I had an ultrasound yesterday. NO!!! Not THAT kind of ultrasound! I'm almost fifty, remember?
On a couple of business trips over the past three weeks, when I've eaten out in restaurants (read that: pigged out in restaurants) I have had severe pain in my upper abdomen, as well as nausea and vomiting. After extensive online google research, and after conferring with friends who have had similar symptoms, I self diagnosed and went to the doctor to have my self-diagnosis confirmed. Gallstones. Right there on the ultrasound, clear as day, before God and everybody.
Risk factors include: obesity (check), age (check), female (check), sedentary (check), North American (check), family history (check), rapid weight loss (HAPPILY check).
Did you know that about a third of people who have bariatric surgery develop gallstones in the rapid weight loss phase right after the procedure? Well, I have not had bariatric surgery, but I've lost weight at a rate that is kind of similar to people who have had surgery.
Apparently, when you have a very low fat diet, the gallbladder doesn't have to do its work of squirting out bile for fat digestion. The bile (and it's component parts) hang out in the gallbladder and the parts can start forming gallstones. (There are other ways gallstones form, too, but this seems to be the one related to low-fat diets.)
Most of the articles I read emphasize that the risks posed by obesity outweigh (no pun intended) the risks posed by gallstones. One of the articles suggested that adding some fat occasionally might help prevent them, and most of the articles said that moderate physical activity would help prevention.
Chances are, I've had gallstones for quite a while (I have one over 1 inch in size...I'm sure that didn't develop recently!), but the lack of gallbladder activity caused more "sludge" buildup and it showed symptoms after a heavy, fatty meal.
"But wait", you say, "what are you doing eating a heavy, fatty meal?" What indeed! Just excuses...business trip, conference lunch, no way of easily mixing up an Empower meal for lunch, yada, yada, yada. (To try to justify myself, I will say that I did NOT eat the very tempting bread and butter, nor the chocolate covered creme brulee...but the chicken alfredo did me in!)
I don't know what my next steps are. I'm waiting for a phone call from my doctor to discuss the ultrasound results. In order not to have another attack, I'll need to limit my fat intake. But no problem there, I have a cupboard full of low fat Empower foods!
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
I'm baaaack...
Well, I’m back from my month long “100 mile diet”. Not a weight loss diet, you understand, but an “eating local” diet.
My husband and I, along with a few other people from church, only ate food that was grown within 100 miles of our town. It was a fun thing that we had planned for the past year. It went well. Lots of potatoes (from our garden), local corn and donut peaches (from a fruit stand), blackberries from a nearby vacant lot, zucchini (also from the garden), and very expensive meat and chicken. Oh. And milk and butter from local dairies.
Sound fattening? Surprisingly, for the amount of food I ate, there was minimal weight gain. Like 2 pounds. Other people in our group (people who hadn’t been on a strict empower foods plan before the 100 mile experiment) actually lost weight. I’ve got to think that it had to do with eating fresh, whole foods. I need to think through the implications for when I am on a maintenance plan.
Today I’m back on Bo’s plan. I am looking forward to seeing this through until my 50th birthday in early November. You remember that I agreed to try Bo’s plan from June until my birthday…just to see what would happen in that time frame. Kind of like a science experiment.
The experiment worked great for me. 19 pounds from June 14 to August 15, is a pretty successful experiment, in my book.
Other results. I went through the whole summer without having any allergy attacks. Most summers I have very bad hay fever from about July 1st to August 15, but this year, no hay fever. Most summers I’m popping claritan or zyrtec ever day with little effect.
Is it a coincidence that my only no-hay-fever summer in forever is the same summer that I’m on the Empower foods? I don’t know. But I like it!
I’ve heard stories of other people’s results (beside the weight loss): cholesterol levels coming in way lower than before and and not having to take as many Tums or Prilosec. If you have any stories about side benefits to this Empower foods journey, post it in the comments below.
The best things about being back on the plan? 1) The convenience of not having to make everything from scratch and 2) snacks at 10 am !
My husband and I, along with a few other people from church, only ate food that was grown within 100 miles of our town. It was a fun thing that we had planned for the past year. It went well. Lots of potatoes (from our garden), local corn and donut peaches (from a fruit stand), blackberries from a nearby vacant lot, zucchini (also from the garden), and very expensive meat and chicken. Oh. And milk and butter from local dairies.
Sound fattening? Surprisingly, for the amount of food I ate, there was minimal weight gain. Like 2 pounds. Other people in our group (people who hadn’t been on a strict empower foods plan before the 100 mile experiment) actually lost weight. I’ve got to think that it had to do with eating fresh, whole foods. I need to think through the implications for when I am on a maintenance plan.
Today I’m back on Bo’s plan. I am looking forward to seeing this through until my 50th birthday in early November. You remember that I agreed to try Bo’s plan from June until my birthday…just to see what would happen in that time frame. Kind of like a science experiment.
The experiment worked great for me. 19 pounds from June 14 to August 15, is a pretty successful experiment, in my book.
Other results. I went through the whole summer without having any allergy attacks. Most summers I have very bad hay fever from about July 1st to August 15, but this year, no hay fever. Most summers I’m popping claritan or zyrtec ever day with little effect.
Is it a coincidence that my only no-hay-fever summer in forever is the same summer that I’m on the Empower foods? I don’t know. But I like it!
I’ve heard stories of other people’s results (beside the weight loss): cholesterol levels coming in way lower than before and and not having to take as many Tums or Prilosec. If you have any stories about side benefits to this Empower foods journey, post it in the comments below.
The best things about being back on the plan? 1) The convenience of not having to make everything from scratch and 2) snacks at 10 am !
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