What a Difference a Year Made

Merry Christmas! In a little while, I'll be with my family, celebrating with a low-carb Christmas dinner. We'll be snacking on the low-carb goodies I made for them yesterday: low-carb chocolate peanut butter cookies, pate, roasted almonds, and some goat cheese I bought. Why low-carb? Because in the past year, cutting down on carbs has solved so many problems for me and my mother.

A year ago today when I started this blog, I was eating a high-carb (~180 grams per day), low-fat, adequate protein diet. I was scheduled for a root canal. I needed acid blockers, four-hour naps every weekend, frequent meals, and visits to the chiropractor. I was also anemic and putting on weight. This, even though I ate so-called "good carbs" and worked out six days a week.

In January, I cut out wheat and began slowly losing weight and feeling less bloated. In February, I cut way, way down on all carbs (to around 50 grams per day) and the fat fell off fast. My need for the naps, frequent meals and back cracking evaporated. My chronic congestion and acid reflux went away and my shoulder stopped hurting. (One of my dance teachers made the same comment about her knee: sugar makes it hurt.) My teeth are whiter and healthier, too. Those so-called "good carbs" or "complex carbohydrates" are, except for fiber, just starch. They're sugar molecules holding hands. When you eat starch, it turns into sugar.

My mother is diabetic, so it's extremely important for her to limit carbs. She, too, eliminated wheat--even though she once said she never would. She understands what raises her blood sugar, and has gotten it into a range that shouldn't cause organ and tissue damage. (It was 99 this morning.)

But the biggest change I've seen in both of us is that our spirits and energy have risen. My hairstylist remarked that I'd gotten in touch with my inner 12-year-old; my mom has never been so happy. Was that the hole in our souls--too much sugar and a lack of dietary fat?