I had asked Amy to reblog on this, because the original bacon blog item is buried pretty deep.

It seems that Gary Taubes himself had noticed my comments on Amy's blog. He was reading Dr. Eades' blog entry, in which he discussed his exchange with me. (Goodness. All this high-profile attention I'm getting. I'm starting to feel like a celebrity.)

Anyhow, he sent Amy an email, which she forwarded to me. I won't repost an entire piece of private correspondence, but his opening line was priceless; much too good to keep to myself:

I was reading Mike Eades's blog which got me to your blog and the interaction with this guy Patrick who thinks I'm a buffoon.

Despite the less than ideal first impression with which I popped onto Gary Taubes' radar, he supported my commonsense response to the challenges leveled by Dr. Eades and Amy: I don't need to chase down scientific studies to know that a certain diet is not serving me.

Anyhow, it seems the symptoms I experienced were by no means uncommon, contrary to my earlier impressions given all the success stories I was hearing. In the diet industry, this is known by the rather tongue-in-cheek sobriquet, "Atkins flu," an apt moniker considering the symptoms. While I wasn't nauseated or febrile, the most overwhelming symptom was a sense of sluggish and general inability to focus mentally, possibly compounded by my daily exercise habits.

A few people have mentioned similar symptoms, so I wanted to share Gary Taubes' response. Please note, Taubes was very careful to point out that no clinical trials have been done on this, so we cannot know for certain. Anyhow, the prevailing theory is that these symptoms are caused by sodium depletion.

You may remember Dr. Eades reply to me on the previous item (emphasis added): "One other note. People who are overweight and eat a lot of carbs tend to have elevated insulin levels. Insulin makes the kidney reabsorb sodium and the fluid that goes along with it."

Anyhow, it seems the effects can be remedied completely by drinking two cups of chicken broth a day, taking care that this is the normal sodium level variety, not the low-sodium.

Having restarted low-carb again and on my second day of it (yesterday), I went out and picked up some beef bouillon (I saw no difference in the carb and sodium levels of the chicken and beef bouillon (and I forgot that he specified chicken broth). Although, it was only the second day of it, I had already begun feeling the symptoms. I had been constipated that day and the grogginess was setting in. Anyhow, minutes after drinking a cup of the bouillon, the constipation was relieved and elimination was effortless. Also, I felt more energized.

The chicken broth remedy was discovered by Steve Phinney of U.C. Davis. Dr. Eades had discovered this sodium/potassium problem independently and was recommending that patients following a low-carb regimen eat a dill pickle once a day or drink the pickle juice.

Eric Westman of Duke University heard about the chicken remedy from Steve Phinney and prescribes it to Atkins dieters at his clinic.

So for those of you who had similar symptoms to mine, if you're willing to give a low-carb eating strategy another shot, I would recommend the broth (and/or pickle) remedy. As I mentioned above, my recovery was almost instantaneous.

Salting my food excessively will accomplish the same purpose, but using the broth has the added benefit of restoring lost fluid. That's certainly useful, as this type of eating makes me thirsty a lot. But since most people are derelict when it comes to keeping themselves hydrated, I don't consider this to be a bad thing. It's certainly better than feeling sluggish, constipated and miserable.

Thanks again for reblogging this, Amy.

Thank you so much Patrick and Amy. I never knew about the sodium levels. This is just wonderful! :)

Today was the real test for the bouillon treatment. It was my leg day at the gym. When I do legs, among other exercises I do is the squat. For those who don't know what a squat is, it's illustrated here. I do mine in a Smith machine, as it's safer than doing it free weights. A Smith machine is a vertical track to guide the barbell in up and down movements, with the barbell fitted with hooks. If you ever need to set the weight down, simply twist the barbell and the hooks can catch on any of the pegs along the track. So, you can walk away at the top of the squat. Simply twist the bar, lower it until the hooks catch, and then just walk away, and the barbell will remain suspended.

Anyhow, when I was doing the induction phase, the light-headedness I was experiencing truly asserted made its presence felt. Each time I stood up with the barbell across my shoulders, the lightheadedness would renew itself, and I would have to wait a few seconds while I recovered. Upon completing a set, I would nearly lose consciousness. My vision would cloud over completely so I couldn't see. I hung my arms over the suspended bar and leaned against it in case I started to fall over, and waited for my vision to return.

After the third set, I had to abandon this particular exercise in favor of something less exhausting. But today I was able to do six sets of squats and six more of leg press and two of leg extensions. No clouding vision, no lightheadedness. I guess Taubes was right when he said the broth would allow me to avoid the symptoms of Atkins flu. Which is good, because after my first experience with doing squats on induction, I made up my mind that if this diet would interfere with my workouts, it goes.

What I don't understand, Patrick, is why you go back and forth between slamming the Gary Taubes diet and deciding to give it a try. It seems to me that there's a middle ground to be found: accepting that the diet is a good plan for some people, but not necessarily for you. It's not as though there's one right to eat to be thin and healthy and all the rest are wrong. Even if the Taubes diet has the best science, it's not going to be the best plan for every single person.

Gary Taubes himself doesn't have a diet, per se, although his findings come down in firm support of the Atkins diet.

I slammed the Atkins diet because of the side effects it had on me. Effects I considered dangerous. And if you read my posts in the previous thread, it's not hard to see why. But Dr. Eades and Gary Taubes both took it upon themselves to write long and thoughtful replies addressing my symptoms. In fairness to them, I felt I should try again. Besides, as I mentioned before, I'm no longer a practicing personal trainer, but I do dispense advice when asked. While personal trainers cannot prescribe diets, I can refer people to sources. I will not direct anyone to anything I haven't tried myself.

I don't see it as going back and forth. I see it as trying something again when better information has been given to me.

I'm not firmly sold on the Atkins diet. I don't believe legitimate sources of carbohydrates, such as fruit and vegetables, should be regarded as bad for you. That would simply contradict everything we know, even simple external observations, such as the presence of hands with opposable thumbs rather than paws and claws suggest we're built for plucking fruit and vegetables. Our vertical design is less than ideal for catching prey. It is good for picking fruits, nuts and vegetables. Like our nearest relatives, we're probably designed to be tree-dwellers. Given our relatively slow speed, it's a good thing that we have virtually no natural enemies.

Anatomy further bears this out. We can see color, which suggests we're designed to be attracted to colorful fruits and vegetables. We have long digestive tracts like animals who are intended to digest plant matter. Plus there is the awkward fact that we're the only species that has to cook their animal products in order to eat it safely.

On the other hand, it's highly unlikely that the obese in this world got that way by adhering to the dictates of nature. Oreo cookies do not grow on trees, after all.

So, logically, since unnatural eating habits are what causes the obese to get that way in the first place, the other extreme might be in order to bring them back down again. Once a more appropriate body fat percentage is attained, the Atkins diet dictates that high carb healthy foods may be enjoyed again. Even Amy, a low-carb devotee has admitted to having dessert every ten days or so.

I don't accept the idea that potatoes are something never to be eaten. Perhaps some can get away with fewer than others, but the idea that we should never, never, never, never, never eat them is just plain wrong.

It is true that potatoes are high-carb, with a whopping 69 grams. Worse, they rate high on the glycemic index, which means they are absorbed quickly.

Here's a useful site that show the nutritional value of various foods. Simply enter the food item into the search engine and find the nutritional value of each food, including vitamins, minerals, carbs, protein, fat, etc.

The point of posting the site is to point out that potatoes have been much maligned and unjustly so. Low nutrient? Hardly. Here's a side by side comparison of the green beans and potatoes.

Green Beans Potato
Vitamin A 15% 1%
Vitamin C 30% 121%
Vitamin K 20% 7%
Thiamin 6% 20%
Riboflavin 7% 7%
Niacin 4% 17%
Vitamin B6 4% 37%
Folate 10% 17%
Pantothenic
Acid 1% 10%

And in terms of minerals, green beans have a 1% lead over potatoes. Every other mineral is a clean sweep in favor of the potato.

If you want to insist on a low carb diet and state that potatoes are inappropriate for a low carb diet. But claiming their a low nutrient food, especially when touting the virtue of green beans, just isn't true.

I was very skeptical of low-carb diets, but after reading the 'takin his bacon' thread I went and did a lot of 'studying up' (several days, while on vacation) on the 'actual science' of low-carb diets and how the body actually works etc., and was interested to see that all the 'actual science', facts that are known about how the body works, seems to be in full agreement with supporting a low-carb diet approach - in fact, once you look at all the facts, it's perfectly obvious. Also if I look at my own weight fluctuations in the past, the times I lost and gained weight also coincided, respectively, with the times I was eating low-carb style vs high-carb (especially refined carbs).

"What I don't understand, Patrick, is why you go back and forth between slamming the Gary Taubes diet and deciding to give it a try."

Because he made a mistake in his original assessment and commentary and is now trying to reconcile the mistaken and corrected views without losing face by trying to build a 'middle ground'.

"by trying to build a 'middle ground'" ... just to clarify that, of course there is some 'middle ground' between dietary views regarding what diets humans can survive on in different conditions and with different effects and to what degree one can eat 'occasional deserts' while on a low-carb diet and other finicky pointless details like that (pointless since the extremist view is a strawman) - what I mean is there is no actual middle ground between Patrick's initial 'full of it' comment and accepting any legitimacy of low-carb diets, only a painfully constructed false one.

"I'm not firmly sold on the Atkins diet. I don't believe legitimate sources of carbohydrates, such as fruit and vegetables, should be regarded as bad for you."

I also don't believe in strawmen.

Lobster, I am not trying to build a middle ground.

I didn't make a mistake in the original assessment. I described my own experience with it, and I did not make a mistake in doing it.

Also, there is no strawman. How much high carb fruits and vegetables are you allowed to enjoy during the induction phase of the Atkins diet. Answer: Zero.

Out of curiousity, Lobster, why do you eat sand? You're implying you enjoy the occasional "desert."

And I can answer questions directed to me without your help, jackass. Thanks so much.

My brother purchased a new one for my home. But I'm having some trouble and I need help.

All these plans tell you to eat your favorite meat, fish, poultry, cheese, cream, butter and eggs, and green leafy vegetables: cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, lettuce, and so on. It is advisable to cut out some foods, such as sugar and cereals, but include small amounts in your menus and take a controlled diet.

What are the recipes in the diet generator?