Dilemma... warning TMI
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4031isaiah
Posts: 1,253 Member
I posted this in another community that I am part of but thought there might be some value in getting input from here as well...
I’ve been low carb/ keto/ carnivores since last April. I feel better but have not seen the same kind of results I’ve heard others report. I think mostly because my body doesn’t seem to process and eliminate effectively.
I already had issues going to the washroom to begin with and had been taking up to four 150mg tablets of magnesium citrate to make things move but since going keto/carnivores, I have tried LITERALLY everything to get and keep things moving regularly with no success. I don’t want to become reliant on laxatives and most fibre supplements (especially psyllium) actually makes things way worse!
I recently tried prunes and discovered that 4/Day seems to help more than anything else I’ve tried in years! The problem is, 4 prunes is 17 carbs! 3g fibre, 14g sugar.
Would adding 4 prunes to my regular diet defeat the purpose of sticking to an otherwise keto friendly diet?
I’ve been low carb/ keto/ carnivores since last April. I feel better but have not seen the same kind of results I’ve heard others report. I think mostly because my body doesn’t seem to process and eliminate effectively.
I already had issues going to the washroom to begin with and had been taking up to four 150mg tablets of magnesium citrate to make things move but since going keto/carnivores, I have tried LITERALLY everything to get and keep things moving regularly with no success. I don’t want to become reliant on laxatives and most fibre supplements (especially psyllium) actually makes things way worse!
I recently tried prunes and discovered that 4/Day seems to help more than anything else I’ve tried in years! The problem is, 4 prunes is 17 carbs! 3g fibre, 14g sugar.
Would adding 4 prunes to my regular diet defeat the purpose of sticking to an otherwise keto friendly diet?
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4031isaiah wrote: »Would adding 4 prunes to my regular diet defeat the purpose of sticking to an otherwise keto friendly diet?
Not as far as I'm concerned. We're all different. You will most likely find, if you research any topic, there is expert opinion to support every hypothesis...at opposing ends of every spectrum. There is no one true way.
If your ultimate reason for eating in the low carb spectrum is weight loss, a few carbs aren't going to be problematic. If your goal is control of seizures, migraines, etc...perhaps you might concern yourself with a few prunes. I am quite certain others will have a completely different opinion.
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Have you tried taking Mag O7? It works for me.0
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I’m not sure what that is.0
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4031isaiah wrote: »Would adding 4 prunes to my regular diet defeat the purpose of sticking to an otherwise keto friendly diet?
Not as far as I'm concerned. We're all different. You will most likely find, if you research any topic, there is expert opinion to support every hypothesis...at opposing ends of every spectrum. There is no one true way.
If your ultimate reason for eating in the low carb spectrum is weight loss, a few carbs aren't going to be problematic. If your goal is control of seizures, migraines, etc...perhaps you might concern yourself with a few prunes. I am quite certain others will have a completely different opinion.
Thanks. You’re probably right. I was just wondering if anyone else had any insights or suggestions. I’m going to keeping trying it for a few more days to see if it actually helps to achieve normal and/or regular BMs.
I don’t have any health issue like you described, I just want to follow the keto WOE. I like how I feel and the freedom it gives me with food, but I also want to keep an open mind about what is best for my body long term.1 -
This is a bit out in left field but you might want to research a couple of somewhat unrelated (yet related) things. Bowel management for paraplegics or those with colonostomy bags.
Sounds a bit odd perhaps but my Dad was a paraplegic and had to learn to manage his bowels via food, timing and even exertion (to a degree). Any chance the added prunes came at the time of more activity and it might be the activity or combination of both?
My Mom had a colonostomy and she too had to learn to manage her bowels via food.
I'm sure there must be quite a bit of info on the internet regarding bowel habits for those with either condition. You could disregard the specifics to the condition/s and focus on the rest. Bless their hearts. They both had a time of it initially but they learned a lot about various foods, the effects on their digestive tract and how to manage things. Just a thought....1 -
4031isaiah wrote: »I’m not sure what that is.
Here is a link: https://smile.amazon.com/Aerobic-Life-Digestive-Cleanser-Capsules/dp/B000PKEJR0/ref=sr_1_2_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1514519662&sr=8-2&keywords=mag+o7&th=10 -
This is a bit out in left field but you might want to research a couple of somewhat unrelated (yet related) things. Bowel management for paraplegics or those with colonostomy bags.
Sounds a bit odd perhaps but my Dad was a paraplegic and had to learn to manage his bowels via food, timing and even exertion (to a degree). Any chance the added prunes came at the time of more activity and it might be the activity or combination of both?
My Mom had a colonostomy and she too had to learn to manage her bowels via food.
I'm sure there must be quite a bit of info on the internet regarding bowel habits for those with either condition. You could disregard the specifics to the condition/s and focus on the rest. Bless their hearts. They both had a time of it initially but they learned a lot about various foods, the effects on their digestive tract and how to manage things. Just a thought....
Great insights! I’ll look more into that for sure.2 -
Hello I am on keto too. I take 2 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar “ACV” with 8 oz water 30 mins before breakfast, lunch, and dinner. With breakfast I have a Bullet Proof Coffee. “BPC” is coffee blended with 1 tbsp Coconut Oil, 1 tbsp Kerry Gold Butter and a splash of Heavy Whipping Cream “HWC” or sometimes a little more. I also add a shot of stevia for sweetness. Within 30 mins you can pretty guarantee your bowels moving! Also I take a fiber supplement before bed to help stuff along too. If I feel like things are not moving, I’ll drink Smooth Move tea, as well. However, be careful with the tea and take it before you go to bed. It can make for a very uncomfortable moment if you haven’t gone in a while. So far the BPC has done its job every day.1
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Thanks. I don’t drink coffee so I’ve tried butter and/or coconut (MCT) oil blended into tea but it just made me feel nauseous. I have some pretty tricky digestive issues that also don’t respond well to fibre supplements which is why I was initially excited about then prunes working.
It worked for about 3 days and then everything came to an abrupt halt. On day 4, I reacted to the prunes the same way I do to every other type of fibre. I got cramps and bloating, no action and nothing but discomfort since.
I took two laxatives last night and two tonight and am hoping that following a strict keto no fibre diet will help me get back to “my” normal.0 -
have you had your thyroid and pitutitary function checked? you can always try some adrenal and thyroid / pitutiary bovine glandulars to see if that helps. That's a last case senario.
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Are you drinking enough water and getting some exercise? Walking will help move things through your bowels and being adequately hydrated will help a great deal as well. I notice things slow a bit when I am eating a lot of protein and not drinking enough water. Cheese will also tend to slow things down. Keep on eye on what is coming out and that can determine where you might be lacking in some way.
Here is the handy dandy poop chart:
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Believe it or not, I have had my thyroid tested and am told it’s “normal”. My naturopath also recommended a bovine thyroid supplement which was expensive and I don’t recall noticing any change.0
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This is awesome! ... a little gross but awesome! Thanks.Are you drinking enough water and getting some exercise? Walking will help move things through your bowels and being adequately hydrated will help a great deal as well. I notice things slow a bit when I am eating a lot of protein and not drinking enough water. Cheese will also tend to slow things down. Keep on eye on what is coming out and that can determine where you might be lacking in some way.
Here is the handy dandy poop chart:
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I have all manner of digestive drama. The thing that helped the most was adding digestive enzymes. For me, I specifically needed to add one with ox bile...because I don't have a gallbladder...so anyone without a gallbladder or with a low functioning gallbladder might benefit... Coffee didn't help me. Coconut oil and MCT oil gave me extremely distressed and violent diarrhea complete with acid-bile lubrication...so pure misery... I go back and forth from too loose to too tight... Enzymes are really the only thing that help me...
My personal brand preference is NOW brand Super Enyzmes...but I've tried a few others, too... Solaray just doesn't have enough of the bile/breakdown enzymes and so I have to take more pills, then I end up with too much acid, etc. Enzymedica just has the breakdown stuff without the bile extracts, so that one helped when paired with another one, sometimes (I got a small sample bottle for free, paid shipping)...but I keep coming back to the NOW ones...
My experiences are very n=1, and different than many. I'm not a medical person, but I've been working on my digestion for a few years now, so this is just my experience. I'm of the opinion that if you're struggling that much, it can't hurt to try them...(allergies and specific medical conditions excepted...)0 -
Are you actually constipated or just eliminating less waste less frequently? Constipation is the discomfort of having full bowels and being unable to eliminate without difficulty....
Keto, and most especially carnivores, typically produce much less waste and therefore actually don't "need" to go nearly as often. If you browse some carnivore sites or look up Shawn Baker... some people comment about only going every 3 or 4 days... simply because of less waste, there is no discomfort or difficulty eliminating...
I experienced digestive/elimination issues almost my entire life. When I first went keto, I blissfully became very regular which then became needing to go every few days. I don't really eat at keto levels anymore, but my digestive system stays on track without discomfort as long as I don't incorporate too many carbs too many days in a row.4 -
kimberwolf71 wrote: »Are you actually constipated or just eliminating less waste less frequently? Constipation is the discomfort of having full bowels and being unable to eliminate without difficulty....
Keto, and most especially carnivores, typically produce much less waste and therefore actually don't "need" to go nearly as often. If you browse some carnivore sites or look up Shawn Baker... some people comment about only going every 3 or 4 days... simply because of less waste, there is no discomfort or difficulty eliminating...
I experienced digestive/elimination issues almost my entire life. When I first went keto, I blissfully became very regular which then became needing to go every few days. I don't really eat at keto levels anymore, but my digestive system stays on track without discomfort as long as I don't incorporate too many carbs too many days in a row.
This was exactly what I was thinking. If you take the fiber supplements and prunes and such out of your diet how do you feel? I know fiber tends to make me bloated and gross feeling. I normally eat a very low carb keto diet and while I don't "go" very often I don't feel badly in the least. A portion of fiber is undigested and unused by the body so naturally it's eliminated. Without a lot of fiber you might not have a lot to eliminate.
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Are you drinking enough water and getting some exercise? Walking will help move things through your bowels and being adequately hydrated will help a great deal as well. I notice things slow a bit when I am eating a lot of protein and not drinking enough water. Cheese will also tend to slow things down. Keep on eye on what is coming out and that can determine where you might be lacking in some way.
Here is the handy dandy poop chart:
Goodness what can I say? Love this chart!! Not sure I've seen smiley faces on mine though maybe I should check more frequently/regularly, now that sounds like how often one should go..............0 -
kimberwolf71 wrote: »Are you actually constipated or just eliminating less waste less frequently? Constipation is the discomfort of having full bowels and being unable to eliminate without difficulty....
Keto, and most especially carnivores, typically produce much less waste and therefore actually don't "need" to go nearly as often. If you browse some carnivore sites or look up Shawn Baker... some people comment about only going every 3 or 4 days... simply because of less waste, there is no discomfort or difficulty eliminating...
I experienced digestive/elimination issues almost my entire life. When I first went keto, I blissfully became very regular which then became needing to go every few days. I don't really eat at keto levels anymore, but my digestive system stays on track without discomfort as long as I don't incorporate too many carbs too many days in a row.
Digestive issues and chronic constipation along with inflammation and a host of other issues that led to a 50+ lb weight gain is what brought me to keto in the first place.
I recognize the difference between going less frequently because there is simply less waste verses not being able to go when I know I need to. The difference for me is uncomfortable and unmistakable.0 -
kimberwolf71 wrote: »Are you actually constipated or just eliminating less waste less frequently? Constipation is the discomfort of having full bowels and being unable to eliminate without difficulty....
Keto, and most especially carnivores, typically produce much less waste and therefore actually don't "need" to go nearly as often. If you browse some carnivore sites or look up Shawn Baker... some people comment about only going every 3 or 4 days... simply because of less waste, there is no discomfort or difficulty eliminating...
I experienced digestive/elimination issues almost my entire life. When I first went keto, I blissfully became very regular which then became needing to go every few days. I don't really eat at keto levels anymore, but my digestive system stays on track without discomfort as long as I don't incorporate too many carbs too many days in a row.
This was exactly what I was thinking. If you take the fiber supplements and prunes and such out of your diet how do you feel? I know fiber tends to make me bloated and gross feeling. I normally eat a very low carb keto diet and while I don't "go" very often I don't feel badly in the least. A portion of fiber is undigested and unused by the body so naturally it's eliminated. Without a lot of fiber you might not have a lot to eliminate.
I don’t go near fibre supplements especially those containing psyllium. It produces the exact opposite effect in a painful way. I tried prunes because I was getting tired of taking so much magnesium with such minimal results.
The prune thing only lasted 4 days with the fourth ending in discomfort and a need for regular laxatives.
... back to the drawing board...
My new plan is to go 0 carb for the month of January and see what results I get with that.1 -
Sorry you are experiencing such ongoing issues that keto hasn't been helping with. Many people who were previously "very regular" get quite concerned when the stop going as often and think they are constipated when they aren't!
I have my fingers crossed for you that ZC literally produces some results!! That type of discomfort on a regular basis has got to be extremely unpleasant! Good luck0
