I have paid particular attention to the effect of certain foods on my appetite.
As a keto guy, I wanted to share a few insights.
As you may know, I am part of a Stem Cell Clinic in Guadalajara, Mexico. I have developed an interesting eating pattern when I make that rather frequent trip. Since I intermittently fast, I often have to make some flights without eating. There is usually a stop in Houston on the way, and that flight often hits the runway there around 3:00 PM
A perfect time to break the fast!
But not wanting to eat a full meal, I occasionally have resorted to “ low net carb bars” as fuel. The actual name of these bars will remain unmentioned to protect the guilty, but they are quite famous. The problem is that when I land in Guadalajara, I am ravenous around 10 PM.
Now I don’t get ravenous unless I eat carbs.
I have concluded that so-called low net carb foods are pretty much a scam and do indeed jack your blood sugar and cause carb cravings. If you are keto, avoid them like the plague.
The next seemingly innocuous habit is that of sugar-free gum. A sometime travel companion pointed out I chew a lot of gum. Thinking on this, I realized that I chew almost no gum when I am not traveling but can easily go through a pack in a few hours on the road.
What gives?!
Well, once again, the craving suggests that there are indeed carbs involved. Sugar-free gum is not calorie-free. The paltry two calories per chicklet should not make a difference. But the 2 grams of Carbs might. I actually think this is an inaccurate measurement as my “Carb Meter,” e.g., my appetite goes off! But in a pack, you start to hit 25 grams+ and that over a small amount of time can add up to a high carb food and half of your daily allotment of carbs or more! Since this only seems to happen with cinnamon flavor, I also suspect there may be some other “addictive” component.
Checking this with another keto friend of mine, we both found the same thing when we compared notes.
So beware!
If your appetite is jacked by certain foods that “should not” be interrupting your keto lifestyle, simply get rid or replace those foods with something else that does not. In the case of the gum, I replaced it with a xylitol based gum, and the habitual chewing stopped along with the cravings.
Remember, I also make a great Exogenous Keto Product to help support your low carb and ketogenic lifestyle!
Dr. Dave