ZC vs The Big C

So, I got some news this week that nobody on earth wants to hear:

"Your cancer is back".

It's been a couple months since my last entry (I know....bad bad blogger) so I'll bring this up to date now.

Two years ago I was found to have a rare and rather aggressive form of colorectal cancer.  But after a couple of biopsies, they seemed to have gotten it all and one year ago this month, I was declared NED at the James Cancer Hospital at OSU.  

Uh....errrr....well.....perhaps they missed something.  Or not.  Who really knows?  I'm not wasting energy on that now.  

So, anyhoo, here I am again.  This time I had symptoms and wasted no time getting my hiney (literally, lol) to the doctor for testing.   It's a tumor, a small but messy one.  I'll be headed in for more testing (to determine staging and lymph node involvement etc) and then picking an oncologist.  

I'm upset, sure, but surprisingly at peace.  I had a "dry run" two years ago, and I've learned so much about this particular cancer.  It's true:  knowledge is empowerment.  

Since this is a diet blog first and foremost, I'm going to mention that for about 5 weeks now I've been eating as few carbs as possible.  This WOE is called VLC or ZC for Very Low Carb and Zero Carb.  

You might ask why?

I was amazed to find a few months ago, the discovery by Dr. Otto Warburg that cancer feeds on sugar.

If you are a total brainiac, here's a link for you

If you prefer a shorter, easier to read and understand synopsis, try this one.

Considering my Metabolic Syndrome and concurrent hyperinsulinemia (insulin resistance) and knowing that my body already has a blood sugar malfunction, it only makes sense that continuing to consume as few carbs as possible makes the most sense for me now.  ALL carbs convert to glucose and then triglycerides.   The last thing I need is to give this cancer what it really wants:  glucose!  

What my daily diet looks like now:

B:  usually 2 eggs and bacon.  Sometimes leftover roast beef or steak.

L:  More steak usually.  Yes, I eat the fat. 

D:  Roast beef, steak or turkey.  Chicken in any form has totally lost it's luster for me lately.

I have discovered pemmican, too.  I like it a lot!  

Before you say "Egad, woman!!  Don't you know red meat causes cancer??" please do some research.  Make it unbiased research, please.  Read Gary Taubes "Good Calories Bad Calories", Dr. Barry Groves "Trick and Treat" and some of the information on these blogs before you declare I've lost my mind:

http://www.biblelife.org/stefansson1.htm 

http://livinlavidalocarb.blogspot.com/2006/05/how-about-zero-carb-carniverous-diet.html

http://drbass.com/stefansson1.html

In addition, I started 2 weeks ago on a course of Essiac, and take two glasses daily of KyoGreen Harvest Blend drink.  I also drink 2 ounces daily of a special Acai drink, and have added turmeric to the many other supplements I take daily.  Just covering all bases if I can.

Will I do this exclusively forever?  Not likely.  In fact who knows what I'll feel like eating while on chemo!!  But for now, this is the path I've chosen.  I hope it helps.

Happy New Year, Ya'll!

Ok, ok. So I've been watching too much Paula Deen on TV over the holidays.

Just thought I'd pop in with a New Year's update. Not a lot new on the homefront these days other than the shiny new calendars on the walls. Don't you love new calendars? My faves are the ones with babies on them, or puppies.

The weight loss/low carb thing is going slowly. Having read the Diet Cure by Julia Ross just before Christmas, I'm concentrating on healing my metabolism these days far more than trying to lose at any cost. I'm eating a few more carbs than I was. 30-50 a day average. Dr. Broda Barnes the great thyroid researcher and doctor recommended higher carbs for his hypothyroid/Hashimoto's patients, so that's what I'm doing. I'm actually eating more than I did the past year.

A couple months ago, I discovered that my beloved coffee was making my GERD worse! I gave up coffee and voila, hardly any reflux or heartburn issues since the second day. If you have GERD, you may want to consider giving up coffee. I've discovered the joys of a nice cup of Vanilla Chai tea in the morning, with a bit of heavy cream and stevia.

For many of us, New Year's means New Year's Resolutions. My only New Year's Resolution is not to have any resolutions :-) I decided to begin changing my life and health for the better 2 years ago after a brush with cancer. I'm still on that same path: seeking wellness in whatever ways I can and trying to reverse the damage all my years of uneducated eating have wreaked on my poor body.

For those following the Kimkins debacle, here is an excellent year-end wrap up that bears repeating:
2008: A Kimkins Year in Review
As always, great job, Cleo!

One very interesting diet-related topic I want to share. Did you hear about the lady doctor in Fla. who gave her Alzheimer's husband MCT oil which began immediately correcting his cognitive deficits?

My husband was beginning to show some alarming signs of forgetfulness this fall and winter. Putting his clothing away in the hallway coat closet, losing keys nearly every day, misplacing his wallet, etc. Having trouble remembering dates and plans we had just talked about a day or so ago. So I bought him some MCT oil and he has been using it daily since Mid December. It really has made a difference!

I've been using regular virgin coconut oil myself for going on 2 years now for many reasons. But this was the first time I'd heard of the medium chain triglycerides actually helping to diminish signs of dementia or Alzheimer's. I hope the medical community will pay close attention to this new evidence. Alzheimer's is a horrid disease. We know firsthand: my mother in law died from it 2 years ago.

Hopefully I'll be back soon crowing about my new low weight on the scale. But for now, I'm eating healthfully and trying hard to be patient.

Time for a Brief Update

I don't even pretend to be able to keep up with all the Kimkins updating, education and information presented by my respected blogging pals. I simply don't have the time and anyway, by the time I've thought of it...they've got it covered. So I defer to them.

But a shout out is in order, and kudos to those who have been steadily at work bringing down the Kimpire.

My weight loss journey is and has been at a standstill for some 9 months. Oh, a bit here and a bit there, but no net losses that stay. The same 4-6 lbs on again and off again since I quit the Kimkins starvation diet.

On a positive note: I have learned more about what my body will tolerate and won't, and what I need to do to get the scale moving down again. Pure and simple: exercise. This is the time of year that makes that easier, at least. Mostly it's a lifestyle thing with me. I work on the computer or in my studio averaging about 10 hours a day. No excuses, that's just the way it is.

But with spring in the air and summer gardening beckoning, it's going to be easier to push away from the computer desk or the work table and get outside and move. The pool will warm up, so I can swim. The babies will be here 3 days a week so I can walk them and chase a toddler again. All good things for this old sedentary grandmother.

I'm feeling so good it's obscene :-) I thank my new hormone doctor, Rebecca Glaser, MD for working with me on bioidentical hormone replacement therapy. She is a huge proponent of the way I'm eating these days, and that helps a lot.

I'm also taking 5-HTP and melatonin for sleep. Wonderful stuff that is! I take handfuls of supplements and a couple of prescription meds daily. Some fight cancer (see my previous blog posts for why), some are for weightloss, some are hormones, and some are to help regulate blood sugar and insulin.

I'm still lowcarbing of course. I know it's the way for me. When I go off plan on purpose, the reminders are loud and clear. Bloating, gas, sleepiness after meals, lethargy, headaches and sugar cravings that are very difficult to ignore. Nope...so not worth it.

I'm going to be starting yet another blog soon. I have recognized lately that I need to deal with my ACOA and codependency issues. I'm in a new support group at church that seems very promising. I still feel I need a place where I can journal about this and I know it's a biggie with lots of people. Addictions are addictions and I'm no different than anyone. I need to fully explore my eating habits and preferences alongside the issues that belong to the wife of a part-time functioning alcoholic. So when I have that one up and running I'll post a link.

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there. God bless and have a wonderful weekend.

Time for a Recap!

Oh my...what a strange and eventful year it has been!

I've taken some time off from reporting on the Kimkins fiasco/scam/fraud. I've been concentrating on doing some undercover work and following things very closely, but I've not blogged or been particularly vocal anywhere in recent weeks.

Now, to make up for my silence (heh) I'm going to share a long list of links to some Anti-Kimkins blogs who have done a rather remarkable job this winter of keeping up with the almost constant developments from the Battle to Take Out Kimkins.com.

But first, with the New Year rapidly approaching, I think it's important to add my voice to the growing number of bloggers who are genuinely concerned about those Oh-So-Familiar New Year's Resolutions.

Yeah, you know the one I mean.


The one we all make, "I'm gonna lose a few (or a lot) of pounds finally this year if it kills me."




Let me share something. I just got back from a visit to a new doctor who specializes in hormone rebalancing. You know what she said to me when I told her about my little Kimkins diet experience? "Oh no!! Diets DO NOT work and neither does cutting fat!"

Folks, I could have cried. Or kissed her. It's a very rare doctor indeed who has moved on beyond the Great American Low Fat Mantra. What an answer to prayer!

Please. Remember her words (this is an MD!): Diets DO NOT work! Neither does cutting out fat!

If you've read any of the rest of my blog, or even the title, you know what's coming next.

It's not FAT that makes us fat. It's insulin. What drives up insulin? Carbs.
It's really very simple. Cut carbs, lose the insulin spikes....lose the fat.

Some good ones to consider:
Protein Power, South Beach, Atkins, Dr. Groves (Natural Health and Weight Loss)....just a few of the lower carb eating plans out there. Do the research, try a low carb eating plan (not a diet....it's not a temporary fix, you need to change your entire way of eating!) and see what a difference low carb eating can make in your waistline, your general mood, your overall health.

And here it comes...the one to AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE is Kimkins. Folks, there is simply no more dangerous, nutritionally-bankrupt diet out there than Kimkins. Seriously!

You can expect to see Heidi Diaz aka "Kimmer" spamming the internet over the next couple months because she needs the business. Most of her previous members have fled. It's a ghost-town in the Kimkins forum. But yanno, it's all about the money for Ms Diaz and you can bet she is ready to PREY on those desperate people who have decided that 2008 is their year to lose the weight and get in shape. JUST SAY NO TO KIMKINS!! I can't say it enough.

Please, I did the diet! I know how bad this one is! As if the fact that the founder herself still weighs somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 morbidly-obese pounds and cannot lose the weight herself, following her own diet, then believe the words of her early admins who fled the site one by one (or were banned for questioning the Mighty Kimmer).

In closing, I want to remind you to check all the new links over on the side menu. And here's to a wonderful, prosperous and healthy New Year to you all in 2008!

ETA: JOIN THE LAWSUIT!

Back to ME :-)

Well, it's been a really busy month for me, so it's been a while since I last posted.

I have to tell you about this fabulous, stupendous book I just finished reading!! Honestly, in my opinion Gary Taubes deserves the Pulitzer Prize for this amazing expose on diet, nutrition and the medical/scientific juggernaut that for about a hundred years has been promoting the WRONG nutrients - namely carbohydrates - as the mainstay of our diets.

This book angered me.

I admit it. I have a high level of personal justice. I guess I got that from my dad, the attorney and judge. But seriously, in every chapter I became outraged afresh at the way good science has repeatedly been subjugated to foregone conclusions/agendas by scientists and doctors who should have known better!

If you happen to be new to my blog, and if you happen to be unfamiliar with low carb eating, let me put it into a nutshell for you. Sugar, starch and refined carbohydrate, processed foods are literally killing us. I believe that with all my heart.

I sit here today as proof of what a healthy, standard American diet can do to wreak havoc on your waistline and your overall health. I've been quite a health nut for years. I know I've been eating better than most of the people I know. I have always loved whole grains and vegetables. I baked my own whole grain breads. I bought whole-grain cereals. We always ate vegetables and have had a veggie garden since 2000. I didn't eat a LOT of fruit but that's just because it filled me up and I would hate wasting it. I dearly love bananas and citrus fruit, though. My favorite Christmas gift each year is the big box of Albritton's Fresh Citrus fruit sent to us by the in-laws.

In addition to a well-rounded diet with as much organic and unprocessed foods as I have been able to manage in the past few years, I also take quite a few nutritional supplements such as Kyo-Green Harvest Blend and even eat ---- ack!!! ---- tofu! I love sushi. I love raw foods. I could live on salads.

Wouldn't you expect me to be normal or near-normal weight and in the peak of health? Sure you would expect that. But guess what. As Gary Taubes so eloquently said it in his NYTimes article (cited and linked down below a few blogs ago), It's All Been a Big Fat Lie!

I'm at least 40 lbs overweight. I had cancer last year. My fasting blood sugar last time tested was pre-diabetic range. My thyroid is shot. I'm anemic. I have GERD with Barrett's Esophagus, which is precancerous changes of the esophagus. I have Fatty Liver Disease. I've had high cholesterol for at least 10 years and high triglycerides to boot.

Granted, some of this metabolic damage is no doubt due to my fairly frequent attempts over the past 25 years to lose weight. I've almost never done a sensible, slow diet. I always jump on the fastest weightloss promise/fad out there. I acknowledge that I've undoubtedly done a lot of damage with fad dieting. However. What has led to my constant upward spiral of weight gain?

A "healthy diet" laden with carbs.

In June, I told my doctor "no more statins". I was miserable. Every part of my body ached constantly. My feet and ankles HURT in the morning when I got out of bed and put weight on them. Exercising became torturous. I felt fatigued and sick all the time.

Kicking statin drugs to the curb was the first thing I did in taking back control of my health. The second thing I did turned out to not be such a good thing in the short term but I have to say that starting on the Kimkins diet and becoming familiar with Low Carb eating has completely changed not only my outlook on food and nutrition, but my health as well.

In late Sept., having been off the statins for the first time in 2 years, my numbers were slightly improved! One of these days I'll get the previous years' figures and post them here. But I'm happy to report my LDL is up and my triglycerides are down! Just by eating low carb--YAY!

The aches and pains are gone. Now as for my weight, I've only lost 10 lbs and have been stalling for about 3 months. But I now know it's due to my thyroid. I've been taking Synthroid for 25 yrs. Always took the doctor's word for it when they said, "your thyroid's fine" or "we need to make a small adjustment". Well, another thing I've done recently is learn all about hypothyroidism. Two excellent online resources for thyroid disease are here and here.

I insisted on switching to Armour Thyroid. What a difference! I felt better and more energetic within 3 days. Now, 4 weeks later I can feel my body adjusting to the current dosage so I know I'll need to up it soon. But wow, I honestly know why I read testimonials about Armour with people saying "Armour thyroid gave me my life back".

I think each of us deserves the best health information and care we can get. I believe that in this day and age of managed medicine, it behooves each person to learn as much as we can about our health. After all, my doctor has perhaps hundreds of patients to be concerned with. I only have one patient, ME. If I can learn for myself what is best for my body and my health, I will be the best partner to my doctor in creating a healthy lifestyle for myself.

Right now that lifestyle looks like lots of organic meat, brown eggs, cheeses and butter, with loads of fresh green leafy veggies. I wouldn't go back for anything--not even tempted!

Til next time...take care of yourself! Have a great, cool, Fall weekend and don't forget to set your clocks back tonight :-)

Kudos To 3 Ladies!

I think it only fitting today, in the aftermath of yesterday's devastating news about the founder of the Kimkins diet, to simply share a link to Christin's blog today with her latest comments.

Also, Deni's blog
and Becky's blog

Publicly, I want to say I support Deni, Becky and Christin for doing what's right. They have my deepest respect and support at this most difficult and soul-searching time.

I wish them well in their future endeavors. With the valuable knowledge these ladies have gained about dieting and nutrition, they may be in a good position to continue to bring the truth about any detrimental type of diet such as Kimkins.