Can someone tell me what vitamins or nutrients are we leaving out by not eating breads, certain veggies, and other carbs? I believe I have a vitamin definciency and I'm not sure what I'm lacking. I didn't have it before this woe so I am wondering if it is something I cut out of my diet and now I have to make it up with supplements. I am just trying to figure out what it is I need. I am fatigued all the time now and my fingernails have ridges and crack and break constantly.

I doubled up on my B12 intake and feel a little better but I think there is still something else missing. I do take a multivitamin and extra calcium and use coconut oil in some of my cooking and getting ready to add a mineral blast and feminine supplement to my diet. Please help?!

shawny

Are you taking a good vitamin E (skin, hair, nails) supplement? Also, maybe a calcium supplement..

One A Day Weight Smart has a bunch of stuff in it that typical multivitamins seem to be missing.. I take that, a fiber supplement, and ginseng and it seems to work for me..

(296/226.5/135) 04/01/03
The Downward Spiral Begins

Yes. I take a calcium supplement. Actually the one I take my body absorbs about 90% of the vitamins unlike the stuff you get in the store which you only absorb about 50% of. I am adding some more supplements from the same company so I will get the maximum benefit, but I do need to check on the vitamin E..hmmmmmmm. That could help I guess, but I thought that the coconut oil would give me the same benefits as the vitamin E. Any comments on that?

shawny

I don't use coconut oil, so no, I have no comments - but, plenty of other people here use it, and rave about it - I'm sure they'll offer some input.

(296/226.5/135) 04/01/03
The Downward Spiral Begins

They are all right on target but if you use fitday, you can tell immediately if you are lacking in anything, as there is a report for that.

Susan

LC and feeling better every day!

Atkins since 7/18/03
210/185/140

You can't miss any vitamins from not eating flour products. They usually have to be vitamin-reinforced as it is.

The single richest source of B vitamins you can bite into is beef liver. They used to make anemic children eat raw beef liver every day to get the B12 out of it. Yucky little fact. You can cook your beef liver with onions and get a very nutritious meal full of vitamins.

Fruits have things like flavonoids and vitamin C that people sometimes are deficient in on high-protein diets. You might want to add more low-carb fruits to your diet. If you're not off induction, that could include fruits like olives, summer squash, eggplant, and tomatoes. If you're on OWL, you can introduce non-tropical fruits like berries, cherries, peaches, and apricots, although you should eat these in cautious proportions -- no pigging out like you would with a salad.

***********************
"Sometimes I think you have to march right in and demand your rights, even if you don't know what your rights are, or who the person is you're talking to. Then on the way out, slam the door."

What about the atkins vitamins and Atkin Accel has anyone used these

Maria
177/161/125
LC since 8/8/03

I've used the Atkins Accel - They seemed to have no affect on me one way or the other, so I gave them up, and just stuck with what I was originally taking.

(296/226.5/135) 04/01/03
The Downward Spiral Begins

In addition to a good multi I take a calcium magnesium zinc tablet. The combination of these three minerals helps deliver more of the calcium. also vitamin E capsules D-alpha, not dl-alpha. The one vitamin we miss from this diet is D because it's found in fish oils and fortified milk mostly. But our bodies will manufacture Vitamin D if we get 20 minutes a day of sunshine. In the dead of winter the amount of D in your multi should take care of any sunshine lack. But if worried a cod liver oil supplement is good, especially at more northern regions.

Rob
310/250/180

From my own experience and from reading here, quite a lot of people have a hard time getting enough potassium.

Supplementing potassium, though, is an iffy proposition. Because too much can be dangerous, using potassium supplements should be done with medical guidance. Besides that, over-the-counter potassium supplements are such a low dose, they are a waste of money. By law, they are limited to 99 mg, while the daily requirement figure I recall is something like 2500 - 3500 mg.

So, it's just much better to try to get your potassium from food sources. By concentrating on some potassium-rich veggies, you can safely increase your potassium intake. LC foods that are high in potassium include:

Beet, mustard, and dandylion greens
Spinach
Zucchini with skin
Chard
Bamboo shoots
Dulse, seaweed

Dulse is really the king of high potassium foods, but it's hard to find. I bought some dried dulse at Whole Foods, and I find the taste to be a bit fishy. However, I am planning to try adding it to a seafood chowder or fish-based soup. I think it would work well in such dishes.

~~~Teelbee

174 (Mar. 2002, highest weight), 164 (Jan. 2003, begin LC)
164/135/137-134
remember, amateurs built the Ark, professionals built the Titanic

Thanks all for the advice. Doubling up on my B12 has helped and I started taking a mineral blast just a few days ago so I will see if that helps. So far my energy level is getting better. I will look into the vitamin E also. Thanks.

shawny