Why I Stopped the GAPS Diet |
AD

Why I Stopped the GAPS Diet

admin December 3, 2015

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been talking about how our family is going (back) on the GAPS diet, and how necessary it is to heal our guts.  It’s been my go-to whenever I’m concerned about gut health, for years now.  (Since early 2010 anyway.)  It’s the most popular and most thorough solution to dealing with gut damage.

But it doesn’t work for everyone.

See, we’re biochemically individuals.  In fact, there was a recent study that came out, proving it!  (See how scientists were shocked that peoples’ bodies don’t react to foods in the same way.)

That means that while GAPS might be amazing for some, it could be a disaster for others.  There’s much more going on than just gut flora.  I’ll tell you my story.

Beginning GAPS (Again)

I started GAPS in mid-November after we were settled in our new home.  About a week or so sooner than the rest of the family did, I eased onto the diet.  I let them finish up their grain- and sugar-containing foods (like vanilla yogurt and muffins).

Everything was going okay.  I realized I would need to be careful about carbs since I’m exclusively breastfeeding my 5-month-old.  I solved that by having stuff known to be a belly fat burner like a fruit smoothie or an apple each day, and I felt good.

But, then there was the weekend prior to Thanksgiving.  Things got busy.  I grabbed a salad with grilled shrimp for lunch, and a bowl of soup for dinner.  Sunday was more leftover soup.  I had a smoothie with coconut milk and strawberries, but berries are very low in carbs.

Monday morning, I woke up feeling fine.  After breakfast (bacon and eggs), I felt a little dizzy and strange.  After lunch (ground beef and cauliflower) I felt even more dizzy and weak and a little nauseous.  And after dinner (soup made with tomato puree, stock, onions, and ground beef) I felt really sick and weak.

By Tuesday morning I was so weak I could hardly get up.  I knew it was not some kind of virus because I was still using the bathroom normally.  I was starving, and yet I did not feel like I could eat.

Naturally, I began to do some research.

I learned that what had happened was that my blood sugar had dropped significantly because of the lack of glucose.  When our bodies don’t get enough carbs, they must make glucose from fat and protein (which is possible) through a process called glycolysis.  Not everyone is able to make that conversion easily…and I clearly wasn’t, so with each meal, my blood sugar was dropping lower and I was feeling worse.

The one and only thing I had on Monday that made me feel better, and not worse, was a cup of herbal tea with raw honey.  Glucose.

After this experience, I overall did, and do, feel worse than before starting.

why i stopped GAPS diet

The Problem with GAPS

There are a couple of problems with GAPS.

GAPS is not specifically a low-carb diet.  In fact, if you focus heavily on coconut flour, fruit, honey, and squash, it can even be on the higher-carb side.  But, when you’re on the intro diet (which does not allow most of those things in the early stages), or if you are not paying attention, it is easy to stick to just veggies and meat (plain or in soup form) and end up going low carb.

Many people find themselves falling into a rut with GAPS, where they are lower-carb than is probably good for them.  The lack of energy leads to hormone imbalances, weight gain, anxiety, depression, and other worsening of symptoms.  Some people even find themselves becoming more and more sensitive to foods, rather than less!

Not everyone’s body responds well to low-carb, or to GAPS foods.

Further, messing with the fat/carb/protein ratio can mess with your hormones.  I found my anxiety, which had been under control, spiked terribly.  Hormone balance and anxiety are a couple of my main reasons for doing GAPS, so this was very disheartening.  It seemed like it caused further gut damage as well, which is also the opposite of what I was going for!  (And, high protein diets can really mess with some peoples’ kidneys…so there’s that, too.  Kidneys are an important detox pathway, so this is no small issue.)

Die-Off VS Problems

Now, some might say, “No, you’re wrong.  That was just die-off.  You need to keep pushing ahead and you will get past it, and then you will be so much better!”

But no.

I have done many different detox diets over the last 6 years.  I know what die-off feels like.  And, I was taking regular detox baths and resting and taking all my probiotics (multiple times a day) and plenty of stock and fat.  Sometimes, after taking these, I’d feel very tired and need to rest, and feel mildly ‘off’ for a while — that is die-off.

This “getting worse after every meal” was not.  And, if I’d continued down the path, I’d have been non-functional within a day, and that is not okay when I have a breastfed baby who is relying on me, not to mention four other children and a business to run.  That was not an option.

Plus, there are many stories out there of people who initially feel better on GAPS, and then after weeks or months, begin to get worse again.  This is a “thing” that happens.  Not to everyone — some could live on a paleo/GAPS diet forever and feel great.  But that’s not for everyone.

Grain- and Starch-Free Is Not “Better”

These days, everyone is all into grain-free and starch-free diets.  They say that potatoes and all grains (especially gluten-containing grains) are bad for everyone.  I’ve seen so many articles on this, claiming that no one should eat these foods anymore.

But it’s not true.

Some people happen to react badly to those foods and do better avoiding or limiting them.  Other people need a more balanced approach to their food, with a higher rate of carbs.  No food, especially a whole, unprocessed, organic food, is ever “bad” for everyone.

What matters is what really works for you.  Do you feel stronger?  More energetic?  Healthier?  Then go with it.  If it makes you feel weak, sluggish, foggy, or have other issues, then don’t eat it.  It’s really that simple.

There’s no place for “these are the universal eating rules.”

In fact, some people will find their adrenals crashing and burning, anxiety or depression worsening, and more, because of lack of nutrients and/or lack of fuel (carbs).  That can really set back any form of healing.  And that’s no good at all.

What Next?

Soon I’ll share what we’ve decided to do next.  Two weeks in, and we haven’t seen any change in anyone’s health.  I have some new ideas, though, so they will come soon.

Have you done GAPS?  Did it work for you?

This is the writings of:

admin
AD

7 Comments

  1. Glycolysis is the breakdown of glucose to get energy. Gluconeogenesis is the process of making glucose. You cannot directly make carbs from fat. Some carbons would be missing. Plants can. We cannot.

    Reply

  2. This whole thing is so frustrating to me. I just saw a new doctor a few weeks ago to try to figure out why I feel so tired and have other health issues (don’t want to bore you with the list.) Without knowing anything about me (except for knowing a few basic symptoms, nothing about my diet, lifestyle, etc.) he told me to go off wheat and milk. Now I owe him $475.00. We’re waiting on tons of blood work to come back and I was supposed to do a cortisol test. I’ve done the test before and know I have Adrenal fatigue so I’m not sure I want to pay the $200.00 to do it again.

    I just want to know what’s good for my body without going through months of trial and error and $475.00 for a doctor to tell me what I could have read in a book for $13.00 and may or may not apply to me.

    I’m looking forward to reading what you’re doing now. Maybe it will be a place for me to start!

    Reply

  3. I think you were experiencing ‘keto flu’ or your body switching into ketosis. Your body can’t make glucose from fats, but it can make ketone bodies which are a more efficient energy source. When changing this process you might feel crappy for a week or so, but once in ketosis everything changes. I feel better than ever while in ketosis – and I’ve been doing a ketogenic diet for almost two years and have been nursing the whole time.

    Reply

  4. My family did GAPS strictly for a few months and it didn’t work for me or my infant son. The amount of protein and fat actually worsened my and my breastfed son’s digestive symptoms, which was why we started GAPS in the first place. I am now on a fairly low protein and (gasp) low-moderate fat diet with LOTS of fruit, starchy vegetables (like potatoes!), non-gluten grains, and a little meat/fish (no more than one small serving a day). This high carb, low protein and low-moderate fat diet has been absolutely miraculous for my son and me. We are both symptom free now, with excellent digestion. For us, had I stayed on GAPS, I would have gotten more and more sick. My liver and pancreas were not handling all the fat and protein.

    Reply

  5. Agreed. My doc said absolutely do not diet while breastfeeding. The hormone fluctuations alone can be dangerous..

    Reply

  6. Any ideas about alternatives to grain/starch free diets for those who need them but still want to heal the gut?

    Reply

  7. Did you ever write a follow-up article about what you decided to do instead? I’d love to read it, but can’t find a link. Thanks in advance!

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Sangeetha Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Hi, I’m Kate.  I love medical freedom, sharing natural remedies, developing real food recipes, and gentle parenting. My goal is to teach you how to live your life free from Big Pharma, Big Food, and Big Government by learning about herbs, cooking, and sustainable practices.

I’m the author of Natural Remedies for Kids and the owner and lead herbalist at EarthleyI hope you’ll join me on the journey to a free and healthy life!

Meet My Family
Top
Love our content? Sign up for our weekly newsletter and get our FREE Nourished Living Cookbook!