In this ep Ben, Karen and Jennifer dig into MTHFR genetics, saturated fats & cooking oils, sleep hygiene, sleep apnea and impacts of cheating on keto.  We discover Karen sautees chicken with water, much to Ben and Jenn’s dismay.  Jenn is contemplating cheating on keto, is this wise?  Ben has concerns.

Products mentioned in this episode

Jarrow Formulas Methyl Folate 5-MTHF

Kirkland Signature Sublingual B-12 5000 mcg

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Ben, Karen and Jenn dig into 4 different ketogenic diet models and discuss how they developed and who should follow each sort. Does unlimited fat keto work for some people? Do calories matter? Who should eat higher protein? Should you limit fat or not? Should Jenn have had so much brisket last night? Who is this Bacon Dan fellow? Continues in part 2. A transcript is available on Youtube, thanks Google!

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Ben and Jennifer break from nutrition to talk about how to use the health care system for your best results. We tap Jennifer’s insider perspective to learn how to leverage your insurance. The key message is be your own advocate in partnership with your time-pressured providers.

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Karen, Ben and Jennifer followup on the last fasting show with a few questions on the details of a successful fast. Sweeteners, insulin and metabolic issues. Show notes below!

Our show is an audio show in the long form, a conversation, not a clickbait soundbite. We recommend you use a podcast player on your phone to listen while driving or doing work around the house. Links below to subscribe in your favorite podcast player.

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If you would like some expert help getting started or troubleshooting your unique situation, consider booking a consulting call with Ben http://impulsiveketo.com/wp/consult/

SHOW NOTES

• 4:00 When can I start fasting? Keto, adaptation, 6 weeeks or more of keto
• 6:30 What can I consume while fasting? Water, black coffee, tea, no sweeteners. Fasting for insulin holiday, weight loss & autophagy vs crutches and 50 cals/day. Why we do fasting/intermittent fasting vs caloric restriction, for hormonal advantages.
• 11:00 Do egg fasts count as fasting because they’re low-insulinogenic? No – eggs are better than Cheerios but protein affects insulin.
• 13:45 Taking supplements while fasting? Skip them, they can be difficult on the stomach, except for electrolytes. Talkw with your doctor about medications – metformin XR in particular is better while fasting. If you need to take some good with meds during a fast, chia pudding is a good choice.
• 20:00 Does coffee interfere with autophagy? We agree coffee is awesome, lengthens telomeres and may have a positive effect on aging and longevity. But it’s not water.
• 22:30 Dry fasting… is that good? Not recommended.. has been observed to lead to hospitalization in some cases. No bueno! We discuss optimal hydration
• 27:00 Exercising while fasting? Zone 2 cardio is great. Heavy resistance training that causes DOMS (delayed onset muscle syndrome)/muscle soreness needs to be repaired using amino acids. Window for supplying amino acids after an intense workout to trigger Muscle Protein Synthesis (MPS) is roughly 4 hours. Branch Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) are useful to optimize recovery. (Ben recommends Nutricost Green Apple BCAAs http://amzn.to/2ASCv42 )
• 39:30 Lemon water while fasting? Citric acids are ok but flavorings can be perceived to be tasty and trigger cephalilc insulin response in some people. Lemon water is great for digestion but not helpful during fasting.
• 42:00 Diabetics whose blood glucose goes up while fasting – what’s going on there? Dawn phenomenon, insulin resistance, exercise – aquafit. Tradeoffs between moderately high blood glucose (120-130) and healing that happens during fasting, Dr. Westman and Fung’s practices discussed, and gluconeogenesis, glucagon responses, beta cell issues.
• 47:00 Is there research showing fasting + keto works to heal insulin resistance more than just keto? No. Valter Longo’s tried to get studies approved but human ethics boards won’t approve studies for fasting in humans, and can’t get funding for fasting since no “products” involved. Research on fasting for longer than 12 hours is not allowed. Some people have beta cell issues that mean they can’t safely fast. Work with your doctor, get a c-peptide test to measure your beta cell health. If you’ve been keto for months and still have a high a1c, get a c-peptide test!
• 53:45 Phinney’s post on Virta Health blog saying fasting is bad for various reasons, whats up with that? He says you lose lean body mass, but that’s what you want with autophagy and when you refeed properly it comes back, mostly. Phinney just says there’s insufficient scientific evidence, which is true (but it’s coming!) Intermittent fasting practitioners have success and don’t report wasting away. Also priorities – recovering from obesity and metabolic disease is higher priority than loss of some lean body mass. Phinney says fasting isn’t necessary, and that’s true, but we say fasting (just intermittent fasts up to 48 hrs) helps with compliance and is safe.
• 106:30 Gut biome and fasting, does that hurt the gut health? Yes but short fasts of up to 48 hours aren’t a huge impact. If your poop’s ok then you’re good to go. Should I feed the gut biome during a fast by taking fiber supplements? Doesn’t seem to be necessary, might be bad, definitely helps fart production. Probiotics on refeeds are a good idea. Disruption of gut biome a sign that longer fasts may be problematic.

FULL TRANSCRIPT FOLLOWS

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