The truth about carbs..

Thanks for posting this......I'm a big GT fan!  The last part "how we get hooked"  Described me perfectly.....except add in 250 units of insulin per day!  Very "vicious" and deadly  cycle to be in.......glad to be out of it! 

worthy post. this confirms what was stated in "The End of Overeating" by Dr. Kessler - a great book - that the sugar/fat/salf combo of food companies has addictive qualities very close to that of cocaine.

It really helps to understand this I think.

Diane

So I've been thinking about this a lot and talking to a few of my friends who are both carb addicts and nutritionists as well. I know that for me strong abstinence works, but many find abstinence nearly impossible, and it seem to set them off into a tail spin. In their mind they feel deprived and just end up caving and binging, or they get to a point where they just don't care and eat what ever.

One of the strategies we considered sharing with others is the idea of including what we call "methadone" foods or "crutch" foods. These are foods that mimic the higher carb foods without the same level of damage. If you look at what I posted yesterday, I posted a recipe for nut butter cookies and low carb cheesecake.

These would be crutch foods.. if you are going to "cheat", it's better to cheat with something like that, in our opinion, then going out and having real cheesecake or cookies. For me those treats are even yummier than the real thing, since my tastes for sugar are so different from having been off of it for so long.

Methadone foods can hit the spot, without completely hooking you again. Now of course methadone foods should be eaten as occasional treats and not every day items, but can certainly keep people from going completely off the wagon, so to speak.

Now as long as I have been on low carb, I have seen a low carb or modified version of just about any junk food you can think of. So for those who are craving chips, there are low carb chip recipes, etc. I'm thinking of sharing some of these recipes for those who are struggling and see if that helps people stay on plan more. I'm curious what folks think about this idea?

For those that struggle with the carb cravings, and say jones for chips and the like, do you think a "faux" chip would help you get past the carb craving hump?

not sure about the faux chip thing - what about produce? I want salt, how about salt on a sweet potato or something? that might work for me.

Kale chips, I've always wanted to try these.. be right back with the recipe.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Tuscan-Kale-Chi ps-351240

I would like to see some of those recipes.  If it works, I'm all for it!

The deprivation leading to what I call a re-feed happens to me. I'm actually a little leery of my post surgery plan because it is a low carb, lo fat, high protein diet. My last pitfall I fell into was Atkins (though I stayed too long in the no-carb phase..) I have no issues eating high protein, mod fat & lo-glycemic though?

The faux-carbs sometimes made me crave the real thing.. but that was me.. and if I was walking a more balanced line, I think they would be fine. If I was already struggling, I think those PB cookies could tip me.

Yeah the faux carb "makes" me want the REAL deal too.  I'm now being 3 years out trying to get back in tow with my low carb lifestyle with the only different is eating carbs in the form of fruits.

Ms Shell

That is so true for some but I know for me over TIME I want to real thing and the "faux" just doesn't cut it and of course then over time I'm eating more.  I know it's a lifetime battle and some day I win and some days I lose but I win more often.  I'm detoxing right now and my sweet have been apples and/or oranges or no sugar added applesauce.  For salt I just do nuts or pork skins.

Ms Shell

I can relate.. this is why I am such a nazi all the time with what I eat and save even the faux stuff for special occasions.  But for some people being as strict as I am doesn't work well.. they need more leeway, and others can handle the real deal.. just having it in small quantities seems to kill the urge for me.  We are all different.. I just thought I'd offer the idea of faux stuff for people who it might help.