxic mold and you can test yourself for that from MyMycoLab. Either way, the copper seems to be involved with blood sugar and insulin and GLP1.
Thank you for sharing this. I really appreciate your insights. I don't like to supplement with too many things unless I am tested and showing a deficiency. But, I'll check into my past copper levels and other labs. I have been supplementing with iodine for months now. My ferritin has always tested at 60. I'm going to check out the resources you shared and do some research. My issues are improving with the carbs, but I am still going to look into all of this because I know how important all these minerals are - copper, zinc, iron, etc. and if any of those are causing issues, I want to fix it asap. I also think people should be careful supplementing with copper, or at least do testing. If someone takes too much copper, low zinc issues can be really bad too. I had a family member with low zinc and it caused a lot of problems. I'm going to chat with my favorite doctor in a couple of weeks, so I'll ask her about it and hopefully get some labs as well. Thank you!
@@LifeDIY That is a good sign. My ferritin is over 300, which is a sign of pathology (according to Sir Douglas B. Kell, PhD, Knighted in 2014 for his pioneering and penetrating research into Ferritin and Morley Robins I believe). You could check your ceruloplasmin for copper. Retinol is used for the copper pumps. I don't know if you were eating liver or not for your retinol.
@@MrApplewine Thanks! I remember hearing Dr. Cywes mention something about high ferritin. I know my iron was on the higher end in 2023. I think my copper was on the low normal end the last time I was tested, so I'll definitely get it retested. I haven't really eaten liver though I do have some liver supplements if I need them. I am going to ask my doctor to order these labs. I don't know much about retinol, so I will look into all of this shortly. Thanks!
@@LifeDIY I worked with someone who is trained in morleys protocols. I have a ferritin of 21 and I assure you it is not ideal. My hair and eyebrows fall out and only grow back after I get iv iron. I wake after 6 hours of sleep on carnivore. Carbs can be hit or miss with me for sleep as sometimes the blood sugar crash wakes me. Carbs at every meal can help but then I'm sleeping 9 hours and still feel exhausted. My sleep issues started when I went low carb 10 years ago. I think it's either hormonal or anxiety for me.
Everybody should be drinking their water out of a copper water bottle or a copper mug. That's what I've been doing for the past year.
Thank you for this !!! Very helpful! Gives me confidence and an understanding of what I’m going through as well
You're welcome! Are you having the sleep issues or hunger?
Glad you are finding what works for you. We are all different. Living this lifestyle is about finding what works not feeling like all Carnivores have to be exactly the same.
Thanks so much, Kipp! 🙏 I love your view on that. I feel the same!
Im about to start carnivore and having this video in my back pocket gives me so much confidence. Thank you.
Thank you for all the research! Great video.
Thank you!
Wow! I love your detailed research, Holly! As a complete side note, low blood glucose can cause inflammation and one VERY helpful tool I've found is a Grounding Mat or sheet. I sleep on it and my sleep has dramatically changed and has remained very deep through the night. I've found this to be the case with thousands of other testimonies. The background data on this is very convincing. Check it out if you like.
Hi Holly, an excellent video, so much useful information!
And more proof that people should not just listen to their MD, there is no way an MD would have taken the time and care you did during your N=1. I can't imagine what it was like eating so much meat and still feeling hungry.
Thank you so much, Vince! I agree that you have to take care of yourself and do your own research. I am still working through the hunger issues, but it is so dampened when I add in some carbs, even the smallest amount. I can eat way more than my 19-year-old son! Since adding some carbs back in now I am noticing more energy to workout and do more, which is great. :)
This is such a well researched and helpful video. Thank you.
Thank you Tracy!
So you need to be ketovore or keto. This is why they say everyone is different. Someone send this to Paul Saladino. That is great you have figured it out! I really enjoyed the info in this video. You did so much of the footwork here for us, and in finding the research and other doctor videos about this. I will keep this video for future reference and to share to others experiencing the same issues.
Renee, I definitely agree! I wish more people understood how different we all are and not get upset with the various food choices. I am so glad you found the extra resources and clips helpful. Dr. Cywes has a nice balanced approach. That would be great if Paul Saladino checked this out. Although I don't watch a lot of Thomas Delauer's videos, I checked out his recent video here: ruclips.net/video/VnSjz8Sl1oU/видео.html on why he quit keto or how he's eating now and his new approach to food. And, in the video he talked about no longer being afraid of insulin... It was an interesting video. Thanks again!
I"m 75. I was having problems sleeping too. However, I've never needed more than 7 hours in my whole life. After I went carnivore I started sleeping only 5 hours, usually waking at 3 or 3:30am. When I moved to a more carno/keto diet my sleep went back 7 hours. I just added blueberries, dill pickles, and an occasional avocado. I also like to take naps in the afternoon.
Im in my 40s and have the same exact issue. 3am wake up like clock work. and cant go back to sleep.
Thanks for sharing this! Those are the exact foods I like to add in as well.
@@LifeDIYI added berries, tomatoes and onions about 7 months ago but my sleep has not improved. I also eat whole milk plain Greek yogurt and cheese daily.
About how much do you think you're getting in carbs?
@@terised Thanks for sharing this and sorry for the late reply! I've added some of those in as well (without the yogurt and cheese as I am lactose intolerant) and for me it hasn't improved my sleep. It's been a struggle! Lately I've been waking up even earlier (around 12 or 1 AM), though I can sometimes go back to sleep for a couple hours. I am now wearing a continuous glucose monitor (and getting labs done today) to track and figure things out - and see exactly how food are impacting me/my glucose levels. When I posted this video, just tiny bits of carbs helped and I slept, but since then it hasn't been as easy. I will do an update video soon. I am so HAPPY to hear you're doing better with the add-ins. Is your sleep still doing better now?
Fascinating information! Thanks for sharing. I'm sure that this will really help some people. :)
Thank you! 🙏
Thank you Holly for your research. Have been doing Carnivore for the last six months. Sleep patterns have just changed and I am waking up at midnight. I will now do a new range of bloods and try to incorporate a small amount of carbs at the last meal of the day. Will test, measure and report results.
You're so welcome and I really hope you find a solution. Waking up at midnight is the worst. That is just too early. I hope you stop back here with any updates and I hope you can fix it too.
Thank you for this video. I'm considering the Carnivore diet, but I have issues with absolutely no other foods. I do believe that humans are both carnivore & herbivore. I also think most people eat too much when eating veggies and fruits. This helps me in my decisions on how to go about this.
So interesting! I’ve recently been adding carbs back too (20g), and I feel so much better. So much more energy. I’m waking up feeling great! My blood tests also showed a very low folate count my doctor was concerned. So I’m eating avocados almost daily (which is a good source of folate). Thanks so much for sharing your info!
I know, me too! I'm still in the process of testing this out with adding in some carbs but I have been experiencing the same thing. So much more energy and I feel stronger. I"m doing more work outside, projects, etc. and feeling great! I too think avocados are a great addition. :)
Great and informative video. Thank you very much for posting this.
Thank you. 🙏
It can take a very long time to recover from a sugar addiction. Insomnia being one of the worst symptoms. Reintroducing your drug of choice will indeed provide temporary relief. But the real issue is you haven't waited long enough for your body to fully recover. Carbs are never needed - never.
Thank you for the comment. I am not addicted to sugar. And, when I have a little fruit, it doesn't cause me any issues or wanting way more, etc. Not everyone has that addiction.
Suggesting you please consider the bio-individuality of each person. Some people become more catabolic the longer they remove all carbs. And then some people have no issue whatsoever at zero carbs. It’s not a personal weakness for one’s body to feel better with some natural carbs.
If you didn't need carbohydrate your body would not make it. That is simplistic thinking. Actually it is the seed oils, and potentially the 'seeds' themselves, i.e grains; & chemicals and concoctions conjured up by the food industries that are most 'addictive' - that would be my proposal. If it was the 'sugar' - people would be drawn to eating it by the spoonfuls. Easily accessible and most SAD households have a bag in the house. When I binged.. I craved cookies, and crackers, breads; Never fruit, never sugar from the bowl - which would be the quickest fix.
The carbs/glucose itself are not the problem - it is the damage to the mitochondria and inability to process them that is.
There are many reasons for insomnia.
@@scoobydadog246 Carbs are sugar. Addiction is the same. And your body only makes what it needs. Never a need to add any. Gluconeogenesis takes care of our glucose needs as it was designed to do... Agree about seed oils. But It's the combination of seed oils and glucose that drive the inflammation that cause metabolic disease.
Shut up dude you don't know what you're talking about, you're just repeating what you've heard in videos. I did carnivore for years, strictly, and my sleep was always terrible regardless of fat:protein ratio and electrolyte consumption. Saying things just take more time is such a cop out excuse. It's like a doctor blaming a disease on genetics when really they're just clueless about what is going on.
Protein also triggers an insulin release so if you are eating protein your body should be having some insulin. I’m not trying to be disagreeable but just thinking out loud.
Thanks, Scott! I agree with you. I too don't trust many doctors. I am grateful I have a good one right now. I am so glad you're doing well on carnivore. :)
Thank you for sharing this information. Everything you have said is matching up to my experience when I was eating a low carb diet. I added more carbs gradually and I sleep better without the 2-3am wakeup and having a hard time falling back asleep. The food sensitivities you have is most likely coming from gut problems. Possibly leaky gut. Your IFM Doc should be able to help you with that.
I had exactly the same issues with sleep. Now eating some macadamians ,avocado,and taking red/ infra red light before sleep and it helps alot.Thanks for your very helpful vids, wishing you all the best .
Fantastic presentation, Holly. This is all so very interesting and I am so glad that your insomnia is fixed. I had never heard of the term "insulin suppression" before and now I want to learn more about it. I still haven't gotten my blood work done since being a carnivore for over a year due to problems with my insurance. I am working on that. Hopefully it'll be resolved soon. I really liked that you show some stills of your actual meals. When people think about adding rice or carrots to their meals they might think of a much bigger portion. Yours are so small and I think showing that is so relevant. It doesn't take much of those carbs to feel some relief. I currently sleep very well on carnivore, but if there is a problem in the future I'll now have some idea of what might be going on. Thank you so much.
Ellie, thank you so much for stopping by and watching!🙏 I really appreciate all of your feedback, especially about the photo of the food. That is such a good point you made about how people might assume I'm having a big bowl of veggies. I actually should have shown more examples than that. You are 100% right that it doesn't take much to make a difference. The smallest add-in seems to really help with the hunger issues I was having. I'm really not used to adding in many foods or carbs as I am so used to eating just meat. But, it is nice to have some other little things. Sorry to hear about the insurance coverage issues with bloodwork. I also sometimes get labs done where I pay for them out of pocket through UltaLabs. I think their cholesterol panel is $21 www.ultalabtests.com/test/lipid-panel and they often have coupons too if you check the site or elsewhere (usually 20% off). I love using that site. You just pay for the labs, their doctor signs off and you go to a local Quest or Labcorp to get the blood drawn. Then the results are emailed to you. If you ever want to check it out, just check if you have any local lab draw locations first. I don't have anything near me, so I have to drive almost 2 hours for that. I live in the boonies and I don't have much around here. :) Anyway, I am so glad to hear that you don't have any sleep issues! .
Very cleverly researched & well explained.
What a relief that the topic of insomnia on LCDs is finally being addressed…! Pleasant dreams, everyone! 😘
I was saved. You are me!! I had a same issue and i
Knew my body is reacting different than most carnivore people. I am 1 year carnivore and I was worrying about my sleep and feeling of hunger and low ketosis number and high cholesterol. I was puzzled. Your research make sense. I will try. Thank you for sharing
Please let me know how things are going! I am still working on improving my issues. I need to continue experimenting. I am currently wearing a continous glucose monitor (CGM) and getting labs done this morning. I am still dealing with the issues. I need to do a better job of experimenting with more foods because initially adding in those carbs (I mentioned in the video) worked, but now I need to do more than that or add in more foods to continue sleeping and having less hunger problems. I have noticed so far (since wearing the CGM) that I've had some instances of hypoglycemia at night when eating carnivore, but it doesn't happen every time. I'd have to consistently eat carnivore for a week probably to get accurate results. It's a struggle to test because I want some sleep! I hope things improve for you!
@@LifeDIY I discovered your video the day I left my comment and had started adding some carbohydrates in my diet. I make sure I will let you know how things are going. I will also do my blood test after a while to see my cholesterol and triglycerides value improvement. I hope our experiment will save many carnivore people in the future. I will e-mail you the details the next time to contact you. I am 50 yr old female Japanese living in Japan.
That would be great to hear any updates! I really hope you find something that works for you. I too really want to help others by sharing any answers and solutions. This seems to be such a huge issue for a lot of people. Feel free to email and reach out anytime - thank you!
Never listened to your videos before, but thankful for addressing that there are differences in how people respond to high meat and fat diets. These differences are real and should not be reacted to as defensively as some absolutists do. It doesn't help those affected to achieve the goals of optimal health through carnivore or animal based keto .
I 100% agree with you. I appreciate you sharing that.
Really interesting how people are so different. When I was eating carbs, I used to get hypoglycemic symptoms every time my glucose level dropped below 80. I would already start to feel weak at 83. Doctors didn’t believe me because they said upper 70s is not hypoglycemia. On carnivore, I no longer get hypoglycemic symptoms even when my glucose level is 50. No dizziness, shakiness, numbness/tingling, palpitations etc.
Thank you for sharing this. I have some people telling me how impossible it is for me to have had symptoms in the 70s. I am so happy to hear that you're doing so much better on carnivore. It makes sense to me. Many years ago when I was the standard American diet I had hypoglycemic symptoms, though I never tested the range back then. I didn't know much about it at the time. At that time it was from me having too much sugar throughout the day. When I later started eating low carb and keto it all normalized for me too & went away. I didn't start to have glucose issues again until more recently and mostly at night.
I lost consciousness once in public and got moved to the ER in an ambulance. That was definitely hypoglycemia but they ruled it as “unknown cause” and discharged me because my glucose level was normal by their standards 😅
There are so many things that medical professionals ignore because they trust too much in their standard range. Many people don’t fit into the standard range but they refuse to acknowledge this :(
Were you by any chance eating too much protein when you started getting symptoms while on carnivore? Your body could have started to turn protein into too much glucose. This is a process that gradually happens over time so you could have been eating the same amount of protein for a very long time and was fine but your body could have gradually shifted to glucose for energy. This could be why you feel much better when you add some carbs.
Or some say that women can benefit from eating more carbs so maybe there is some truth to that.
I am also having constant cramps, I do electrolytes and drink water. Between the sleep struggles and cramps I am miserable but love the way carnivore controls my weight thanks @ 1:30am
I’m 51 carnivore & I sleep like a satiated lion. Bam… 9pm out until 5:29, before 5:30 alarm. 360 protein & electros. 1:15 max workout & 2 30 min sun or sunset dog walks, busy day, yoga & human stuff & solitude. Sleep like a baby. 4 years.
Yeah, well, I do all that stuff and my sleep is crap. To be fair, it was before carnivore, too, but it has gotten worse since then.
I can't be without carbs . I eat veggies salads & grassfed meats ❤
I had done strict carnivore for an year, from mid 2023 to mid 2024, I had to stop due to the same issue, hair loss (I had very thick hair to begin with) and skin losing elasticity, less luminous and plump, i felt that there’s nothing inside my body to hold water, i felt that at some point I would need to reintroduce carb but in a wise way. Now, I am not as restrictive as before and would through in some healthy carb in small portion here and there, just gauge it as it goes. Cucumber and Granny Smith apples are my favourites. Thank you for sharing your story! By the way you have beautiful thick hair!
Thank you so much for sharing this because I've read a couple other comments saying the exact same thing about hair loss. That's an interesting point about the loss of water and how it could impact the appearance too. I never thought about that. I feel like I've noticed some people who are long-term carnivores losing some skin elasticity too. I could be totally wrong because it could just be because they lost a lot of weight. But, many people don't realize that vitamin C is needed to make collagen in the skin and body & when eating all meat, you're not getting that much of it. Many people will say that carnivores need less vitamin C when eating carnivore. That may be true, but I have never seen any scientific evidence for that. And, it's still possible that the lack of it could impact their skin health and appearance. Your cucumber and applies sound amazing by the way!
@@LifeDIY I have watched many carnivore channels saying if you power through the hair loss period, then it will grow back, but realistically speaking I don’t think it would grow back as full as before. The hair loss is a result of stress from months ago, I would believe that. Not sleeping long enough and deep enough is a form of stress, big time. Before carnivore diet, I was eating a whole food diet. I am 5’7 and 155lbs before starting carnivore diet and then I lost 30lbs, mostly on hips and thighs. They said carb holds 4 times of its weight, I have electrolytes almost everyday, it is hydrating and stays better/ longer in the body when you have some form of carb. Also, how much fat, meat and tendon we eat can turn into skin collagen with absence of dietary vit. c? We don’t know. I am not a purist and just trying to experiment on what works best for myself. I do think plants/ carb have its place (I know they would tell you about oxalate). Subscribed! Thank you again! :)
Your comments are so refreshing! Thanks for subscribing. :) I too am not a purist and I think we should remain open-minded and just do what works best, like you said. I think that's horrible advice if people say to just push through the hair loss period and "it will grow back." They have no idea if it will grow back or not. And, to me it sounds like hormone dysfunction and I would get tested if possible. It's so pricey though. I wonder sometimes if people are dealing with hormone issues since some people say they're having bouts of depression or crying a lot. Makes me wonder. I had a period early on into carnivore where I felt something that may have been a form of depression. I am not one to normally have that, but I felt really weird and out of it, blahh, didn't want to leave my house at all - not even to get the mail...which is so weird for me. It might be related to adjusting to lower tryptophan levels, which can impact serotinin. I think we're all really experimenting with all of these things and it's so complex. I like listening to some of Dr. Cywes's videos because at least he has years of experience with people who are eating keto, low-carb, or carnivore so he has a lot more insights into the good and bad. He's also one of the only ones I've heard of who speaks more openly about things to look out for or issues that can arise.
So glad you're making healthy progress and have the courage to share your experience. I wonder what blood type you are. I'm O negative and D'Adamo says to avoid lectins, nuts, wheat, grains, beans, corn dairy. I know I get a lot of inflammation (sore knee joints) from eating nuts like peanuts, almonds, cashews. Fruits are OK. I feel the best after I wake up from fasting for 12 hrs, so I need to cut out some grains and oatmeal for a starter and add some meat.
Thank you so much! I am B+. I too get pretty instant pain and inflammation (feels like arthritis in my fingers) when I eat peanuts. It's the only one that causes me problems like that. Cutting out grains can definitely help!
When I quit coffee and just drink water, I started sleeping 9 to 11 hours a day and I dream like a madman . I am Carnivore and just graduated to Lion. Fatty beef, lamb ,salt and water is all I consume . I dont buy what that doctor says. Just quit all liquids except water and work out. I havent had a carb in 10 months.
That's awesome it's working for you. Everyone is so different.
Since I started carnivore my body has moved naturally to a biphasic sleep pattern. I wake up at 3am feeling in a good mood and moderately alert. At first I thought this was a problem, but now I believe it's normal and I try to embrace it. Fortunately I have the flexibility to take a nap or siesta in the afternoon which is the other part of this sleep pattern.
Wish it was a norm for me. I'm not sure I'm a believer in the biphasic sleep pattern, largely because it has never happened naturally for any of my children, all of whom have been raised in a way that should have lef naturally to it If it were natural, since they slept in my bed and nursed whenever they wanted to for the first 3 years of their lives.
When I wake at 3:00 a.m., I feel drugged and miserable for 3 hours until I'm finally able to sleep again.
Hunger appears when you don't meet daily target of PROTEIN for your body. Check out Maria Emmerich PSMF. Most carnivores eat too much fat and not enough proteins which leads to weight stalls and hunger. I have commite this sin but since I switch to PSMF I finaly started losing weight and I am never hungry.
Thank you for making this video. With 2 physicals over 2 years I can verify myself as a LMHR. I am low-carb, not Keto. 50 - 60 grams of carbs daily. Age 46, 6’1, 150 lbs., weight train and sleep about 5 1/2 hours a night.
Wow, thanks for sharing this! And, the 5 1/2 hours of sleep is enough?
@@LifeDIY I have never really had a long history of sleeping more than 6 hours, even when I didn't practice low-carb. However, I do feel well-rested compared to the same amount of sleep on a the SAD (Standard-American-Diet). Years back, a theory was postualted that due to the fact that a low-carb diet is less inflammatory, the brain/glymphatic system requires less cleanup time and therefore less sleep is required. Not my theory.I would have to find the research as it has been awhile.
I introduced carbs a few months ago, wheat toast, 1 piece to soak up my egg yoke, and I was sleeping soundly for 6-7 hours, I was ( didn't have much work) walking 5 miles a day. I fasted for 18 hours. Sleep great. Now with the toast, and doing manual labor work and sweating my butt off. My sleep is off. I'm awake at 3:00 a.m. I fall back asleep.... Then up at 5am. Consistency was my key i believe. Imma change a few things up. 5' 10.5" , Went from 185lbs to 170lbs in a matter of months a few years ago, I'm built like a BSH now! 💪 Just want some good sleep. I do feel refreshed when starting my day. I work too hard for only a couple hours of sleep. Thx for sharing.
I endeavor to be built like a BSH.
@@futuresoundtrek8298 you can do it. Push ups until failure every night. And plank for 1 min, then 2 mins, then eventually 3 mins. That's all I did differently other than eating carnivore. Push every night before. Set alert on phone, and make yourself do them.
Thank you so much for validating my experience! I’m truly mystified how some long term carnivores don’t have sleep issues. Honestly I did experiments with maple syrup and honey plus potatoes and fruit and only did that much carbs help! Finally slept through the night for a whole week! I took out the maple syrup and again woke up at 2
Thank you! I am so grateful for your comment, because I know that others are dealing with similar issues and it helps to chat about it. Thank you for sharing your experience with the carbs. I know you're right that it takes a certain number of carbs or type of carbs to really help fix the shortened sleep issues. That's going to take me some time to figure out too. I'm so happy to hear you slept through the night for a week though!
I'm mystified aswell since I couldn't fix the sleep issues and stress response for 15 months in total!!! I was a complete WRECK after that. Sadly I need over 170 g of carbs a day to keep calm and sleep so that's not ideal. Still trying to figure shit out. 😅
A lot of people do better sleeping when they have a little bit of extra glucose so they don't do the glucose spike and drop while sleeping, which is what wakes you up.
From keto I went into carnivore. However, I eat eggs and some dairy, coffee with the occasional vegetable like avocado (fruit} and broccoli. All my life, I have been a light sleeper and waking up around two or three became my norm. Lately, I do not wake up as much and manage to sleep at least seven hours most days, which for me used to be rare before carnivore. I actually experience more hunger in the am when I eat more than my quota of carbs with my dinner. I came to this eating patterns after pre diabetes which now is normal again. On keto, I was having lots of gassiness and some veggies would give me belly cramps. On carnivore, I do not get too much of that. I am also a LMH type with always elevated LDL and optimal HDL and triglycerides even when I was pre diabetic. For me that has been the norm always, and I always refuse the statins because if LDL was going to kill me like my drs imply, I would have been dead since my 20s, and I am 68 now. My experience is different, but we are different in the way our genes control our physiology. So far, for me, eating this way seems to be working. I also exercise and eat two meals a day with a little LC snack because I tend to lose too much weight, and I never been overweight. Sometimes you have to listen to your body and adjust your life style accordingly, regardless of what other dieters say or believe. Great information!
Excellent advice! And, thank you for sharing some of your journey and experiences. It sounds like your way of eating is ideal for you now. I'm glad to hear you're sleeping more now.
Someone in the comments mentioned mouth taping at night due to sleeping with mouth open. Thank you so much, my problem was waking up multiple times during the night with my mouth severely dry and drinking water each time I woke up. I tried it the last two nights and I woke up only one time last night. I feel so much better today. I used MEDIPORE medical tape.
Thanks Holly , still trying to figure this all out
It's amazing how different we all are and also at different stages in life. I don't do that well on unsaturated fat. After being vegetarian for 17 years I found so much satiation without being stuffed when eating 20/80 ground beef. Now I eat a bit leaner. I love chicken and avocado and my favourite dish for the past 3 years has been ground beef with tomato sauce and goat's cheese. Have you tried incorporating milk in your diet? it's quite carby and nutritious? Also, I have been thinking to check RBC magnesium levels cause carnivore is pretty deficient in that mineral. All the best on your journey!
That's awesome to hear nad the ground beef with tomato sauce and goat's cheese sounds amazing. Unfortunately, I can't add in any dairy because I am highly intolerant to even the tiniest amounts of it. :)
In my first 6 weeks of starting carnivore, I ate a lot. And then when I got to the 2 month point she'll now I get so full so fast. My desire to eat as much as I was in the beginning is definitely gone. So stick with it, you, you young man, you and your desire to eat as much as you're eating right now. We'll work itself out.
Thanks for sharing this! I too had even more intense hunger in the beginning, but I stuck with it for 11 months and it worsened for me. I am really glad it's working for you though!
Excellent video! Thank you for the detailed analysis. You are correct in that each of us are different. If you are not that interested in ketosis, try eating a bit of dark chocolate through the day. I feel it is pretty benign and will rev up the insulin production so the body remembers how to do it at short notice.
Thank you!
Love this. Grellin is also associated with eggs. One thing to also tie in here through Dr Cywes is the body utilizing protein to create sugars.
The key difference is that the byproduct N (Nitrogen) is a waste product created via urea/Uric Acid and BUN numbers are impacted in the bloodwork. All can contribute to the sleeplessness/fatigue.
Thank you!
I've developed the same kind of pattern, falling asleep around 9 (pretty fast) and then waking up almost always at 4am. I've been zero carb/carnivore for a long time. Anyway, as I write this I'm on the 8th day of a fast (other health reasons) and one of the side effects is that my sleep has been improving from one day to the next. On days 4-8 I've slept through the entire night without any issues. Not feeling any hunger and cortisol seems to be under control as well. I'm kind of stumped what to think of this. Not sure when I will break this fast, I feel so good 😂
7 hours solid sleep from 21:00 to 04:00 is excellent.
I broke my fast after 10 days and on day one my sleep returned to being sh*ty. While fasting I was sleeping solid 8h and now I'm abruptly getting up at 4 again. Don't think this is about low insulin levels given they don't really get lower than they do on a long fast. I will try to supplement copper as a test as I have high zinc and molybdenum. levels.
I am 5 weeks today eating strictly carnivore. I mostly eat beef, butter, salt and eggs, and I also have butter and heavy cream in my coffee. I quickly lost four pounds but have gained two of those back. I am measuring ketone levels with urine strips which vary from low to moderate ketones. I eat around one pound of meat daily with 5-6 T of butter/fats, 4-6 eggs, some bacon on some days. I was eating one ounce of cheese daily but have stopped that. Why am I not losing weight? I was diagnosed with having hypoglycemia 30 years ago. I feel very good on this diet and plan on staying on it.
Hi Lynn! I'm not a total carnivore expert but I have learned a lot from others on this topic, so I'll share some ideas. When you say low to moderate ketones, what is that level generally? To raise the numbers, it could help to go longer in between periods of eating. Normally when I've heard stories like this, it's often related to people consuming dairy. If someone has weight to lose and they're incorporating dairy when eating carnivore (heavy cream, cheese, etc.) I think that can sometimes slow down the weight loss and sometimes stall it for people. You could always try to cut down on some of that, but you still want to make sure you're getting enough fat from the meat. You might want to check out some videos by Dr. Cywes on ruclips.net/video/bENt7AuPXzU/видео.html as he has several videos on how much fat to consume and I found it really helpful and interesting. I'm so happy you're feeling great on carnivore!
‘Tracking myself like a crazy person’. That made me smile, but with so many factors to take into account, and the fact that we are all different, it makes sense that you're doing that. Seems like you're making some good progress, and I hope that continues.
Love the cosy background you’ve created, Holly! I especially like the palm plant...I got myself a lovely new phoenix palm last week.😊
Sarah kliener talks about carb cycling on keto to deal with sleep issues and other concerns some have when too low carb for too long.
Thanks. I will look into this! My doctor said the same thing to me months back.
Just a very minor point and it's because you are very much on the science side of things which I appreciate ... the term "vegetable" is really just a culinary term ... there is no accepted scientific definition other than a hand waving statement of something like edible plant bits that are not fruit.
I enjoy your videos and am glad you are doing better and better.
Thank you for sharing that. I love those little details. Very interesting!
I have everything you mentioned, and my LDL cholesterol is over 704 total, but the HDL is high 98 and the TRIGLYCERIDES are low 67. I get up twice a night. I'm 58 years old!
Wow, that's a high LDL! Hopefully you can fall back asleep after the wake-ups. :)
When the ketogenic diet was first introduced for epilepsy in children they were eating 80-90% of their calories from fat. As I've become more fat-adapted over several months of carnivore, switching the ratio of macros to very high fat has made me basically never hungry. Everyone is different of course, but it's worth looking into. I have some severe mitochondrial problems, and an average meal for me is an 8-10oz steak, and an entire bowl of tallow. Brain fog disappeared, very smooth and clean energy.
Thank you so much for sharing this. How much do you mean by an entire bowl of tallow? (ie: a cup?)
@@LifeDIY I'm not one to measure macros usually. I will fill a cereal type bowl up most of the way, and then I'll eat to satiation. Will eat majority of what is in there. The body is pretty good at telling you when it has had enough.
The body is able to make glucose through protein via glycogen production but it prefers dietary fat or carbohydrate for energy as it's more efficient. I'm sure you know of him, but Dr. Anthony Chaffee has alot on this subject. Good luck on your carnivore journey.
Thanks for sharing this. I am really happy for you that this is working well. And, I like how you described it as smooth clean energy. That's great! I am familiar with gluconeogenesis, though I am always open to learning more. It's possible that my body is struggling with that because I have low cortisol and low-normal insulin. I do know of Dr. Chaffee! :) Thanks for sharing some of your experience here. It's helpful!
I started having sleep issues when I ran out of raw milk. 🐄
It's great to know the milk helps with your sleep! I wish I would have mentioned that in the video.
Great video! Just a bit of clarification: the pane at 4:30 describing LMHR should say "LDL cholesterol - 200 or higher" rather than "Cholesterol - 200 or higher," the latter suggesting total cholesterol.
Thank you!
Have you considered adding fermented foods into your diet? I'm glad you pointed out that one diet doesn't fit all and how we are each different. The carnivore is a very strong elimination diet and should be looked at as such. It can be great as a way to heal but might not be great long term for everyone.
Thank you for being so open-minded to that fact that everyone is different. It's so refreshing because some people get really angry with someone changing from carnivore to adding things in, etc. That's an excellent question about fermented foods. I want to add them in, but it will be a slow process for me (esp with cabbage/sauerkraut). If you have any recommendations, please let me know. Thanks!
I just saw a video of dogs pulling radishes out of the ground and eating the radish with some dirt. And people say dogs only eat meat. Not true.
Interesting! :) This is kind of the opposite but deer are supposed to be herbivores and I saw a video on RUclips of a deer eating a bird!
Have you tried grounding/earthing? I'm on carnivore and it helps me with my circadian rhythm and staying on a normal sleep schedule in relation to the dusk and sunrise of where I live.
Great job finding your way to feeling and functioning at your best. I am practicing keto-carnivore and having the similar challenges. I am not overly hungry though and working on improving my deep sleep. Overall I do get sleep with some wake ups at night usually following a startling dream. I can utilize conscious breathing and fall back asleep pretty quickly. I might consume 20grams of carbohydrates per day and often zero. So it is still a dective case to solve.
Thank you, Dan! Sorry to hear you have some similar sleep issues, but I hope you can figure it all out and fix those problems. I sometimes have similar issues with very realistic dreams waking me up. Since adding in a bit of carbs per day, lately, I've been able to fall back asleep (which I could never do previously).
I totally agree with this video. I also had to add some berries and a couple of tablespoons of good olive oil and avocado. I'm definitely going to try some tomatoes soon.. My sleep is getting better.. I was a hard-core carnivore for almost 2 years, and my sleep and dry mouth at times was/is horrible!
This video explains my issue for the last several years; poor sleep, waking up in middle of night. Just recently, got a CGM (paid for myself without insurance), blood sugar was dipping into 50s several times a night! Two tablespoons of Peanut Butter (Cadia Organic PB: just peanuts and salt) about 2 hrs before bed and it did the trick, slept for 6hrs straight but for a few weeks only. Will try the carrots, butter, bone both like I've been reading in these comments.
Thank you so much for sharing this. I might get a CGM too so I can see what's going on before my wakeups. That is super low. That's really great you figured your issue out and took the initiative to get a CGM. I hope you keep us posted!
I experienced the same on carnivore and I went back to keto. I never have sleep issues, mood problems, or hunger on keto. My body composition is better on keto as well.
Thanks for sharing this, Yasmin! I am happy you found what works for you. I'm feeling a lot better as I've added some things back in. The smallest things are making the biggest difference so far.
What carbs and how much do you include on keto?
Yes what do you eat on keto exactly?? I've been carnivore for 3 years now and it's not quite working. I'm wanting to add some carbs in but not sure what...
I've done keto for almost 8 yrs. I don't seem to have disruption in my sleep I may up a little earlier, 6-7am, naturally, when I stop eating earlier in evening. Have you tried Alpha State music at night? I did it when I was doing keto It really helped my restfulness I felt when I woke up.
Excellent video ❣️
Yes... I am dealing with the exact same issues...
In addition to all the things you have talked about, there may also be other factors at play, like the microbiome, and blood type. I would like to know what blood type you are... I am type A and I have always done very badly with high quantities of protein.
Thank you for bringing this up! I totally agree with you. I wish I would have included this in the video too, but I really wanted to get it posted and I kept adding more and slowing tings down. :) I'll need to do a separate one on this topic of the microbiome. I don't know much about blood type's impact but I will look into too. I am B+. During strict carnivore, I had a very comprehensive GI test done and I did it out of curiosity and due to the excessive hunger issues. I actually wondered about parasites potentially causing that type of hunger. I had one years ago after living in Thailand. The results were clean and excellent - no overgrowth of anything. The only negative with the results was that I didn't have a lot of bacteria or a lot of diverse bacteria, so they recommended working on that with food or probiotics. My son was also tested and he ate much more of a variety than me, but his results were very similar. It was interesting.
@@LifeDIY Look into the work of Dr. Peter d'Adamo on the relationship between blood types and diet. Although there is controversy surrounding his work, there is no doubt that people with blood type A (like me) have little stomach acid and little intestinal alkaline phosphatase, which makes it difficult to break down protein and fats; whereas people with type 0 have lots of both, and will get sick if they attempt to go vegan. There seems to be a lot of nuance concerning people with type B, they are somewhere in the middle but closer to type 0.
I have been doing Keto for more than 5 years now and although it seemed to work great in the beginning (reversed NAFLD after 10 years, A1C went down, got rid of chronic headaches...), for 3 years now I have been battling major issues - especially lack of sleep, which is literally killing me. I can't sleep AT ALL unless I overeat in the evening - and this has resulted in increased BG & A1C, and weight gain on top of that... My body evidently wants carbs or at least extra protein that it turns to sugar... Any attempt to go strict carnivore has resulted in extreme hunger and feeling "on an empty stomach" - probably because I was starving my microbiome... our gut bugs need to be fed too! Also cramps and bloating - ironically, because I was hoping to get rid of all that by eating only animal foods! Dr. Robert Lustig says that if we don't feed our microbiome (with fiber) it will start feeding on the mucin layer of our gut, and there must be some truth in that because I was in such pain, I could almost feel that someone was gnawing on my insides... and as soon as I ate some vegetables, nuts or seeds, the pain and bloating subsided. But unfortunately those foods don't help with my sleep... After watching your video, yesterday I had 100grams of sourdough bread, and I slept soundly for 7 hours... a miracle!! Thank you 🙏🙏🙏
And yet some 60% of people who go on Keto claim that their sleep improves... while the others say their sleep worsens... why, why, why??? We still have so much to learn!!!
Wow, this is fascinating. You hooked me in when you mentioned low alkaline phosphatase (I have had low levels for years). I asked a doctor about it years back but they didn't really know anything about it. Sorry to hear about the issues you've been dealing with. That sounds horrible. Have you also had any hormone tests? I sometimes wonder if females especially end up with lower levels of certain hormones after doing carnivore or very strict keto for a while. And, this is just based on comments where some people have said that their period stopped, or they started to lose their hair, or they were crying a lot or feeling depressed. To me it sounds like a hormone issue. It could just be age related or a combination of factors. But, most people will say that the fat will cure all your hormone issues. That's fine if they can provide evidence of that happening. I wish more people would do labs before and after to show something like that or share if they're having issues.
I just heard someone talking about the microbiome and how if you don't feed it, it will "feed off of you." Sounds like Dr. Lustig said the same thing. For me when eating all meat, it's like the food was instantly gone the second I ate it - then I was hungrier soon after. I know many people assume it's due to not eating enough fat, but I've been tracking that more closely and believe I do have enough. I can tell based on my glucose and ketones, due to all my tracking. I think some carnivores end up eating way more than what's in the meat - like eating a stick of butter a day. I would get sick from that much added fat. When you did keto, did you test your ketones and were you in ketosis? Have you seen any video by Rob Cywes? If you had a few really important questions for him, feel free to share them with me. I want to try to get ahold of him and get some questions answered!
@@LifeDIY Yes, I am familiar with Dr. Cywes, I have been watching his videos for years and I have seen his video on insulin suppression when it came out..... Maybe he is right, although my feeling is that overeating protein (in order to sleep) has pushed me back into pre-diabetes... my A1C has gone back up to pre-diabetic levels, and I am putting on weight, which is obviously a sign of insulin resistance 😭 Eating high-fat is good for my BG but doesn't help with my sleep... or even with satiety signals... In fact I think I have become leptin resistant, my satiety signals are completely messed up...
I am probably twice your age - I am 58 and have been post-menopausal for 11 years. And that was when my sleep started to deteriorate (although I remember I could never sleep on an empty stomach, even when I was young), but it gradually got worse after I started Keto. There is no doubt that there are hormonal problems involved, but there is nothing I can do about them....
I'll think about questions for Dr. Cywes and I'll write again!
I forgot to mention that I track breath ketones and yes, I have been constantly in ketosis. @@LifeDIY
These are the very things Stephanie the Keto person has been explaining and preaching on her channel...
My (dirty) carnivore diet includes a handful of nuts (4 different) every day.
Almonds for example contain 7,5% carbs (5% pure sugar).
Hope this is enough to trigger a tiny amount of insulin, daily.
Thank you for sharing your insights!
Thanks for taking the time to watch this. 🙏
O am surprised you did not relate salt into this issue. As I improved my salt intake and, specifically, electrolytes from magnesium, my sleep and hunger all seemed to normalize.
You grelin discussion reminded me of why when I get 1.5-2 miles walking I get just super hunger and would kill for food
58 year young man and I’m feeling great on OMAD carnivore, I get the dawn effect where my morning glucose is 103ish, I’ve got tons of energy so much so I really need to burn it off yet my A1c has been trending down to 5.2 from 5.5! My fasted insulin is 4.6 and as an aside my testosterone is 711, let’s just say my blood flow feels like I’m back in my 30’s and my sleep is marginally better. I’ll eat a little vege as my wife isn’t carnivore I suppose that makes me meat. Just goes to show everyone is different, my lipids also put me in LMHR too.
That's awesome to hear how well you're doing on it! And, the A1C dropping down is massive. It's interesting to hear about your insulin levels too. You sound really healthy. Very interesting you're an LMHR too.
Good woman. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you!
Good to know. Dr Boz said to eat in the morning so don't need to wait too long to eat if you can't stand it. So far this works for me. Eating a lot of vegetables do make me as you have described ..being always hungry and need to eat often.
Yes I've heard numerous doctors recently talking about how women may benefit or do better eating in the morning, not fasting. I would end up with GI problems and stomach pain if I had a lot of vegetables. But, I'm finding that adding in a little small serving of carrots after my meal or some other small amount of carbs is getting rid of my hunger issues. :)
Hey a lot of these issues are very related to thyroid issues. Also physcal exercise at a high level such as power lifting and body building require diet adjustments like your carnivore diet but also require a timing to carb load for energy and stamina and fasting for body fat content which also maintains flexibility to cross train other sports for myself it was ice hockey which requires much more hydration and electrolytes. At a certain point you are conditioned to a high level of eating perfoming, and sleeping. The work you do will tire you to sleep properly.
Holly, try no-mato tomatoe sauce. The flavor is very good, and it can be used in small amounts with ground beef etc. to make chili.
Thanks! I am looking it up now. :)
2+ years on carnivore, and never experienced what you've described. Sleep fine, no hunger cravings, no insulin suppression. BTW Physionic channel sucks, full of misinformation and wrong conclusions. Recommend you watch Prof. Bart Kay's responses to his sophomoric 'findings'.
When doing blood work on carnivore, should you be fasted or okay to eat meat before a lab test?
If you're getting cholesterol labs done or glucose tested, you should be fasted.
Amazing, I have been waking up at 3am also. When I do I am craving carbs and I end up eating plain Greek yogurt. Sometimes I also crave the Macadamia nuts.
Great video and very informative, although I'm nowhere near a LMHR to apply to me, yet. For me, carnivore did help with my sleep, after some injury and back pain that I couldn't sleep properly for almost 2 years.
A bit of a late question that was in my head all day. Have you experimented with some rich in magnesium foods? I think there have been some concerns with carnivore people that only eat red meat, as magnesium might be low. So probably dairy, that are problematic for some, sea food, or even greens might help. I personally supplement with Mg because my doctor said my bones lack minerals and I find it interesting that I get sleepy after taking it. I guess it might help, with food or supplements. There are like 7 or more kinds of magnesium supplements, like some for bowels and it's the cheapest, some for hearth and other stuff, and some more expensive ones for brain. The regular ones, the cheapest, do nothing for me.
Wow, a lot of points and information, I’m OMAD, 90% animal based and 10% junk. I’m having similar sleep issues but not the hunger issues. I’ve slept the best all night deep an uninterrupted by eating around 11am with some veg in my meal, pumpkin, cauliflower, sweet potato, so I’m going to try 70% animal based and 5% junk😚..Great video.
Thanks for sharing this. I wonder if it might help to eat more than once a day?
@@LifeDIY thank you, I drive farm machinery mostly for work so I don’t need lots of food and if I eat more than omad I start putting on weight. Even my omad isn’t huge. Info from Dr Mindy’s YT video has me thinking cortisol might be the perpetrator and even give alternate day fasting a go, gee I’d have to find some projects to keep me busy. Thanks Holly..
That make sense. And, cortisol can cause a lot of issues. I had my level tested and mine is quite low.