Showing posts with label oxalates. Show all posts
Showing posts with label oxalates. Show all posts

Monday, February 10, 2020

Anatomy of a Bulletproof Beverage


Bulletproof coffee is a thing now. I had a family member who briefly tried ‘keto’ who made some (and didn’t like it.) When I was in a rehab center after my stroke, I used the pitiful bits of butter I could get in my coffee, since I didn’t want to waste them on the often-lukewarm food. 

The purpose of a bulletproof beverage is to get healthy fats into your body. Note that in Keto * Low-Carb we go by science when we think about what fats are healthy, not by what big national organizations claim are healthy fats— they’d have us using CANOLA oil! Remember there are people trying to sell us on the idea that sugary Honey-Nut Cheerios are ‘heart-healthy’ just because they have oat ingredients in among all the sugar and carbs.
Because ‘keto’ is trendy right now, you have to beware of trying random advice about what is allowed on Keto * Low-Carb. You can’t use ‘creamers’ in your coffee— not only are they processed food, but they have sugars and starches and probably very little HEALTHY fat. 

A bulletproof beverage consists of three parts— the basic beverage (coffee, tea, cocoa/carob and hot water, bone broth), a healthy fat (butter, coconut oil, MCT oil, extra-virgin olive oil, home-made ghee, perhaps heavy whipping cream or coconut milk/cream as a lightener) and, possibly, additions. Like cinnamon— healthy for diabetics— a pinch of sea salt or a bit of kelp powder, or any other thing that is healthy in small amounts and tastes well in your bulletproof beverage.

I have never been a big coffee drinker, but I started using some instant coffee when I read about the oxalate problem with tea. I still drink some tea, but not as much and I don’t care for additives in it. I currently have three brands of instant coffee in my house, one of them imported from Germany. 

On the few occasions I have been able to afford Kerrygold butter, I reserved it all for bulletproof beverages so the goodness wouldn’t be wasted. I use MCT oil when I can, because it’s helpful in getting into ketosis or staying in ketosis. Since I can’t afford a lot of MCT oil, I use coconut oil as well— it CONTAINS some MCT. I used to use butter as well, but ever since I first made ghee, I prefer the taste of that. 

When I was in the rehab center I got some extra-virgin olive oil to put in my coffee, but that tasted just too dire. Butter in my coffee was a treat, EVOO in coffee just wrecked a good cup of coffee. Since coming home, I found that if I put in 1/2 Tablespoon to 1 Tablespoon of EVOO in my coffee and have 1 Tablespoon of MCT oil, butter, ghee or some other tasty fat source, I can’t taste the EVOO. 

SWEETENERS are not normally used in bulletproof beverages, but when I do a hot cocoa/carob BP beverages, I use a few drops of liquid Stevia (Sweetleaf.) On Fridays on other penitential occasions I use as few drops as possible and can handle a hot cocoa with only 2 drops of stevia. Carob doesn’t even need a sweetener really. If you are really ‘hooked’ on sweetened beverages, so that you needed a couple of Tablespoons of sugar in your coffee or tea back when you ate carbs, you can use whatever amount of liquid stevia you need, but try to taper off, and also sometimes take a break from the sweetener. We need to break our addiction to constant sweet things!

Have you ever made a bulletproof coffee, bulletproof tea or other bulletproof beverage? Did you like it? Is it a regular part of your Keto * Low-Carb life right now? Please share your experiences in a com

Tuesday, August 7, 2018

Do the veggies in your keto diet put you at risk for oxalate poisoning?

Recently I listened to an episode of Jimmy Moore's Livin' La Vida Low-Carb podcast which featured nutritionist Sally K. Norton, who warned listeners of the dangers of foods high in oxalates. These foods include many popular on the keto diet: spinach, almonds, peanuts, chocolate, swiss chard, tumeric, and cinnamon.

She tells of one case where some young children got kidney stones from the consumption of almond milk. The fact that oxalates can be toxic has been known since the 1930s.

Oxalate poisoning can cause many symptoms, and most medical doctors don't think that it may be at the root of the problem. Sally Norton gives on her web site a list of the symptoms that might be associated with an excess of oxalates: https://sallyknorton.com/symptoms/

Rhubarb leaves are high in oxalates--- so much so that many of us have heard that rhubarb leaves are poison. And they can in fact cause death from kidney failure.

Some low-oxalate greens you may use to replace spinach in your diet: arugula (what's arugula?), lettuce, bok choi, cabbage and watercress. And meats raised properly (grass-fed? raised without hormones?) are a healing food.

I am personally reducing my consumption of tea and chocolate, and eliminating almond and peanut products and spinach from my diet. Since I have kidney problems related to my diabetes, I think that's wise.

The podcast I talked about can be found on this web page: http://www.thelivinlowcarbshow.com/shownotes/17322/1412-sally-norton-sounds-the-alarm-on-the-oxalate-toxicity-of-eating-plants/     I listened to the podcast 3 times so far, it was that informative and inspiring.

Sally K. Norton's web site is full of information: https://sallyknorton.com