Before I get around to my recent ride reports (HPC at PIR and 100MON) I just have to write this down.
Mostly for myself, because I am proud to have found a reliable cause-n-effect relationship and because, you know, I have a few relatives who might have some of the same things going on – this might put a bug in their ear.
Sugar.
My body doesn’t like it.
Rather, my brain LOVEs it – honey, candy, jellybeans, cherry sours, gum drops, hot tamales, kool-aid, I could keep going. But the rest of my body “freaks out” – and that is a direct quote from my attending naturopathic physician.
A short history.
Several years ago I was ‘diagnosed’, by the blood mobile, with hepatitis. I was too young to care and blew it off – I was healthy.
Skip forward 5 years and my life insurance exam also noted high liver enzymes indicative of someone with either hepatitis, heavy drinker/smoker, overweight, or…”It must be the ‘or’ I said…cause none of the others apply”. The ‘or’ I found out was a small cadre of individuals blessed with fatty liver for ‘no reason whatsoever’. I pay more cause the life insurance company only needs one excuse.
Skip forward 5+ more years and a ‘regular’ checkup with my medical doctor showed high cholesterol. Prescription? – “more exercise, it isn’t that high”
Uhhh, I already bike to work nearly every day and I am currently training for the Seattle To Portland classic – putting in 100s of extra miles each month.
Oh…well then take some of this medicine and we’ll check back in 6 months – oh and that medicine might cause some flushing, don’t be alarmed.
Fearing the loss of the better part of my lower intestine, they didn’t bother to explain what flushing was, I again prepared to completely blow it off but maybe having gotten wiser or maybe succumbing to the preponderance of independently verified data AND recognizing that my traditional doctor and nurse hadn’t recognized me for who I am individually I stumbled across a naturopathic physician.
I’ll skip the iterations of blood tests and trial and error in the interest of brevity but I met with her every couple of months for a year as she tried all the usual suspects in search of a root cause. She was also addressing the symptoms and narrowing down the cholesterol numbers to a rather singular portion of the “overall” test – my triglycerides.
With a host of supplements, vitamins, and more minor medications meant to address the symptoms my numbers were slowly coming down but the triglycerides were still in the 250’s when 2 winters ago she recommended going off sugar – as much as possible.
The science, the explanation, and my habits (see aforementioned list of candies) all pointed to this being an issue so I stopped, pretty much cold turkey for about 4-5 months and took the blood test again.
We were dumbfounded – with no new medications my tryglycerides came down to 67.
67! What the heck did you do?
I stopped eating sugar.
Well I should say so…and I think we found your achilles heel.
Indeed we had…in fact, in the coming months, I noticed that I no longer used my skin cremes for eczema…for the most part I wasn’t even having eczema any more.
Right after that I took the leap and began tapering my asthma medication. Now, for most intents and purposes, I don’t need my asthma medication either. I commute hard by bike nearly every morning and only after a cold (or after pie) do I find that I might have a use for some asthma rescue medication – very mild usually.
Long term preventative meds? Totally not necessary.
That has been a lifelong thing with me, since that morning when I was a toddler stumbling into my parents bedroom barely breathing.
The docs said it might go away with age – it didn’t. But they didn’t know anything about the sugar factor.
Skip forward one more year to yesterday. My recent tests came back after 14 months of NO supplements and a steady increase** in sugar and simple carbohydrates estimated by me to be peaking at roughly 40-50% of BN (Before Naturopath) – and my numbers are right on the edge of tolerable.
** read that as me slowly giving in to the difficulties of reducing simple sugars and carbohydrates entirely.
So now, my goal is to tighten the sugar-belt a little bit, some sugar or simple carbs in moderation (if I can stick to it in moderation) will be fine, make sure and balance that with protein intake and fiber (to make it harder for my body to absorb it) and it seems I have found a good balance. We estimate that based on these new findings I can probably eat whatever I want sugar/carb-wise during an endurance event (like 150 miles around the mountain…ohh man those Oreos tasted good that time).
And I remain, for the most part, asthma free, eczema free, medicine free, and on a path to not expressing those genes I clearly have which turn sugar into triglycerides at an alarming rate in my body. Lot’s of triglycerides tend to turn into (or at least be related to) things like hypertension, high blood-pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and probably other bad things.
Oh, and I almost forgot – my liver enzymes are way below normal.
WHA WHA WHA??
This seems to be the last thing to move in the right direction. The blood mobile, the life insurance company, my medical physician, none of them could explain it – for that matter neither can my naturopathic physician. These particular enzymes used to be over 50, as low as 40 on the medicine, and now they are 25 – without any supplements or medicines of any kind, unless you count coffee.
Hell! I dunno!??
Wrapping this up – suffice it to say that sugar and I will have a long-distance relationship from here on out – with an occasional tryst, chaperoned by my bike…naturally.
Now…about that Vitamin D!??
blief 
Well my dear Duffy, this too has been my learning. Rich and I have been managing diet and Eastern/Western medicine since the girls came home. So sick of prescriptions that did nothing but mask symptoms we are watching our diet and our numbers go down. By the way, Moms family all high in bad cholesterol and a number of them fatty livers, myself included! I m Happy to report diet maintains our health too. As few processed foods as possible, limited gluten, sugar and dairy. Funny how the farmers had it right and the government has screwed us up, shall I say, yet again!
Thrilled to know that you are HEALTHY! Oh yes, Rich no longer takes asthma medicine either!
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My experience with naturopathic medicine is similar. I got away from taking all the toxic medications that only masked the symptoms and am managing my colitis condition by eliminating dairy and avoiding gluten. Now I’m going to see what happens if I cut way back on sugar.
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That is great Lief! Why insurance companies (mine at least) don’t cover naturopathic medicine is beyond me. I have been wanting to go to a naturopathic doctor for my seasonal allergies and skin issues but don’t because I would have to pay out of pocket eventhough I am insured through work. I think that I will just go and have the doctor bill insurance and when it is refused then become the squeky wheel and hope for change.
Tom.
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Great news. Thanks for being the guinea. Since we all, in some form or another, have pretty much everything bad you mentioned above, this is very good to know. Now if I can teach my brain how to not want it!! I guess I will keep my bicycle handy as well and the treadmill in close proximity!! Glad your numbers are down!!!
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Congratulations on solving your own personal health Rubik cube! Also it it always so fun to read what and how you write . 🙂
From the books I have read ( from a life time of girly diet books and magazine articles and 10+ years of Anatomy, Physiology & Chemistry books) It seems like an excellent choice and a healthy one.
Are you off all fruit and ALL carbs ALL the time ? and has that been recommended for EVER?? Read that question as is meant- truly a question not a criticism. I am just curious because it seems to go against what they are teaching us in school; how the role of sugar is important in cell rejuvenation, brain function and nearly all human processes. To be fair I am not at a holistic school, and I realize I AM at a school with peers who likely are similar to those who failed you originally. So I was just wondering.
I am impressed by your research and your success. Cutting sugar seems to have nothing but benefits for YOU and our human population. I too have found the same result but for different issues . I found I concentrate better, stay awake, and sleep better when I am off sugar! All requirements for being a full time student !
I have been off candy , cake, cookie and sweeteners for quite a while now and I say I aim to be sugar free . . . and I am ( most the time ;D). However I eat fruit and WW bread ( sometimes rice bread but not too often) and other simple carbs and natural sugars ( natural~ as in . . . kids ears and noses they are pure candy I am sure !) Therefore I get plenty ( if not excess) of what my books call “good sugars”, I know I could still be healthy and happy and still make more changes, but the availability, cost and convenience of being PURELY sugar free play a role in my overall happiness too.
Though I read it will be getting even easier and more convenient to be “sugar free” ( in the generic sense as I use it ) soon, there was article in the New Yorker last month about how the Pepsi Co. is moving in that direction, and to Freshen up their foods. I personally would have major trust issues trusting Pepsi to be healthy and fresh but for all of us who pack almonds in every bag, pocket and purse for a “just in case” snack convenience would be nice .
Also it is extra sweet that that you can have a “reward” on your long bike trips.
Cheers to Health, Wealth and Happiness!!
Jen
Here is New Yorker article. Worth the read, just for the taste-bud science 🙂
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/05/16/110516fa_fact_seabrook
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Thanks for the info Lief. Sugar is a bugger. Thanks for hanging in there with the docs too, it is nearly impossible to get real answers from MDs in a 20 minute appointment. We have been trying to watch it lately too and when we are good we are very good and when we are bad, uf. We’re trying to be good. I have even bought some diabetic snack bars to wean us a bit.
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Completely and utterly unrelated to my post yet right on the mark in my opinion- I find this today in my RSS feed reader. Didn’t go looking for it mind you.
http://www.lifehacker.com/5809331/what-sugar-actually-does-to-your-brain-and-body
I love lifehacker.
Some things this says:
@bopop – going off sugar hardcore may be difficult, I talk kinda big but other than that first three months I havent been off it 100% this whole time cause really, you need sugars to make your brain work. That said – tapering for my mind set (a lot like yours) is difficult as well.
@Jen – this article describes exactly what my naturopath says, fruit sugars – when they are in fruit- are ok mostly because your body has to work at getting the sugar and it tells you that your full sooner. So, no, I still eat fruits when I want. But not in that first three months I didn’t. And I am not a naturally high fruit eater type.
@allthe rest of you. Thanks for the well wishes. I highly recommend the naturopathic approach and striving to eat better based on what your body needs/does with it’s food. We are a lot the same but we’re all different. 🙂
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Thank you Lief! Many of the symptoms/diseases you describe are in the Z genes; this is the first time I have seen it linked to refined sugars, though.
My Dad (your Great Grandpa Z) tried — in vain — to keep us kids from having too much white sugar. He didn’t realize that brown sugar is probably almost identically bad.
I hereby commit to start reducing my sugar intake (I already have limited it) to see what happens to my blood pressure and cholesterol.
I hope it’s not too late for me!!
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Cool beans! Not jelly beans, of course, I’m talking pinto, lima, fava, etc. It’s interesting the link sugar has w/ the eczema and the asthma. It’s a good reminder how our body is impacted by the foods we eat. I gotta go, I need to grab a candy bar : )
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This is a great post.
I mentioned this to our friends who were visiting two nights ago. When I described your different symptoms their eyes got big and they said they knew someone with the exact same symptoms in the blood and liver.
They are going to mention this blog and tip the guy off that maybe there is this simple solution.
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Wow! That is great.
I guess I can use this blog “for good” after all. 🙂
I have had several folks (like six or seven) outside of these comments indicate that they read this post and all of them said they weren’t aware of these details and they will see how or if they can make a change in sugar consumption as well.
I suppose I should follow this post up with the stuff I have learned about good sugar substitutes. That might help with some of the taste needs for folks.
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