‘Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show’ Episode 295: The Best Primal Diet Is A Very High-Fat, Low-Carb One, Nora Gedgaudas Says

Hi everyone. I’m Diane Kress, the author or The Metabolism Miracle. My program and NY Times Best Selling book was written scientifically and realistically for anyone with metabolic syndrome (Met B).

That said, I would like to take a few minutes to speak on behalf of myself and the millions of people in the US and world-wide who suffer the ramifications of uncontrolled Met B. Metabolic syndrome is a cascade of medical problems including midline fat, increasing blood pressure, increasing blood cholesterol/triglycerides, and increasing blood pressure. Untreated, it leads to Type 2 Diabetes. It also carries with it a long list of symptoms that negatively impact your life on a 24/7 basis including: midline fat, easy weight gain/difficult weight loss, depression/anxiety, irritability, carb cravings, restless sleep, fatigue (even first thing in the morning), “crash” between 3-5PM, loss of libido, blurry vision, night driving haze, aches/pains/stiff joints. The combination of serious health consequences and decreased quality of life issues decreases the quality of life and long term health of anyone/everyone who does not get this syndrome under control.

I am proud to say the I am a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator with over 25 years of experience specializing in weight reduction and diabetes management. I will also say that I am a person with Met B and type 2 diabetes. Although I am trained traditionally, I have reworked and restructured a lifestyle program specifically for those of us born with Met B based on the latest scientific research and having proven, documented success with close to 4000 people who have followed the Metabolism Miracle.

The program works…..first time and for everyone with Met B. It is the final chapter in low carb dieting. It takes all of the wonderful information that is now at our disposal in 2009, and is the most thorough approach to low carb dieting for anyone with metabolic syndrome (Met B). Think of MM as the culmination of all the work that’s been done on low carb over 30 years brought to its full fruition. How did the program come about and how did a registered dieitian trained traditionally decide to write a program that goes counter to main stream nutrition philosophy?

A brief factual history:

About 30 years ago, Dr. Atkins (a cardiologist) realized that many of his patients (the ones with Met B) did not respond to a calorie based diet. He found that in those people who had metabolic syndrome, a low carb diet produced good results. You must realize that this was 30 years ago. There was no Nutrition Fact labeling, so Dr. Atkins did the very best he could do with the nutrition tools that were available at the time, and this caused him to take a very black/white approach to low carb dieting. It was the best that could be accomplished with the tools at hand. At that time, it was not known that there was a difference between healthy fat (mono and poly unsaturates) and unhealthy fat (saturated fats). No one knew that hydrogenated fat would be linked to cancer in the future, no one knew that trans fats caused free radicals. In the world 30 years ago, there was limited research on what food was made of…hence, we had taken to eat quite unhealthily (margarine was big, white bread, white rice, white pasta, canned soups, canned veggies were “state of the art then”. So, in this world…..Dr. Atkins made the wonderful discovery that carbohydrate affected a great percentage of the population negatively, but he was working within the world 3 decades ago. Without all the information available, he was never able to figure out how to move a person from eating virtually no carb to being able to eat carbohydrate and continue to lose weight. As a result, most people who follow Atkins end up living very close to his Induction Phase as they begin to balloon back up as soon as they try and increase their carb intake.

Fast forward to Dr. Agatston and The South Beach Diet. Dr. Agatston (also a cardiologist) did nothing to improve the ability to move forward with the ability to eat carb because, as Atkin’s followers realize, the South Beach diet is an “updated” Atkins diet. Induction of Atkins became Phase 1 of South Beach. What’s different with SB? Dr. Agatston simply glossed over Atkins and made the carbs low glycemic, focused on low fat versus liberal fat. But, the inherent flaw (that was not Atkin’s fault as the information was not available in “his time”) remains in SB. As soon as the reader tries to incorporate carb back into his/her life….he will balloon back up. As a result, when a person follows SB, he tends to live in Phase 1.

What is the basis for the Metabolism Miracle? We now know that at least 50% of the populaton who suffer from weight issues have a genetic predisposition to Met B. Metabolism B has, at its root, excess insulin release in the presence of a rise in blood sugar. Insulin is a fat gain hormone. Whenever the blood sugar of someone with Met B rises, their pancreas releases excess insulin and they get fatter (both on their body and in their body (cholesterol). What causes blood sugar to rise? carb and the internal release of sugar from the liver all day/every day. The problem is the OVER RELEASE of insulin…and it spirals out of control.

Watching calories and watching fat grams won’t work for people with Met B as calories and fat don’t necessarily trigger insulin release. Watching carb intake does work because carb causes blood sugar to rise. So, those of us with Met B know that calorie based, low fat, low cholesterol diets do not allow us to lose weight and keep it off.

MM is a 3 step process….Step 1 gives an 8 week “rest” to the pancreas and liver. After 8 weeks, these two organs have stopped their over-release of insulin and sugar and are ready to move on.

Step 2 “trains” the pancreas and liver to work with carb that has been calculated by the author to provide: the right amount of carb (not too much to aggravate the pancreas to release excess insulin, not too little to allow the liver to over-release sugar), the carb is placed methodically (haphazard carb placement throughout the day engages the liver which will over-release sugar), and type of carb (gentle, LGI carb allows the pancreas to release insulin slowly without a knee jerk response).

Dr. Atkins did not have (30 years ago) information about the amount of carb in foods as there was no Nutrient Analysis, did not know about the correct amount of carb to introduce (no Nutrient analysis and no scientific data yet to support the amount of carb that keeps the pancreas/liver combo in check) and was not aware of glycemic index and its affect on the pancreas.

The Metabolism Miracle has taken all the wonderful and important discoveries made by Dr. Atkins and, in combination with current Nutrient analysis and most up to date research on physiology as it applies to metabolic syndrome….this is the one low carb program that will enable you to live a healthy life and be able to re-introduce carbohydrate without gaining weight!

Why introduce carb? Did you know that the only fuel your brain will function optimally on is carbohydrate? Carb is the preferred fuel source of the human body. If it can be reintroduced with no ill effects, why on earth would you spend your life avoiding this valuable nutrient that provides clean energy, vitamins, minerals, and fiber.

Why choose leaner foods instead of high fat foods? When you have Met B, your body has an increased propensity to make fat (remember that insulin is a fat gain hormone and our genetics cause us to over-produce insulin). Why would you want to increase your fat intake when you are striving to be in a fat burning mode? Of course you need fat, fat is a necessary macronutrient used for hormone production , essential fatty acids, and normal metabolism. But, there is no benefit to liberal intake of high fat foods, high saturated fat foods in a body that already over-produces fat. The MM says to consume leaner proteins, cheeses, dairy products but puts no “limits” on these foods….just choose wisely and don’t defeat what you are working to achieve…a leaner more heart-healthy body.

Is Step 3 a high carb step? Absolutely not! Once a person rests/rehabs the pancreas liver (Step 1/weight loss) and then reprograms the panceas and liver to work in unison with carb (Step 2/continued weight reduction), he can move to Step 3 (maintenance for a lifetime at his desired weight). The great thing about the MM is that Maintenance is not a one-size fits all carb allotment….it is tailored to the person’s gender, height, and desired weight. Carb is based on approximately 30% of intake. The typical American diet consists of over 60% carb content daily….in some cases over 70%. Step 3 will give insight into the maximum amount of carb THAT person can consume/day and maintain THAT weight. The rules of amount and timing remain.

There is no cure for Met B. You are born with your genes and we were born with the genes to over-release insulin. The Metabolism Miracle was designed to work with your metabolism instead of against it. It truly is a miracle for those of us who have suffered our entire lives trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. The Metabolism Miracle finally fits.

Thanks for taking the time to read this post. I felt Jimmy’s book review required a response that was factual and based on what this very important book is all about. I look forward to hearing your success stories in the future!

Thanks and be healthy always, Diane

As I have stated both privately and publicly to you Diane, I think your program is wonderful for people who have this Met B condition you describe in your book being very sensitive to carbohydrate. I look forward to sharing my two-part interview with you on my podcast show next week! THANKS for sharing today!

–Jimmy

Look forward to the interview.

I want you all to know (you too, ignorant know-it-all Paul) that I have been following Diane’s diet and it is true and very valuable information she shares – THANK YOU for that. I have never been overweight and always managed my weight (not too much bread, pasta, etc), but after my 3rd child I just started having all the symptoms Diane described. I started out on this and in the 3rd week now, my blood sugar is normal – no more fits of temper, irritability and being tired all the time – and I’ve lost lots of cm + 2 kg (I only have 6 to lose) so I’m not complaining! I